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{{short description|1990 film by Renny Harlin}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2016}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2016}}
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| name = Die Hard 2
| name = Die Hard 2
| image = Die Hard 2.jpg
| image = Die Hard 2.jpg
| image_size =
| alt =
| alt =
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| caption = Theatrical release poster
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* [[Charles Gordon (producer)|Charles Gordon]]
* [[Charles Gordon (producer)|Charles Gordon]]
* [[Lawrence Gordon (producer)|Lawrence Gordon]]
* [[Lawrence Gordon (producer)|Lawrence Gordon]]
* [[Joel Silver]] }}
* [[Joel Silver]]
}}
| screenplay = {{Plainlist|
| screenplay = {{Plainlist|
* [[Steven E. de Souza]]
* [[Steven E. de Souza]]
* [[Doug Richardson]] }}
* [[Doug Richardson]]
}}
| based_on = {{Plainlist|
| based on = ''[[58 Minutes]]'' by<br />[[Walter Wager]]<br />Characters by<br>[[Roderick Thorp]]
* {{Based on|''[[58 Minutes]]''|[[Walter Wager]]}}
* {{Based on|[[Nothing Lasts Forever (Thorp novel)|Characters]]|[[Roderick Thorp]]}}
}}
| starring = {{Plainlist|
| starring = {{Plainlist|
* [[Bruce Willis]]
* [[Bruce Willis]]
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* [[Franco Nero]]
* [[Franco Nero]]
* [[William Sadler (actor)|William Sadler]]
* [[William Sadler (actor)|William Sadler]]
* [[John Amos]] }}
* [[John Amos]]
}}
| music = [[Michael Kamen]]
| music = [[Michael Kamen]]
| cinematography = [[Oliver Wood (cinematographer)|Oliver Wood]]
| cinematography = [[Oliver Wood (cinematographer)|Oliver Wood]]
| editing = {{Plainlist|
| editing = {{Plainlist|
* [[Stuart Baird]]
* [[Stuart Baird]]
* Robert A. Ferretti }}
* Robert A. Ferretti
}}
| studio = {{Plainlist|
| studio = {{Plainlist|
* Gordon Company
* [[Silver Pictures]]
* [[Silver Pictures]]
}}
* [[Charles Gordon (producer)|Gordon Company]] }}
| distributor = [[20th Century Fox]]
| distributor = [[20th Century Fox]]
| released = {{Film date|1990|6|29}}
| released = {{Film date|1990|07|04}}
| runtime = 123 minutes
| runtime = 124 minutes<ref name="mojo"/>
| country = United States
| country = United States
| language = English
| language = English
| budget = $60–70 million<ref name="mojo" /><ref name="Battle of the Biceps"/><ref name="BRUCE WILLIS: WHERE AM I?">{{cite magazine |title=Bruce Willis: Where Am I? |url=https://www.newsweek.com/bruce-willis-where-am-i-206558 |magazine=[[Newsweek]] |access-date=April 20, 2020|quote=...What did they spend that reported $62 million on making 'Die Hard 2'?}}</ref><ref name="Greenberg (1991)">{{Cite news |last=Greenburg |first=James |title=Film; Why the 'Hudson Hawk' Budget Soared So High |date=May 26, 1991 |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=http://www.nytimes.com/1991/05/26/movies/film-why-the-hudson-hawk-budget-soared-so-high.html |access-date=May 1, 2020|quote=...'Die Hard 2' (1990), which also ran over budget and wound up costing a reported $70 million.}}</ref>
| budget = $70 million<ref name="BOM">{{cite web|url=http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=diehard2.htm|title=Die Hard 2 - Box Office Mojo|accessdate=July 23, 2011}}</ref>
| gross = $240 million<ref name="BOM"/>
| gross = $240 million<ref name="mojo">{{cite Box Office Mojo |title=Die Hard 2 |id=0099423 |access-date=April 22, 2022}}</ref>
}}
}}
'''''Die Hard 2''''' (sometimes referred to as '''''Die Hard 2: Die Harder''''')<ref>The film's on-screen title is ''Die Hard 2'', and the film's {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080621213143/http://www.foxhome.com/diehard/trinity/dh2/ |date=June 21, 2008 |title=official website }} refers to it as such. The film's original advertising used "Die Harder" as a tagline, and many releases of the film (e.g.the 2006 DVD release and 2007 Blu-ray Disc release) came out under the title ''Die Hard 2: Die Harder''. Several other official sources, such as [http://www.rennyharlin.com the director's website] and the ''[[Die Hard Trilogy]]'' video game, also refer to it as ''Die Hard 2: Die Harder''.</ref> is a 1990 American [[action film]] and the second entry in the [[Die Hard (film series)|''Die Hard'' film series]]. It was released on June 29, 1990. The film was directed by [[Renny Harlin]], written by [[Steven E. de Souza|Steven E. deSouza]] and [[Doug Richardson]] and stars [[Bruce Willis]] as [[John McClane]]. The film co-stars [[Bonnie Bedelia]] (reprising her role as Holly McClane), [[William Sadler (Actor)|William Sadler]], [[Art Evans]], [[William Atherton]] (reprising his role as Richard "Dick" Thornburg), [[Franco Nero]], [[Dennis Franz]], [[Fred Thompson]], [[John Amos]] and [[Reginald VelJohnson]], returning briefly in his role as Sgt. Al Powell from [[Die Hard|the first film]].


