If you’ve seen the TV spots promoting A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD you pretty well know what this movie is all about…
Namely 98 minutes of rolling gun battles, explosions, violence and car chases. All punctuated by semi-clever one-liners uttered by Bruce Willis.
Guess you’d call that truth in advertising.
In this fifth outing of the franchise, New York city cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) goes global by trying to help out his estranged son Jack who’s involved in a top secret mission in Moscow — and prevent a nuclear weapon’s heist in the process.
At least I think that’s what this is all about.
As for John, Jr.—Jack McClane—well, let’s just say the apple hasn’t fallen far from the tree. In some ways the kid may even be more of a hardass than his father.
He’s played by Jai Courtney, most recent of JACK REACHER.
“Need a hug? We’re not a hugging family.”
Watching these two trying to keep each other alive is what most of the major movie action is all about.
The highlight has to be an inc
redible car chase through the streets of Moscow. No, make that demolition derby.
Road rage gone wild.
Leave it to John McClane to show the Russians how to smash ’em up REAL good.
“You know what I hate about Americans? Everything.”
Ironically when watching the film’s end-credits, most of the names were attached to stunts and special effects—which again this flick is really all about. And most of it was filmed in Budapest, Hungary.
The real question is whether yesterday’s action heroes in lead roles can still deliver at the box office?
Arnold Schwarzenegger wasn’t able to pull it off in THE LAST STAND.
Neither did Sly Stallone with BULLET TO THE HEAD.
But being that this latest DIE HARD outing comes as a continuation of a highly successful franchise should give Willis a leg up over the other geezers.
I guess if there’s one central theme to DIE HARD 5 – in John McClane’s own words – it would be, “The shit we do for our kids.”
A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD raising 3 out of 5 fingers solely for its action sequences.
The rest of it? Yippie ki-yay.
JACK GOES TO THE MOVIES: Friday mornings on KMBZ Fm & Am / Also anytime on Time Warner Cable’s K.C. ON DEMAND-Channel 411 / And throughout Nebraska on NEBRASKA ON DEMAND.
I found the film to a be a step too far off the cliff for the franchise. The last film crossed over the line and seemingly destroyed all the good work the first two films created (the third film was a warning of things to come but it still had some of the charm of the first two). Those first two films were story driven and accentuated by the violence. The last two films are just violence for violence sake and the stories are wafer thin.
If you’re a fan of playing HALO and/or love Micheal Bay films then Die Hard V will probably work for you. If you would rather keep your healthy memories of the Die Hard franchise alive, don’t go see this. Think about what the last three Star Wars Films did for your love of the first three Star Wars films – it’s similar to that!
This strikes me as bloody violent Tarantino wanna-bee – except in place of ‘N’ words, horses, 6 shooters, and a gratuitously gory pogrom against whitey, there are ‘F’ bombs, airports, machine guns and snappy repartee – amid a gratuitously gory pogrom against Muscovites.
Other than that, it might be OK.
If there is no scenes with Justin Long squinting over a computer monitor I will consider this film a success.
Geeeeez, what a choice for Thursday night. Carol Burnett or Bruce Willis. Guess geezer Hearne chose the old lady.