Die Hard 2 (4 Stars)

"How can the same shit happen to the same guy twice?"

John McClane screams this question when he's up against a gang of terrorist mercenaries at Dallas International Airport. There's an easy answer to the question: it's a sequel, so you have to be doing the same things to keep the audience happy.

It's not quite the same. The first film took place in the top floors of a skyscraper. The second film doesn't take place so high up, it's in an airport, in the building and on the runway. But other things are the same. The film takes place at Christmas. John is a policeman away from his area of jurisdiction. Once more, he's one man facing overwhelming odds without the assistance of the police. On the contrary, the police are against him, telling him to stand down and let them do their work. In the first film he was a New York cop visiting Los Angeles. Now he's a Los Angeles cop visiting Dallas.

The problem is that the former leader of a South American country, General Ramon Esperanza, has been arrested for drug trafficking and is being brought to America to stand trial. He's not a typical drug lord. He's only been selling drugs to make money to finance his return to power.

A small army of mercenaries is waiting for him in Dallas, ready to free him as soon as he lands. John has an expert eye and spots two men entering a restricted area. That's what a good policeman does. He has eyes everywhere. The police chief at the airport doesn't spot anything. He just wants a quiet Christmas at the airport, and he thinks John is the one causing trouble. Even when he finally realises that he's dealing with terrorists, he tries to shut John out of the operation. The only person willing to help him is Marvin, an airport janitor who knows all the underground service tunnels to get from one end of the airport to the other.

Though not up to the level of the first film, it's a thrilling adventure. I have to praise the performance of Franco Nero as General Esperanza. He has a regal air about him that puts me in awe.

By the way, what's the deal with putting a film's title at the end of the film, not the beginning? I thought it was a recent fad, but "Die Hard 2" did it in 1990.

Success Rate:  + 1.4

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