Synopsis
Off-duty cop John McClane is gripped with a feeling of déjà vu when, on a snowy Christmas Eve in the nation’s capital, terrorists seize a major international airport, holding thousands of holiday travelers hostage. Renegade military commandos led by a murderous rogue officer plot to rescue a drug lord from justice and are prepared for every contingency except one: McClane’s smart-mouthed heroics.
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Cast
- Bruce WillisJohn McClane
- Bonnie BedeliaHolly McClane
- William SadlerStuart
- Art EvansLeslie Barnes
- Dennis FranzCapt. Carmine Lorenzo
- William AthertonRichard Thornburg
- John AmosMajor Grant
- Fred ThompsonTrudeau
- Tom BowerMarvin
- Franco NeroGeneral Ramon Esperanza
- 88
Chicago Sun-Times
Because Die Hard 2 is so skillfully constructed and well-directed, it develops a momentum that carries it past several credibility gaps that might have capsized a lesser film. - 88
ReelViews
It's not as crisply directed, and the plot holes are easier to find, but Die Hard 2 is filled with the same sense of good-natured, wisecracking fun that infused the original. - 80
Washington Post
It's rambunctiously entertaining, a loop-de-loopy bumper car ride through a firecracker sky, all bright lights, sonic booms and impossible heroics. - 75
Chicago Tribune
A smart, spectacular and rousing piece of work, one that strains against but can't quite escape the natural limitations imposed by a sequel. [4 July 1990, p.C1] - 70
Variety
Die Hard 2 lacks the inventivenes of the original but compensates with relentless action. - 70
Los Angeles Times
This is the most cheerfully preposterous film of a jaw-dropping summer, which is not to say it's not fun, it's simply orchestrated Looney Tunes. - 67
Entertainment Weekly
A number of scenes have been staged with satisfying kinetic flair, and Willis once again makes an appealing superhero. Yet without that great big booby-trapped skyscraper to hold the action together, the suspense dissipates. - 63
Boston Globe
It's not quite as jolting as the high-impact original, but it's got enough explosiveness to blow away the other sequels in this summer's parade of high-body-count blockbusters. [4 July 1990, p.29]