A Good Day to Die Hard

Starring: Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney, Sebastian Koch, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Yuliya Snigir, Rasha Bukvic, Cole Hauser
Directed by: John Moore
Rating: R
Genre: Action, Thriller
2013

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: John McClane (Bruce Willis) travels to Russia to check on his son (Jai Courtney) and gets caught up in a plot to free a political prisoner.

Review:

Tim: Worst Die Hard movie ever. That's not hyperbole, and it's not even close. This movie was really bad. When I saw this film in theaters, I almost walked out 25 minutes in. As the movie went on, it gets slightly better, but not a whole lot. This is a disappointing, joyless, soulless and hollow film. It's a nonsensical mess, and it killed me how bad this film was. It's not like we get John McClane movies every year, and there's only so many more times Bruce Willis will play this role. I'm shocked by how weak and lackluster this movie was. It's truly a disappointment. I was really excited for the first twenty minutes. It was great to see McClane once again on the big screen. By the time he gets to Russia, the movie falls apart. McClane is screaming at his son (who is being chased by bad guys trying to kill him), and just yelling at no one in particular. It felt like a old man, talking to himself. Watch the big car chase scene- how often does McClane just yell "Jesus!" or yell at someone who can't hear him. It's completely absurd, and this movie turned John McClane into an old, unlikable, sad little man. I hated that aspect.

The dialogue was pretty bad. Outside of a few cool moments (I liked the scene where McClane's son eavesdrops on him, and there is a legitimately touching father-son moment), the whole film is filled with weak, cringe-worthy dialogue. I'll never forget McClane's "Jack! Get out of the truck!" line, which was awful on so many levels. The dialogue in this film sucked.

I loved seeing Bruce Willis in this role, but I really miss the old John McClane. This one seemed unlikable- he's a jerk to his son, annoying, and just ran his mouth way, way too much. That's not the John McClane I know. The weak script did him no favors. I thought Jai Courtney was average. He certainly seemed like McClane's son, which is an achievement. He's not a great actor, though.

The action was fine, but disappointing in that McClane just seemed so invincible, and so much of the action was absurd. The big car chase scene was exciting, but completely impossible. Cars flip, drive over other cars, and the whole thing felt loud but unconvincing. The whole Chernobyl thing was pretty weak, and I still have questions about the whole radioactivity aspect. The final helicopter fight scene just seemed weak and poorly thought out. The action scenes all felt hollow. There was nothing exciting or particularly memorable about any of them. That was very disappointing.

This just didn't feel like a Die Hard movie to me. It takes place in Russia, and has much more to do with McClane's son than McClane himself. It wasn't of the quality of the previous films (Die Hard 2: Die Harder was previously my least favorite film in the franchise, and this one is far worse).

I went into this hoping that the movie would be better than it looked. Unfortunately, it was worse. This is easily the worst film in the franchise. A Good Day to Die Hard was a disappointing movie. It wasn't completely awful, but it's really, really weak. I can't believe this franchise sank this low.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 6


If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Die Hard, Die Hard 2: Die Harder, Die Hard With a Vengeance, Live Free or Die Hard