'''''Die Hard 2''''' (also known by its tagline '''''Die Harder''''' or '''''Die Hard 2: Die Harder''''')<ref group=Note>The film's onscreen title is ''Die Hard 2'', as also given at the initial home-video release's [https://www.20thcenturystudios.com/movies/die-hard-2 official website]. The film's original advertising used "Die Harder" as a tagline, and many releases of the film (e.g. the 2006 DVD release and 2007 Blu-ray release) were marketed under the title ''Die Hard 2: Die Harder''.</ref> is a 1990 American [[action thriller film]] directed by [[Renny Harlin]], written by [[Steven E. de Souza]] and [[Doug Richardson]], co-produced by [[Joel Silver]], and starring [[Bruce Willis]]<ref>{{Cite news|last=Heritage|first=Stuart|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2013/jun/21/die-hard-two-recap|title=Die Hard 2 recap: 'Insane bloodlust, gratuitous profanity, zero logic'|date=2013-06-21|work=The Guardian|access-date=2020-04-22 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> as [[John McClane]] alongside [[Bonnie Bedelia]], [[William Sadler (actor)|William Sadler]], [[Art Evans (actor)|Art Evans]], [[William Atherton]], [[Franco Nero]], [[Dennis Franz]], [[Fred Thompson]], [[John Amos]], and [[Reginald VelJohnson]]. The second installment in the [[Die Hard (film series)|''Die Hard'' film series]], the film was released on July 4, 1990, in the United States.
The screenplay was adapted from [[Walter Wager]]'s novel ''[[58 Minutes]]''. The novel has the same premise but differs slightly: A cop must stop terrorists who take an airport hostage while his wife's plane circles overhead. He has 58 minutes to do so before the plane crashes. [[Roderick Thorp]], who wrote the novel ''[[Nothing Lasts Forever (1979 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, maintenance workers, and a military commander, all of whom do not want his assistance.
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).
The film was released to generally positive reviews with critics praising the film's action and tone while criticizing elements of the plot. ''Die Hard 2'' was a major [[box office|box-office]] success, grossing $240 million and doubling the earnings of its predecessor and finishing as the year's seventh-highest-grossing film. 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==
==Plot==
On Christmas Eve, two years after [[Die Hard|the Nakatomi Tower Incident]], [[John McClane]] is waiting at [[Washington Dulles International Airport]] for his wife [[Holly Gennero McClane|Holly]] to arrive from [[Los Angeles]]. Reporter Richard Thornburg, who exposed Holly's identity to Hans Gruber in the Nakatomi Tower, is assigned a seat across the aisle from her. In the airport bar, McClane spots two men in Army fatigues carrying a package, one of whom has a gun. He follows them into the baggage area. After a shootout, he kills one of the men while the other escapes. Learning the dead man is a mercenary believed to be killed in action while originally serving with the US military, McClane relates the situation to airport police captain Carmine Lorenzo, but Lorenzo has McClane ejected from his office.


On [[Christmas Eve]], two years after the events of the [[Die Hard|previous film]],<ref group=Note>There is a deleted scene included with the DVD and Blu-ray versions of the film where McClane tells Marvin the janitor "This is how I spent Christmas last year", which seems to suggest that, given the release date of the first film, ''Die Hard 2'' takes place during Christmas 1989. However, given the various references to the 1990s in the film (including the featured episode of ''[[The Simpsons]]'', "[[There's No Disgrace Like Home]]", being released in 1990), and the scene in question having been removed, the film can be assumed to take place during Christmas 1990.</ref> [[John McClane]] is now a lieutenant with the [[Los Angeles Police Department|LAPD]], who 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.
Former [[Special Forces (United States Army)|U.S. Army Special Forces]] Colonel William Stuart and other members of his unit establish a base in a church near Dulles. They take over the [[air traffic control]] systems, cut off all communication to the planes and seize control of the airport. Their goal is to rescue General Ramon Esperanza, a drug lord and dictator of [[Val Verde (fictional country)|Val Verde]], who is being extradited to the United States to stand trial on [[drug trafficking]] charges. They demand a [[Boeing 747]] cargo plane so they can escape to another country with Esperanza in tow, and warn the [[Air traffic control|airport controllers]] not to try to restore control. McClane realizes his wife is on one of the planes circling above [[Washington, D.C.]] with too little fuel to be redirected. He prepares to fight the terrorists, allying himself with a janitor, Marvin, to gain larger access to the airport.


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. He kills one man, but the other escapes.
Dulles communications director Leslie Barnes heads to the unfinished Annex Skywalk with a [[SWAT]] team to re-establish communications with the planes. Just before reaching the Skywalk, the entire group and Barnes are ambushed by Stuart's henchmen at a checkpoint, and the SWAT team is killed in the ensuing firefight. With Marvin's help, McClane reaches the massacre scene, rescuing Barnes and killing Stuart's men. Stuart retaliates by recalibrating the [[instrument landing system]] and then impersonating air traffic controllers to crash a British jet, killing all 230 passengers and crew on board. A U.S. Army Special Forces team led by Major Grant is called in. By listening in on a two-way radio that was dropped by one of Stuart's henchmen, McClane finds out that Esperanza, who's killed his captors and is now flying, is landing.


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 earlier. Putting this together with Esperanza's imminent arrival, McClane reports his concerns to the ill-tempered [[airport police]] chief, Carmine Lorenzo, and [[air traffic control]] director Ed Trudeau, but neither one believes him.
With Marvin's aid, McClane reaches the aircraft before Stuart's henchmen, but Esperanza traps him and the antagonists throw grenades into the cockpit. McClane escapes via the ejection seat mere seconds before the grenades detonate and the aircraft explodes. Barnes helps McClane locate the mercenaries' hideout and they tell Grant and his team to raid the location, but the mercenaries escape on snowmobiles. McClane pursues them, but the gun he picked up does not kill anyone when fired. He discovers that the gun is loaded with [[Blank (cartridge)|blanks]], and he is horrified to discover that the mercenaries and most members of the Special Forces team have been in cahoots all along (one of the Special Forces is later killed by Major Grant when it transpires he was never part of the team and was merely a last minute replacement).


Later, 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. Under Stuart's direction, Trudeau orders all air traffic controllers to have all planes in Dulles airspace hold in the air despite their low fuel warnings.
McClane contacts Lorenzo to intercept the Boeing 747 in which the mercenaries will escape; Lorenzo refuses to listen until McClane fires at him with the blank gun, thus proving his story. A suspicious Thornburg is monitoring airport radio traffic, and learns about the situation from a secret transmission to the circling planes from Barnes. He phones in a sensational and exaggerated take on what is happening, leading to panic and preventing the officers from reaching the escape plane. Holly subdues Thornburg with a [[Electroshock weapon|Stun gun]].


