I Wouldn't Call It Better, But This Was Pretty Damn Cool!

Rating: 10/10 (1 September 2015)

Die Hard is the greatest action movie of all time. Nothing else has surpassed it, not even its sequels. While Die Hard 2 recycles the story of the original, this elevates the stakes and opens up a larger can of whoop-ass!
1988's Die Hard had a simple concept: one cop battles twelve terrorists who have seized a building. In 1990's Die Harder, one cop battles even more terrorists in an airport. The first Die Hard was fresh and magical, had a cooler bad guy and had more build-ups. This one has a more complex plot, more twists, better and more action, and more at stake.
John McClane (Willis) is taking a Christmas vacation with his wife (Bedelia) in Washington DC. Meanwhile, sadistic Col. Stuart (Sadler) and his crew of terrorists completely take over the airport to guarantee the safe arrival and getaway of infamous drug lord (Nero). The terminal security and police won't listen to John who knows about terrorists very well. Planes will crash and loyalty will change and only John McClane can save the day and his wife from certain death.
As I mentioned, this has better and more action (probably the most violent in the series). There's one action scene were the terrorists take out a SWAT team and McClane explodes out of an air tunnel and destroys them all. Easily the best scene in the series. Although this does not have quite as much suspense built up as in the first, Die Hard 2 makes up for it by having super intense violence and chase scenes. The base of the terrorists isn't even in the airport, so there's the wonder of "how?" The terrorists shut down the lights on the landing, so any landing plane will crash. We want his wife to make it out alive. This is where the stakes are raised again: she stands a greater chance of dying than in the first.
I love everything this movie has. It is almost as good as the first and one of the truly best action flicks ever!
4/4