Die Hard 2

Die Hard 2 is a 1990 American action thriller film and the second installment in the Die Hard film series. The film was released on July 4, 1990 in the United States. The film was directed by Renny Harlin, written by Steven E. deSouza and Doug Richardson and stars Bruce Willis as John McClane. The film co-stars Bonnie Bedelia, William Sadler, Art Evans, William Atherton, Franco Nero, Dennis Franz, Fred Thompson, John Amos and Reginald VelJohnson.
The screenplay was adapted from Walter Wager's novel 58 Minutes. The novel has the same plot but differs slightly: a cop must stop terrorists who take an airport hostage while his daughter's plane circles overhead, and has 58 minutes to do so before the plane crashes. Roderick Thorp, who wrote the novel Nothing Lasts Forever, upon which Die Hard was based, receives credit for creating "certain original characters", although his name is misspelled onscreen as "Roderick Thorpe".
As with the first film, the action in Die Hard 2 takes place on Christmas Eve. McClane is waiting for his wife to land at Washington Dulles International Airport when terrorists take over the air traffic control system. He must stop the terrorists before his wife's plane and several other incoming flights that are circling the airport run out of fuel and crash. During the night, McClane must also contend with airport police and a military commander, none of whom want his assistance.
The film was preceded by Die Hard (1988) and followed by Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995), Live Free or Die Hard (2007), and A Good Day to Die Hard (2013).
== Plot ==
On Christmas Eve two years after the events of Die Hard, John McClane, now a lieutenant with the Los Angeles Police Department, arrives at Dulles International Airport to pick up his wife, Holly. Meanwhile, a plane carrying corrupt foreign military leader General Ramon Esperanza is also headed to Dulles under extradition for using U.S. funds to buy drugs. Waiting to meet Esperanza's plane is disgraced former Colonel William Stuart and a group of ex-military sympathizers who supported Esperanza's actions. Suspicious, McClane follows two of Stuart's men into a restricted baggage sorting area where a gun fight ensues. McClane kills one man, but the other escapes.
With the help of his friend, Sergeant Al Powell, he discovers that the dead man's fingerprints correspond to an American soldier who died in a helicopter accident two years ago. Putting this together with Esperanza's imminent arrival, McClane reports his concerns to the airport police chief, Carmine Lorenzo, and air traffic control director Ed Trudeau, but neither believe him. They are convinced when Stuart and his men, operating out of a church on the outskirts of the airport, cut all communications with incoming airplanes, disable all runway lighting, and demand that Esperanza's plane be allowed to land without interference. Trudeau orders all air traffic controllers to have all planes in Dulles airspace hold in the air, despite their low fuel warnings. McClane becomes worried about Holly's plane and enlists the help of the airport janitor Marvin to fight back.
Chief airport engineer Leslie Barnes decides to try using an unfinished antenna array to communicate with the airplanes circling the airport. Carmine sends an airport SWAT team with him, but Stuart's men kill them all, except for Barnes who is saved by McClane. In retaliation, Stuart crashes a British airplane by pretending to be the air traffic control tower and faking the airplane's altimeter reading.
Once Esperanza's plane lands, McClane wounds Esperanza before Stuart and his men arrive. They blow up the plane and take Esperanza to the church, but fail to kill McClane.
A U.S. Special Forces team arrives, led by Major Grant, for whom Stuart is a protégé. Grant's men and McClane attack the church. McClane kills one of Stuart's men and gives chase with his gun, but the men escape. Confused as to why he failed to wound anyone, McClane realizes the gun was filled with blanks, meaning Grant's team is cooperating with Stuart. Grant, Stuart, their men, and Esperanza all rendezvous at an airport hangar where a Boeing 747 they demanded is waiting for them.
On Holly's flight, arrogant reporter Richard Thornburg becomes suspicious as to why the plane hasn't landed. He taps into the cockpit communications and records an earlier surreptitious transmission from Barnes to all the circling airplanes describing the situation. In the airplane's lavatory, he broadcasts the recording live on television, leading to a panic in the airport terminal which prevents McClane and Carmine from getting to the 747. Holly subdues Thornburg with a fellow passenger's stun gun.
McClane asks a news crew to fly him via helicopter, to the runway where the 747 plans to take off. When the helicopter pilot refuses to block the 747, McClane asks the pilot to fly near the plane so that he can jump onto the wing. He uses his coat to jam the aileron, preventing the plane from taking off. McClane kills Grant and in the struggle with Stuart, opens the fuel valve in the wing. When Stuart pushes McClane off the wing, McClane uses a cigarette lighter to ignite the fuel trail, exploding the plane and killing everyone on board. The fire trail also serves as a landing guide for all airborne planes, including Holly's, to land safely.
After McClane and Holly are reunited, Marvin picks them up in his golf cart and drives them away.
== Cast ==
* Bruce Willis as John McClane
* Bonnie Bedelia as Holly Gennero McClane
* William Atherton as Dick Thornburg
* Reginald VelJohnson as Sergeant Al Powell
* Franco Nero as General Ramon Esperanza
* William Sadler as Colonel William Stuart
* John Amos as Major Grant
* Dennis Franz as Captain Carmine Lorenzo
* Art Evans as Leslie Barnes, airport chief engineer
* Fred Thompson as Ed Trudeau, air traffic flight director
* Tom Bower as Marvin
* Sheila McCarthy as Samantha "Sam" Coleman
* Robert Costanzo as Sergeant Vito Lorenzo
* Colm Meaney as Windsor Pilot
Additional cast members include Stuart's henchmen: Don Harvey as Garber, John Costelloe as Sergeant Oswald Cochrane, Vondie Curtis-Hall as Miller, John Leguizamo as Burke, Robert Patrickas O'Reilly, Tom Verica as Kahn, Tony Ganios as Baker, Michael Cunningham as Sheldon, Peter Nelson as Thompson, Ken Baldwin as Mulkey, and Mark Boone Junior as Shockley. Patrick O'Nealappears as Telford, Major Grant's radio operator.
Category:1990 films
Category:20th Century Fox films
Category:Silver Pictures films
Category:Rated R
Category:Die Hard (film series)
Category:Films starring Bruce Willis
Category:Action
Category:Thriller
Category:Films on VHS
Category:Films on Laserdiscs
Category:THX
Category:Pages containing Mature Content
Category:2:35:1 Aspect Ratio Films
Category:2:39:1 Aspect Ratio Films