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 stranded circling airplanes. Lorenzo sends an airport [[SWAT]] team with him, but Stuart's men kill the officers and destroy the antenna. Barnes is saved by McClane, who kills Stuart's men in turn.
McClane hitches a ride on a news helicopter that drops him off on the wing of the mercenary plane. He jams the left inboard aileron with his jacket, preventing the plane from taking off. Esperanza, who is flying the jet, is shocked when he sees McClane on the wing. Grant emerges and fights McClane, but the former is knocked off the wing and into an engine, which sucks him in, vaporizing him. Stuart then comes out and succeeds in knocking McClane off the plane. He removes McClane's jumper and re-enters the plane. However, he fails to realize McClane opened the fuel hatch before he fell off. McClane uses his cigarette lighter to ignite the trail of fuel, which destroys the jet, killing Esperanza, Stuart and all on board. The pilots of Holly's plane uses the fire trail to help them land, which the other passenger jets do as well. The passengers are safely evacuated and McClane and his wife are happily reunited. Lorenzo appears and thanks John.

In retaliation, Stuart crashes a British airliner, killing everyone on board by impersonating air traffic control and faking the airplane's [[altimeter]] reading by recalibrating sea level. 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 [[United States Army Special Forces|U.S. Special Forces]] team arrives, led by Major Grant, of 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 mercenaries escape on snowmobiles. McClane follows but his vehicle is destroyed by gunfire. Confused as to how he failed to wound anyone, McClane realizes the gun was filled with [[Blank (cartridge)|blanks]], meaning the earlier firefight was staged and Grant's team are secretly in cahoots with Stuart.

Grant, Stuart, their men, and Esperanza all rendezvous at an airport hangar, where a [[Boeing 747]] that they demanded is waiting for them. On Holly's flight, arrogant reporter Richard Thornburg becomes suspicious as to why the plane has not landed. He taps into the cockpit communications and records an earlier surreptitious transmission from Barnes to all the circling airplanes describing the situation. From the airplane's lavatory, Richard broadcasts the recording live on television, leading to a panic in the airport terminal which prevents McClane and Lorenzo from getting to the 747. Holly subdues Thornburg with a fellow passenger's taser.

McClane asks a news crew to fly him via helicopter to intercept the 747. McClane jumps onto the wing and uses his coat to jam the [[aileron]], preventing the plane from taking off. During a fistfight, Grant is killed when McClane kicks him into a jet engine. While fighting Stuart, McClane opens a fuel valve in the engine pylon just as Stuart kicks him off the wing. McClane uses a cigarette lighter to ignite the fuel trail, causing the plane to blow up and killing everyone on board. The fire trail also serves as a landing guide for all airborne aircraft, including Holly's, to land safely.

After McClane and Holly are reunited, Marvin picks them up in his airport cart and drives them away.


==Cast==
==Cast==
{{cast listing|
{{div col|colwidth=25em}}
* [[Bruce Willis]] as Lieutenant [[John McClane]]
* [[Bruce Willis]] as [[John McClane]]
* [[Bonnie Bedelia]] as [[Holly Gennero McClane]]
* [[Bonnie Bedelia]] as [[Holly Gennero McClane]]
* [[Art Evans]] as Leslie Barnes
* [[William Atherton]] as Dick Thornburg
* [[Dennis Franz]] as Captain Carmine Lorenzo
* [[William Sadler (actor)|William Sadler]] as Colonel Stuart
* [[Franco Nero]] as General Ramon Esperanza
* [[Reginald VelJohnson]] as Sergeant Al Powell
* [[Reginald VelJohnson]] as Sergeant Al Powell
* [[William Atherton]] as Richard "Dick" Thornburg
* [[Franco Nero]] as General Ramon Esperanza
* [[William Sadler (actor)|William Sadler]] as Colonel William Stuart
* [[Fred Thompson]] as Ed Trudeau
* [[John Amos]] as Major Grant
* [[John Amos]] as Major Grant
* [[Dennis Franz]] as Captain Carmine Lorenzo
* [[Art Evans (actor)|Art Evans]] as Leslie Barnes, airport chief engineer
* [[Fred Thompson]] as Ed Trudeau, air traffic flight director
* [[Tom Bower (actor)|Tom Bower]] as Marvin
* [[Tom Bower (actor)|Tom Bower]] as Marvin
* [[Sheila McCarthy]] as Samantha "Sam" Coleman
* [[Sheila McCarthy]] as Samantha "Sam" Coleman
* [[Donald Patrick Harvey]] as Garber
* [[Colm Meaney]] as Pilot of Windsor Airlines plane
* [[Robert Costanzo]] as Sergeant Vito Lorenzo
* [[Robert Costanzo]] as Sergeant Vito Lorenzo
* [[Vondie Curtis-Hall]] as Miller
* [[Colm Meaney]] as Windsor Pilot
}}
* [[John Costelloe (actor)|John Costelloe]] as Sergeant Oswald Cochrane
* [[Tony Ganios]] as Baker
* [[Peter Nelson (actor)|Peter Nelson]] as Thompson
* [[John Leguizamo]] as Burke
* [[Tom Verica]] as Kahn
* [[Robert Patrick]] as O'Reilly
* [[Mark Boone Junior]] as Shockley
{{div col end}}


Additional cast members include Colonel Stuart's [[hitmen]]: [[Don Harvey (actor, born 1960)|Don Harvey]] as Garber, [[John Costelloe (actor)|John Costelloe]] as Sergeant Oswald Cochrane, [[Vondie Curtis-Hall]] as Miller, [[John Leguizamo]] as Burke, [[Robert Patrick]] as O'Reilly, [[Tom Verica]] as Kahn, [[Tony Ganios]] as Baker, Michael Cunningham as Sheldon, [[Peter Nelson (actor)|Peter Nelson]] as Thompson, Ken Baldwin as Mulkey, and [[Mark Boone Junior]] as Shockley. [[Patrick O'Neal (sportscaster)|Patrick O'Neal]] appears as Telford, Major Grant's radio operator.
==Production and promotion==

''Die Hard 2'' was the first film to use digitally composited live-action footage with a traditional [[matte painting]] that had been photographed and scanned into a computer. It was used for the last scene, which took place on a runway.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://accad.osu.edu/~waynec/history/lesson14.html |title=The History of Computer Graphics and Effects |first=Matt |last=Leonard |accessdate=July 10, 2009 |publisher=[[Ohio State University]] Department of Industrial Interior and Visual Design |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070517144718/http://accad.osu.edu:80/~waynec/history/lesson14.html |archivedate=May 17, 2007 |df=mdy }}</ref>
==Production==
[[File:Evergreen_International_Airlines_Boeing_747-121_N473EV.jpg|thumb| [[Evergreen International Airlines|Evergreen]] Boeing 747 (registration N473EV) used in the film]]
[[File:Los_Angeles_International_Airport_-_Empty_International_Terminal_1.JPG|thumb|Filming of the Dulles airport concourse scenes took place in the Tom Bradley International Terminal at [[LAX]].]]

