Yippie ki-yay, Ruskies!
Trailer (complete with dialogue that isn't in the actual movie):
John McClane Jr. is a CIA agent on a secret mission to take down a politician in Russia. The politician's ex-partner in crime is in prison and about to go on trial. So JMC Jr. gets himself put in prison, too. He has a file with info that implicates the politician. John McClane Sr. thinks his son is a drug dealer. He goes to Russia to somehow get his son out of trouble. The day of the trial all hell breaks loose!
I remember in the original Die Hard John McClane (Sr.) had to walk on broken glass and it was a serious impediment. Apparently he was a wussy when he was younger, because old man McClane is just short of wearing a cape and red underwear over his pants in comparison. This isn't anything new, each sequel in this series has seen McClane get into bigger and bigger fights. I mentioned sequel disease in a previous review.
The action here is pleasing. The effects are enjoyable. There are a couple of really nice slow motion effects shots that stand out. John McClane Sr.'s dialogue is hokey at its best, and eye-roll worthy at its worst. It seems at times as though the only reason he speaks at all is to throw out those outdated action movie one-liners. If he spoke 1/3 his actual lines in the film I bet you wouldn't notice the difference. At least he gets to fully articulate the F-word in this one again.
The father/son storyline about a distant relationship created by McClane Sr. always working when Jr. was young is a tired trope. The emotional meeting of minds they eventually come to feels forced, but so does their strained relationship to begin with. And of course their SOPs (standard operating procedures) are exact opposites as well. Young McClane can't stand that old McClane always rushes in like a bull in a china shop without a plan.
I didn't feel like this movie was a waste of my time like the previous Die Hard. I give it *** 3 stars.
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