A Good Day To Die Hard (2013) Directed by John Moore. Starring: Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney, and Sebastian Koch. IMDB says: “John McClane travels to Russia to help out his seemingly wayward son, Jack, only to discover that Jack is a CIA operative working to prevent a nuclear-weapons heist, causing the father and son to team up against underworld forces.”
If you like Die Hard, you’re going to enjoy this movie: plain and simple. John McClane (Bruce Willis, like I need to tell you that) is back and kicking ass all over Russia. Car chases, gun fights, jumping out of buildings, helicopter stunts, it’s all here! The film is 85% action and the rest is a predictable plot that you could care less about. All you need to know is McClane is headed to Russia to look for his son Jack (Jai Courtney, welcome to the party pal) and gets mixed up in a CIA mission.
Most of the non-action scenes are spent defining a cliché Dad-Wasn’t-Around-Much-I-Resent-Him relationship between John and Jack. At times they’re really forcing that dynamic between the two, but those scenes are only around long enough to take you to the next scene.
Two things surprised me about this film: the length and the CGI. The film clocks in at just under an hour and forty minutes, but my oh my does the time fly when you’re blowing up cars and buildings and jumping out of said buildings. Thankfully the film never looks or feels hurried as the action and fun is paced well enough for time to jump out of a building while it explodes.
The other surprise was the CGI. There are at least two scenes where the entire shot is CGI. No actors, no sets, just CGI. It isn’t too noticeable, but if you’re paying attention, you’ll find yourself wondering if you’re watching a movie or a video game cut scene. That’s not necessarily a bad thing because they don’t overuse the CGI in the film, but it makes you wonder why these scenes couldn’t be done with practical effects.
You know what you’re getting into with any of the Die Hard films: You’re going love it or hate it, but either way, you’re going see explosions and people jumping out of buildings. Skip the chocolates and take your valentine to see it in theatres, or, if you’re not too keen on action films, hang onto those chocolates, enjoy them, and just wait for A Good Day To Die Hard to explode onto VOD or jump out of an exploding building and onto Netflix.
FTS SCORE: 78%