The screenplay was adapted from [[Walter Wager]]'s 1987 novel ''[[58 Minutes]]''. The novel has the same plot but differs slightly: a police officer 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 1979 novel ''[[Nothing Lasts Forever (1979 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".


One of the writers of the screenplay, Steven E. de Souza, later admitted in an interview for the book ''Action Speaks Louder: Violence, Spectacle, and the American Action Movie'' that the villains were based on America's "Central American" meddling, primarily the [[Iran–Contra affair]].<ref>''Action Speaks Louder: Violence, Spectacle, and the American Action Movie'', page 165</ref>
One of the writers of the screenplay, Steven E. de Souza, later admitted in an interview for the book ''Action Speaks Louder: Violence, Spectacle, and the American Action Movie'' that the villains were based on America's "Central American" meddling, primarily the [[Iran–Contra affair]].<ref>''Action Speaks Louder: Violence, Spectacle, and the American Action Movie'', page 165</ref>


The film was originally budgeted at $40 million.<ref name=july4/> Bruce Willis was paid $7.5 million for reprising his role for the film.<ref name="AFI film-67916">{{AFI film|67916}}</ref><ref name="Battle of the Biceps">{{cite web |title=Battle of the Biceps |url=https://people.com/archive/battle-of-the-biceps-vol-33-no-23/ |website=People Magazine |access-date=April 16, 2020}}</ref> Producer [[Joel Silver]] was accused of profligate spending and it was claimed the film cost $60–70 million.<ref name="Easton (1990)">{{Cite news |last=Easton |first=Nina J. |title=Hollywood's Summer of Love : Romantic 'Ghost' Outguns Macho Movies to Become Season's Biggest Hit |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date= September 5, 1990 |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-09-05-ca-528-story.html |access-date=October 16, 2012}}</ref><ref name=july4/> Fox domestic distribution president [[Tom Sherak]] dismissed the $70 million claim as "absurd".<ref name=july4/> It was reported at the end of filming that Silver had been relieved of day-to-day producing duties.<ref name=rush>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=April 25, 1990|page=1|title=Rush hour for summer pix|last=Fleming|first=Charles}}</ref>
General Esperanza's aircraft is a [[Fairchild C-123]]K Provider. This is a twin engine propeller aircraft modified to appear with four jet engines for the film. The pods for the J-85 jet booster engines are still visible under the wings between the mock-up jet engines.{{cn|date=March 2017}}


Scenes of Dulles airport in the snow were to be filmed in Denver but filming was scrapped due to warm weather. Some outdoor scenes were filmed in [[Alpena, Michigan]], while others needing to accommodate the landing of the 747 with snow were filmed at former [[Kincheloe Air Force Base]] in Kincheloe, Michigan.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.sootoday.com/columns/remember-this/from-sonic-boom-to-die-hard-2-the-story-of-kincheloe-air-force-base-3573297| title=From Sonic Boom, to Die Hard 2|magazine=[[Soo Today(magazine)|Soo Today]]}}</ref> Other scenes were filmed on a soundstage in Los Angeles using fake snow.<ref name=rush/>
==Reception==


''Die Hard 2'' was the first film to use digitally composited live-action footage with a traditional [[matte painting]] that had been photographed and scanned into a computer. It was used for the last scene, which took place on a runway.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://accad.osu.edu/~waynec/history/lesson14.html |title=The History of Computer Graphics and Effects |first=Matt |last=Leonard |access-date=July 10, 2009 |publisher=[[Ohio State University]] Department of Industrial Interior and Visual Design |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070517144718/http://accad.osu.edu/~waynec/history/lesson14.html |archive-date=May 17, 2007 |df=mdy }}</ref>

According to Franco Nero, Silver got the idea to cast him after he saw movie posters of Nero hanging in the office of their mutual accountant. Nero did not want to do ''Die Hard 2'' because he did not like the script and he had committed to do the film ''[[Breath of Life (1990 film)|Breath of Life]]''. Finally, Silver scheduled Nero's scenes in such a way that the actor could do both films.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Franco Nero interview|url=https://www.flashbackfiles.com/franco-nero-interview|access-date=2021-02-23|website=THE FLASHBACK FILES|language=en-US}}</ref>

== Music ==
{{Main|Die Hard 2 (soundtrack)}}

==Release==
===Marketing===
In a trailer for the film screened during Christmas 1989, the film had a planned release date of June 29, 1990. This was brought forward to June 22; however, following claims of the film running over time and budget, the release date was pushed back two weeks to July 4.<ref name=july4>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Daily Variety]]|page=1|title=Fox Pushing 'Hard' Bow Back 2 Weeks|date=May 14, 1990}}</ref>

===Home media===
The film debuted on video in the United States on January 31, 1991, and it was the most rented video in its first week above ''[[Navy SEALs (film)|Navy SEALs]]''<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|page=35|date=February 11, 1991|title=Top 50 Video Titles}}</ref> and sold a record 505,000 units for rental.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|page=22|date=January 6, 1992|title=Rentals Reap Bulk of 1991 Vid Harvest|last=Berman|first=Marc}}</ref>

The film became available on [[DVD]] on March 9, 1999, followed by a 2-Disc Special Edition DVD on July 10, 2001, as part of the Die Hard Ultimate Collection DVD and re-released again in early 2005 as a Widescreen Edition and June 19, 2007, followed by a [[Blu-ray]] release on November 20, 2007, and a re-release on January 29, 2013.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dvdsreleasedates.com/movies/670/Die-Hard-2-(1990).html|title=Die Hard 2 DVD Release Date|website=DVDs Release Dates |access-date=2018-05-22}}</ref>

