A Good Day To Die Hard

Directed by John Moore
Starring Bruce Willis as John McClane
In UK Cinemas February 14th, 2013

by Gillian Wood

In the 25 years since the first Die Hard film, the formula, somewhat refreshingly, hasn’t changed. I was relieved to see that the Americans, as always, were the good guys and that the Russians were, most definitely, the bad guys.  This was brilliantly reinforced by the sinister music played as John boarded his Aeroflot flight to Moscow.

There was a real ‘family’ feel to the film with the father / son combo (the McClanes) up against the father / daughter combo (the Komarovs). The film opens with John receiving information as to the whereabouts of his estranged son, Jack. It appears that Jack has ended up in Russia on the wrong side. So John takes it upon himself to travel to Russia and save his son from the bad guys. Cue slow mo shots of Russian flag waving, several explosions, gun fire, bad guys in suits, and a long car chase sequence, which I couldn’t help thinking must have saved the script writers a lot of time.

As with the other Die Hards, there is a definite tongue in cheek element to the film. The audience were laughing throughout, which I am hoping is what the makers of the film intended. The scene featuring a mysterious spray that neutralises radiation (they end up in Chernobyl) had the audience howling with laughter. As did the final action sequence.

This is a great film if you’re in need of some totally bombastic explosive escapism. However, if looking for a balanced and in depth analysis of US / Russian relations, then it’s probably best to look elsewhere.