Excruciating on multiple levels

Rating: 1/10 (26 June 2007)

It is nearly impossible to comprehend how a relatively durable series like Die Hard could take such a devastating crash in this third (and worst) outing. The original was an immensely enjoyable action spectacle. While the sequel lacked its predecessors intelligence, it was fast-paced and entertaining. By contrast, this latest effort is a tiresome, chaotic waste. Part of the problem is that the plot was reportedly taken from other sources and usurped by the Die Hard franchise and the shoe-horning shows. Does anyone buy for a moment that the married couple we watched in the first two films has inexplicably separated again and the heroic McClane (Bruce Willis) has turned into a washed-up embittered old drunk? The film makes a major misstep out of the starting gate by presenting a character that we are familiar with from two prior films and depicting him in a way and in a state that makes little narrative sense. The plot (such as it is) also relies heavily on coincidence, illogic motivation and general stupidity. The villain is played by Oscar-winner Jeremy Irons, who is purportedly the brother of the Alan Rickman character from the original, and who turns in a performance so dreadful it must be seen to be believed. He drops clues to various traps/bombs around NYC and has McClane and the police running frantically all over the place. In the absence of the reliable Bonnie Bedelia and Reginald Veljohnson, the plot rather incoherently conspires a reason to throw together the belabored Willis with an African-American shop owner, played by Samuel L. Jackson. Rather than amusing banter a la Lethal Weapon, we get two characters, particularly in Jackson's case, who seem to actively despise each other for the duration of the film. Worse, Jackson is portrayed as an over-the-top racist/bigot, who can barely make it through any scene without some raging anti-white sentiment amidst a flurry of foul language being unleashed. It is wearisome enough that the filmmakers actually seem to think this should be funny, but even worse it shows Jackson schooling his grandchildren in this same sort of vile outlook and tries to play it for cheap laughs. Of course, then this is used as the set-up for a predictably lazy action sequence later on which firmly highlights the film's total lack of originality. When it becomes apparent that a school is one of Irons' bombing targets, it is a foregone conclusion that the following will fall into place: a) it will be the school attended by Jackson's grandchildren, and b) there will be some ludicrous cockamamie reason why the grandchildren will be the only ones not evacuated from the school forcing a dire rescue attempt. Interestingly, the prior films in the series did provide a colorful cast of supporting characters to help/hinder the hero in his venture. Not so here, where the supporting cast is relatively interchangeable and instantly forgettable. The action sequences are utterly devoid of any tension or excitement, and the finale pretty much sputters out like a match in the wind. One can only hope that more than a decade has given the filmmakers some insight in which to improve the upcoming sequel from the debacle they hit with this one.