==Reception==
===Box office===
===Box office===
The film exceeded all expectations by actually outdoing the massive box office success of ''Die Hard''.<ref>{{cite video |people=[[Tom Sherak]] (commentator) |date=May 19, 1995 |title=Die Hard with a Vengeance |url= |medium=DVD |publisher=[[20th Century Fox]] |location=Beverly Hills, California |time=35:12 |id= |isbn= |oclc= |quote=Die Hard 2 actually, as I recall, did better than Die Hard 1, which is very unusual. Sequels normally do about 65% of their original, but this one just exploded. |ref= }}</ref> The film had a budget of US$70 million and had a [[wide release]] in 2,507 theaters, making $21.7 million on its opening weekend. ''Die Hard 2'' has domestically made $117.5 million and $239.5 million worldwide making it one of the most profitable Christmas films, almost doubling that of ''Die Hard''.<ref name="BOM"/>
''Die Hard 2'' exceeded all expectations by outdoing the box-office success of ''Die Hard''.<ref>{{cite video |people=[[Tom Sherak]] (commentator) |date=May 19, 1995 |title=Die Hard with a Vengeance |url= |medium=DVD |publisher=[[20th Century Fox]] |location=Beverly Hills, California |time=35:12 |id= |isbn= |oclc= |quote=Die Hard 2 actually, as I recall, did better than Die Hard 1, which is very unusual. Sequels normally do about 65% of their original, but this one just exploded. }}</ref> The film had the largest pre-opening, earning $3.7 million from 1,828 theaters. For six years, it would hold this record until it was surpassed by ''[[Independence Day (1996 film)|Independence Day]]'' in 1996.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-07-04-ca-20927-story.html|title=Aliens Arrive! And a Nation Stands in Line : 'Independence Day' Tops $11 Million, Making Movie History|website=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=July 4, 1996 }}</ref> It had a [[wide release]] in 2,507 theaters in the United States and Canada, grossing $21.7 million its opening weekend.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1990/07/13/spike-doing-the-shrewd-thing/46251f7c-f350-43e0-9257-45beb1108e11/|title=SPIKE, DOING THE SHREWD THING|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] }}</ref> ''Die Hard 2'' went on to gross $117.5 million in the United States and Canada, and $122.5 million internationally, earning over $240 million worldwide,<ref name="mojo" /> almost doubling that of ''Die Hard''. The film was re-released internationally in 1993 and made $216,339 more, which totaled its gross to $240.2 million.<ref name="mojo" /> During a period of time, ''Die Hard 2'' and ''[[Ghost (1990 film)|Ghost]]'', starring ''Die Hard 2'' star Bruce Willis' then wife [[Demi Moore]], would occupy the number one and number two spots at the box office, a feat would not be accomplished again for a married Hollywood couple until 2024.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://people.com/ryan-reynolds-blake-lively-are-latest-married-couple-to-top-box-office-since-bruce-willis-demi-moore-1990-8693706|title=Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively Are First Married Couple to Top Box Office Since Bruce Willis and Demi Moore in 1990|first=Marina|last=Watts|publisher=People|date=August 11, 2024|accessdate=August 12, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2024/08/12/blake-lively-ryan-reynolds-it-ends-with-us-deadpool-and-wolverine-box-office/74765651007/|title=Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds mark first married couple to top box office in 34 years|first=Kelly|last=Lawler|publisher=USA Today|date=August 12, 2024|accessdate=August 12, 2024}}</ref>


===Critical reception===
===Critical response===
On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film has an approval rating of 69% based on 61 reviews, with an average rating of 6.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "It lacks the fresh thrills of its predecessor, but ''Die Hard 2'' still works as an over-the-top – and reasonably taut – big-budget sequel, with plenty of set pieces to paper over the plot deficiencies".<ref>{{Rotten-tomatoes|id=die_hard_2_die_harder}}</ref> On review aggregator [[Metacritic]], which assigns a weighted average rating to reviews, the film has a score of 67 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref>{{cite web |title=Die Hard 2 reviews|url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/die-hard-2| publisher=[[Metacritic]] |accessdate=July 31, 2017}}</ref> Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.<ref name="CinemaScore"> {{cite web |url=https://m.cinemascore.com |title=CinemaScore |work=cinemascore.com}}</ref>
On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], ''Die Hard 2'' has an approval rating of 69% based on 68 reviews, with an average rating of {{RT data|average}}. The site's critical consensus reads: "It lacks the fresh thrills of its predecessor, but ''Die Hard 2'' still works as an over-the-top – and reasonably taut – big-budget sequel, with plenty of set pieces to paper over the plot deficiencies."<ref>{{Cite Rotten Tomatoes |id=die_hard_2_1990 |type=m |access-date={{RT data|access date}}}}{{RT data|edit}}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], the film has a weighted average score of 67 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref>{{cite Metacritic|id=die-hard-2 |title=Die Hard 2 |type=m |access-date=April 22, 2022 }}</ref> Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.<ref name="CinemaScore">{{cite web |url=https://www.cinemascore.com/ |title=CinemaScore |publisher=[[CinemaScore]] |access-date=April 16, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220413083139/https://www.cinemascore.com/ |archive-date=April 13, 2022 |url-status=live }}</ref>


