For an action franchise to succeed, the series must continually up the ante, throwing characters in even more unbelievable situations. "Die hard: With a Vengeance" does just that. It's fast, it's funny, and light years ahead of the disappointing "Die hard 2."
Once again, John McClane (Bruce Willis) finds himself on the wrong end of a bad day. A terrorist bomber named Simon (Jeremy Irons) is holding the entire city of New York hostage, requesting only McClane perform a wild series of tasks. Caught up in the mix is Zeus Carver (Samuel L. Jackson), forced to tag along after inadvertently getting involved. With the police caught up in the situation, the terrorist group begins their plan of robbing the Federal Reserve Bank of $140 billion worth of gold.
Yes, this third edition of the box office favorite doesn't try to be intelligent. The plot is straightforward, tosses out a few nice twists, and moves on to more action scenes. These are unrelenting, stretching believability in new directions. But, that's why it works.
Once again the entire movie is taken from Bruce Willis, this time carried by Samuel L. Jackson. Originally written as a sequel to "Lethal Weapon," his character is obviously supposed to be Danny Glover. The difference being that Jackson is more talented, spouting off priceless lines, many of which were likely ad-libbed. Jeremy Irons does a fine job as the typical terrorist, his mind games creating a deep level of tension.
Of course, the action is where the movie leaves its mark on fans. Filmed almost entirely in New York, stunts range from a taxi tearing through Central Park to an entire subway station collapsing upon itself. A few of these are eerily reminiscent of the 9-11 attacks so viewers who are sensitive to the subject should likely stay away. The only real complaints to the overall production are the awful special effects (particularly the sewer flooding) that are archaic for a film made in 1995.
What makes this third installment succeed is that it doesn't try to equal the original, something that plagued the first sequel. It settles for the usual rushes of adrenalin, keeping audiences glued to their seats for the entire running time. "Die Hard 3" is just flat out fun to watch with a flawless combination of wild action, comedy, and stunt work. (**** out of *****)
Like the both of the films before it, Fox presents the movie in the original 2.35:1 aspect ratio. At first glance, this transfer is absolutely immaculate. Beautiful color, no compression problems, and a fine attention to detail give this the illusion of perfection. Looking closer reveals aggravating, irritating, and downright frustrating edge enhancement. Every single scene makes it look like the actors have some sort of "halo" around their bodies, ruining what is otherwise a fine transfer. The print also features some disturbing damage for a film less than ten years old. You'll see a lot of scratches and specks pop up at various moments. (***)
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