[[Roger Ebert]], who gave the original film a negative review, described the sequel as "terrific entertainment", despite noting the substantial credibility problems with the plot.<ref>{{cite web|last=Ebert|first=Roger| publication-date=July 3, 1990|title=Die Hard 2: Die Harder (Review)|work=Chicago Sun-Times|url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19900703/REVIEWS/7030301/1023|accessdate=January 29, 2010}}</ref> Jay Boyar of the ''[[Orlando Sentinel]]'' dubbed the film as being as disappointing a sequel as ''[[Another 48 Hours]]'' and ''[[RoboCop 2]]'' were and said about the film: "Whatever small pleasure there is to be found in this loud dud is due mostly to the residual good feelings from the first film... As played by Bruce Willis, McClane is still an engaging character, even if he is much less amusingly drawn this time. Willis is in there trying, but the qualities that helped to make his character sympathetic in the first film are missing. McClane no longer worries openly about his personal safety, as he did in the original movie. His quasi-cowboy personality from Die Hard is all but forgotten - he has become more of a Rambo and less of a Roy Rogers. And though the filmmakers try to establish McClane as resistant to advanced technology, this promising idea isn't developed."<ref>{{cite web|author=Jay Boyar |url=http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1990-07-03/lifestyle/9007020096_1_die-hard-2-die-harder-mcclane |title='Die Hard' - 2nd Time Around The Mayhem Misses Mark In 'Harder' - tribunedigital-orlandosentinel |website=Articles.orlandosentinel.com |date=July 3, 1990 |accessdate=July 30, 2016}}</ref>
[[Roger Ebert]], who gave the original film a mixed review, described the sequel as "terrific entertainment", despite noting substantial credibility problems with the plot.<ref>{{cite news |first=Roger |last=Ebert |author-link=Roger Ebert | publication-date=July 3, 1990 |title=Die Hard 2: Die Harder (Review) |newspaper=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/die-hard-2-die-harder-1990 |access-date=January 1, 2020 }}</ref> Jay Boyar of the ''[[Orlando Sentinel]]'' dubbed the film as being as disappointing a sequel as ''[[Another 48 Hrs.]]'' and ''[[RoboCop 2]]'', and said, <blockquote>Whatever small pleasure there is to be found in this loud dud is due mostly to the residual good feelings from the first film... As played by Bruce Willis, McClane is still an engaging character, even if he is much less amusingly drawn this time. Willis is in there trying, but the qualities that helped to make his character sympathetic in the first film are missing. McClane no longer worries openly about his personal safety, as he did in the original movie. His quasi-cowboy personality from ''Die Hard'' is all but forgotten – he has become more of a Rambo and less of a Roy Rogers. And though the filmmakers try to establish McClane as resistant to advanced technology, this promising idea isn't developed.<ref>{{cite web|first=Jay|last=Boyar|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1990/07/03/die-hard-2nd-time-around-the-mayhem-misses-mark-in-harder/|title='Die Hard' – 2nd Time Around The Mayhem Misses Mark In 'Harder'|newspaper=[[Orlando Sentinel]]|location=Florida|date=July 3, 1990|access-date=July 30, 2016|archive-date=November 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104202112/http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1990-07-03/lifestyle/9007020096_1_die-hard-2-die-harder-mcclane|url-status=live}}</ref></blockquote>''[[Empire (film magazine)|Empire]]'' magazine rated the film three out of five stars, while stating, "It's entertaining nonsense that doesn't quite manage to recapture the magic of the original. Still, there are some nice moments here, and Willis is on solid ground as the iconic McClane."<ref>{{cite magazine |first=William |last=Thomas |url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/die-hard-2/review/ |title=Die Hard 2 Review |magazine=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]] |date=October 14, 2015 |access-date=July 30, 2016}}</ref>


[[Gene Siskel]] ranked the film as the sixth best movie of 1990.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~ejohnson/critics/siskel.html |title=Gene Siskel's Top Ten Lists 1969–1998 |publisher=Alumnus.caltech.edu |date=February 20, 1999 |access-date=July 30, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717152442/http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~ejohnson/critics/siskel.html |archive-date=July 17, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.innermind.com/misc/s_e_top.htm |title=Siskel and Ebert Top Ten Lists (1969–1998) |publisher=Innermind.com |date=May 3, 2012 |access-date=July 30, 2016}}</ref> ''[[Maxim (magazine)|Maxim]]'' magazine ranked the film's plane crash #2 on its list of "Greatest Movie Plane Crashes".<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.maxim.com/movies/lists/43865/greatest-movie-plane-crashes.html|title=The Greatest Movie Plane Crashes|magazine=[[Maxim (magazine)|Maxim]]|access-date=August 8, 2009|archive-date=September 30, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090930222606/http://www.maxim.com/movies/lists/43865/greatest-movie-plane-crashes.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
''[[Empire (film magazine)|Empire]]'' magazine rated the film three out of five stars, while stating "It's entertaining nonsense that doesn't quite manage to recapture the magic of the original. Still, there are some nice moments here, and Willis is on solid ground as the iconic McClane."<ref>{{cite magazine |author=William Thomas |url=http://www.empireonline.com/movies/die-hard-2/review/ |title=Die Hard 2 Review |website=[[Empire (film magazine)|Empire]] |date=October 14, 2015 |accessdate=July 30, 2016}}</ref>


==Notes==
[[Gene Siskel]] ranked the film as the sixth best movie of 1990.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~ejohnson/critics/siskel.html |title=Gene Siskel's Top Ten Lists 1969-1998 |publisher=Alumnus.caltech.edu |date=February 20, 1999 |accessdate=July 30, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.innermind.com/misc/s_e_top.htm |title=Siskel and Ebert Top Ten Lists (1969-1998) |publisher=Innermind.com |date=May 3, 2012 |accessdate=July 30, 2016}}</ref> ''[[Maxim (magazine)|Maxim]]'' magazine ranked the film's plane crash #2 on its list of "Greatest Movie Plane Crashes".<ref>[http://www.maxim.com/movies/lists/43865/greatest-movie-plane-crashes.html "The Greatest Movie Plane Crashes"], Maxim.com</ref>
{{reflist|group=Note}}


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
{{Reflist}}


==External links==
==External links==
{{Portal|Film in the United States|1990s}}
{{Portal|Film|United States|1990s}}
{{Wikiquote|Die Hard 2: Die Harder}}
* {{IMDb title|0099423}}
* {{IMDb title|0099423}}
* {{Amg movie|72519}}
* {{TCMDb title|73103}}
* {{mojo title|diehard2}}
* {{AllMovie title|72519}}
* {{AFI film|67916}}
* {{rotten-tomatoes|die_hard_2_1990}}


{{DieHard}}
{{Die Hard}}
{{Renny Harlin}}
{{Renny Harlin}}
{{Steven E. de Souza}}

{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Die Hard 2: Die Harder}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Die Hard 2}}
[[Category:1990 films]]
[[Category:1990 films]]
[[Category:1990s action films]]
[[Category:1990 action thriller films]]
[[Category:1990s action thriller films]]
[[Category:1990s Christmas films]]
[[Category:1990s sequel films]]
[[Category:20th Century Fox films]]
[[Category:American films]]
[[Category:American action films]]
[[Category:American action thriller films]]
[[Category:American action thriller films]]
[[Category:American aviation films]]
[[Category:American aviation films]]
[[Category:American Christmas films]]
[[Category:American Christmas films]]
[[Category:American sequel films]]
[[Category:American sequel films]]
[[Category:English-language films]]
[[Category:Die Hard]]
[[Category:Film scores by Michael Kamen]]
[[Category:Dulles International Airport]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:Films about aviation accidents or incidents]]
[[Category:Films about hostage takings]]
[[Category:Films about murderers]]
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[[Category:Films about United States Army Special Forces]]
[[Category:Films based on thriller novels]]
[[Category:Films based on American thriller novels]]
[[Category:Films based on multiple works]]
[[Category:Films based on multiple works]]
[[Category:Films directed by Renny Harlin]]
[[Category:Films directed by Renny Harlin]]
[[Category:Films produced by Charles Gordon]]
[[Category:Films produced by Lawrence Gordon]]
[[Category:Films produced by Joel Silver]]
[[Category:Films produced by Joel Silver]]
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Latest revision as of 23:25, 24 November 2024

Die Hard 2
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRenny Harlin
Screenplay by
Based on
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyOliver Wood
Edited by
Music byMichael Kamen
Production
companies
Distributed by20th Century Fox
Release date
  • July 4, 1990 (1990-07-04)
Running time
124 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$60–70 million[1][2][3][4]
Box office$240 million[1]

Die Hard 2 (also known by its tagline Die Harder or Die Hard 2: Die Harder)[Note 1] is a 1990 American action thriller film directed by Renny Harlin, written by Steven E. de Souza and Doug Richardson, co-produced by Joel Silver, and starring Bruce Willis[5] as John McClane alongside Bonnie Bedelia, William Sadler, Art Evans, William Atherton, Franco Nero, Dennis Franz, Fred Thompson, John Amos, and Reginald VelJohnson. The second installment in the Die Hard film series, the film was released on July 4, 1990, in the United States.

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 released to generally positive reviews with critics praising the film's action and tone while criticizing elements of the plot. Die Hard 2 was a major box-office success, grossing $240 million and doubling the earnings of its predecessor and finishing as the year's seventh-highest-grossing film. 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

[edit]

On Christmas Eve, two years after the events of the previous film,[Note 2] John McClane is now a lieutenant with the LAPD, who 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. He 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 earlier. Putting this together with Esperanza's imminent arrival, McClane reports his concerns to the ill-tempered airport police chief, Carmine Lorenzo, and air traffic control director Ed Trudeau, but neither one believes him.

Later, 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. Under Stuart's direction, 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 stranded circling airplanes. Lorenzo sends an airport SWAT team with him, but Stuart's men kill the officers and destroy the antenna. Barnes is saved by McClane, who kills Stuart's men in turn.

In retaliation, Stuart crashes a British airliner, killing everyone on board by impersonating air traffic control and faking the airplane's altimeter reading by recalibrating sea level. 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, of 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 mercenaries escape on snowmobiles. McClane follows but his vehicle is destroyed by gunfire. Confused as to how he failed to wound anyone, McClane realizes the gun was filled with blanks, meaning the earlier firefight was staged and Grant's team are secretly in cahoots with Stuart.

Grant, Stuart, their men, and Esperanza all rendezvous at an airport hangar, where a Boeing 747 that they demanded is waiting for them. On Holly's flight, arrogant reporter Richard Thornburg becomes suspicious as to why the plane has not landed. He taps into the cockpit communications and records an earlier surreptitious transmission from Barnes to all the circling airplanes describing the situation. From the airplane's lavatory, Richard broadcasts the recording live on television, leading to a panic in the airport terminal which prevents McClane and Lorenzo from getting to the 747. Holly subdues Thornburg with a fellow passenger's taser.

McClane asks a news crew to fly him via helicopter to intercept the 747. McClane jumps onto the wing and uses his coat to jam the aileron, preventing the plane from taking off. During a fistfight, Grant is killed when McClane kicks him into a jet engine. While fighting Stuart, McClane opens a fuel valve in the engine pylon just as Stuart kicks him off the wing. McClane uses a cigarette lighter to ignite the fuel trail, causing the plane to blow up and killing everyone on board. The fire trail also serves as a landing guide for all airborne aircraft, including Holly's, to land safely.

After McClane and Holly are reunited, Marvin picks them up in his airport cart and drives them away.

Cast

[edit]

Additional cast members include Colonel Stuart's hitmen: Don Harvey as Garber, John Costelloe as Sergeant Oswald Cochrane, Vondie Curtis-Hall as Miller, John Leguizamo as Burke, Robert Patrick as 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'Neal appears as Telford, Major Grant's radio operator.

Production

[edit]
Evergreen Boeing 747 (registration N473EV) used in the film
Filming of the Dulles airport concourse scenes took place in the Tom Bradley International Terminal at LAX.

The screenplay was adapted from Walter Wager's 1987 novel 58 Minutes. The novel has the same plot but differs slightly: a police officer 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 1979 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".

One of the writers of the screenplay, Steven E. de Souza, later admitted in an interview for the book Action Speaks Louder: Violence, Spectacle, and the American Action Movie that the villains were based on America's "Central American" meddling, primarily the Iran–Contra affair.[6]

The film was originally budgeted at $40 million.[7] Bruce Willis was paid $7.5 million for reprising his role for the film.[8][2] Producer Joel Silver was accused of profligate spending and it was claimed the film cost $60–70 million.[9][7] Fox domestic distribution president Tom Sherak dismissed the $70 million claim as "absurd".[7] It was reported at the end of filming that Silver had been relieved of day-to-day producing duties.[10]

Scenes of Dulles airport in the snow were to be filmed in Denver but filming was scrapped due to warm weather. Some outdoor scenes were filmed in Alpena, Michigan, while others needing to accommodate the landing of the 747 with snow were filmed at former Kincheloe Air Force Base in Kincheloe, Michigan.[11] Other scenes were filmed on a soundstage in Los Angeles using fake snow.[10]

Die Hard 2 was the first film to use digitally composited live-action footage with a traditional matte painting that had been photographed and scanned into a computer. It was used for the last scene, which took place on a runway.[12]

According to Franco Nero, Silver got the idea to cast him after he saw movie posters of Nero hanging in the office of their mutual accountant. Nero did not want to do Die Hard 2 because he did not like the script and he had committed to do the film Breath of Life. Finally, Silver scheduled Nero's scenes in such a way that the actor could do both films.[13]

Music

[edit]
Main article: Die Hard 2 (soundtrack)

Release

[edit]

Marketing

[edit]

In a trailer for the film screened during Christmas 1989, the film had a planned release date of June 29, 1990. This was brought forward to June 22; however, following claims of the film running over time and budget, the release date was pushed back two weeks to July 4.[7]

Home media

[edit]

The film debuted on video in the United States on January 31, 1991, and it was the most rented video in its first week above Navy SEALs[14] and sold a record 505,000 units for rental.[15]

The film became available on DVD on March 9, 1999, followed by a 2-Disc Special Edition DVD on July 10, 2001, as part of the Die Hard Ultimate Collection DVD and re-released again in early 2005 as a Widescreen Edition and June 19, 2007, followed by a Blu-ray release on November 20, 2007, and a re-release on January 29, 2013.[16]

Reception

[edit]

Box office

[edit]

Die Hard 2 exceeded all expectations by outdoing the box-office success of Die Hard.[17] The film had the largest pre-opening, earning $3.7 million from 1,828 theaters. For six years, it would hold this record until it was surpassed by Independence Day in 1996.[18] It had a wide release in 2,507 theaters in the United States and Canada, grossing $21.7 million its opening weekend.[19] Die Hard 2 went on to gross $117.5 million in the United States and Canada, and $122.5 million internationally, earning over $240 million worldwide,[1] almost doubling that of Die Hard. The film was re-released internationally in 1993 and made $216,339 more, which totaled its gross to $240.2 million.[1] During a period of time, Die Hard 2 and Ghost, starring Die Hard 2 star Bruce Willis' then wife Demi Moore, would occupy the number one and number two spots at the box office, a feat would not be accomplished again for a married Hollywood couple until 2024.[20][21]

Critical response

[edit]

On Rotten Tomatoes, Die Hard 2 has an approval rating of 69% based on 68 reviews, with an average rating of 6.3/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "It lacks the fresh thrills of its predecessor, but Die Hard 2 still works as an over-the-top – and reasonably taut – big-budget sequel, with plenty of set pieces to paper over the plot deficiencies."[22] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 67 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[23] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[24]

Roger Ebert, who gave the original film a mixed review, described the sequel as "terrific entertainment", despite noting substantial credibility problems with the plot.[25] Jay Boyar of the Orlando Sentinel dubbed the film as being as disappointing a sequel as Another 48 Hrs. and RoboCop 2, and said,

Whatever small pleasure there is to be found in this loud dud is due mostly to the residual good feelings from the first film... As played by Bruce Willis, McClane is still an engaging character, even if he is much less amusingly drawn this time. Willis is in there trying, but the qualities that helped to make his character sympathetic in the first film are missing. McClane no longer worries openly about his personal safety, as he did in the original movie. His quasi-cowboy personality from Die Hard is all but forgotten – he has become more of a Rambo and less of a Roy Rogers. And though the filmmakers try to establish McClane as resistant to advanced technology, this promising idea isn't developed.[26]

Empire magazine rated the film three out of five stars, while stating, "It's entertaining nonsense that doesn't quite manage to recapture the magic of the original. Still, there are some nice moments here, and Willis is on solid ground as the iconic McClane."[27]

Gene Siskel ranked the film as the sixth best movie of 1990.[28][29] Maxim magazine ranked the film's plane crash #2 on its list of "Greatest Movie Plane Crashes".[30]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ The film's onscreen title is Die Hard 2, as also given at the initial home-video release's official website. The film's original advertising used "Die Harder" as a tagline, and many releases of the film (e.g. the 2006 DVD release and 2007 Blu-ray release) were marketed under the title Die Hard 2: Die Harder.
  2. ^ There is a deleted scene included with the DVD and Blu-ray versions of the film where McClane tells Marvin the janitor "This is how I spent Christmas last year", which seems to suggest that, given the release date of the first film, Die Hard 2 takes place during Christmas 1989. However, given the various references to the 1990s in the film (including the featured episode of The Simpsons, "There's No Disgrace Like Home", being released in 1990), and the scene in question having been removed, the film can be assumed to take place during Christmas 1990.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e "Die Hard 2". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Battle of the Biceps". People Magazine. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  3. ^ "Bruce Willis: Where Am I?". Newsweek. Retrieved April 20, 2020. ...What did they spend that reported $62 million on making 'Die Hard 2'?
  4. ^ Greenburg, James (May 26, 1991). "Film; Why the 'Hudson Hawk' Budget Soared So High". The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2020. ...'Die Hard 2' (1990), which also ran over budget and wound up costing a reported $70 million.
  5. ^ Heritage, Stuart (June 21, 2013). "Die Hard 2 recap: 'Insane bloodlust, gratuitous profanity, zero logic'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
  6. ^ Action Speaks Louder: Violence, Spectacle, and the American Action Movie, page 165
  7. ^ a b c d "Fox Pushing 'Hard' Bow Back 2 Weeks". Daily Variety. May 14, 1990. p. 1.
  8. ^ Die Hard 2 at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
  9. ^ Easton, Nina J. (September 5, 1990). "Hollywood's Summer of Love : Romantic 'Ghost' Outguns Macho Movies to Become Season's Biggest Hit". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 16, 2012.
  10. ^ a b Fleming, Charles (April 25, 1990). "Rush hour for summer pix". Variety. p. 1.
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  17. ^ Tom Sherak (commentator) (May 19, 1995). Die Hard with a Vengeance (DVD). Beverly Hills, California: 20th Century Fox. Event occurs at 35:12. Die Hard 2 actually, as I recall, did better than Die Hard 1, which is very unusual. Sequels normally do about 65% of their original, but this one just exploded.
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  21. ^ Lawler, Kelly (August 12, 2024). "Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds mark first married couple to top box office in 34 years". USA Today. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
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