Die Hard with a Vengeance: A Bombastic Return
The fourth film, Die Hard with a Vengeance again features Bruce Willis as John McClan of detectives who finds himself midst of terrorist trouble against the intelligent terrorist Simon, played by Jeremy Irons. It takes place in New York city also known as the urban jungle and in this part McClane together with an equally reluctant partner Zeus Carver portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson must out wit the enemy and stop a series of ominous puzzles and a complicated robbery on the Federal Reserve Building. The sequences are inventive, with the numerous twists and turns that use the city’s extensive structure as a commodity in conflicts as well as play. The plot of the film is full of explosive situations connected with bombs, mysterious clues, and hatred which has its roots in McClane’s past, that creates a thrilling story and keeps the viewer on the edge of his seat.
Die Hard with a Vengeance has a strong sense of both disorder and planning. It explores the concept of catharsis in McClane — a protagonist who is psychologically and physically scarred but still has the primal instincts of encouraging viewers. The component of fear and hope combined with the thrilling staking up moments of action moves the movie in to a realm of suspense that is exhilarating. The socio-political aspects are also touched on because of the setting and character relations and the portrayal of race relations in certain scenes, and the realism of urban America under attack.
Bruce Willis fits the part of John McClane, the worn out cop to a ‘T’. His interaction with other legend, Samuel L. Jackson is fantastic and adds not only punch but also comedy and like-real brother relationship. Though in the second part the co-hero Zeus Carver portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson adds a new charisma of wisdom and suspicion to the screen along with Willis’s power in terms of machoism. Jeremy Irons portrays Simon, a sophisticated and threatening villain, a great adversary to McClane’s traditional hero mode.The movie, Directed by John McTiernan, is really a testimony to his capacity to master tension and excitement as well as elaborate action. What McTiernan has achieved is building a kinetic narrative that never stops: effectively using both fast action and tense scenes. The ensemble cast displays his effective setting choices and his ability to manage the diverse cast of characters is apparent here; in combination with the action-packed storyline, creates New York City the film is not just a sequel but a standalone action thriller that packs a punch.
Surprisingly the music score too is well composed with a right mix of tension building background score and action music which augments the pace of the movie. The music accompanies each scene, rising to fill the air at unexpected peaks of confrontation and sections of contrived suspense along with exhilarating action sequences which when combined feel like a drum of highly detailed music scoring for the benefit of the viewers to feel the beats of multiple heart throbs as well as many explosions.
The action principally in Die Hard with a Vengeance beautifully uses the practicality of New York City for most of its screen space. Directed by Peter Menzies Jr., the film uses long shots to convey the spectacular size of the city and contrasting with close up shots during the chase scenes. In this manner, the practical, dynamic and ambitious camera work allows the city as a whole to be given a personality to the narrative backdrop adding liveliness and vigor to collectives settings while at the same time raising the stakes and tension to McClane’s mission.
The locations shot are emblematic of New York from its towers to its underground, offering a realistic and interventionist version of a city under attack. Zero has brought more truth to explosions and destructing in the film while making the plot in the movie real but note joke. UGE has grand scale mainly because the general idea of the play and the capacities of the theater require such approach, every element is created with great detail to create the atmosphere of destruction and chaos that is present in the movie’s plot.
The action is really amplified in Die Hard with a Vengeance The special effects in particular are clearly made with rather classy approach focusing on practical effects as well as some production design that looked quite sophisticated for action films Special effects such as explosion and the action scenes are quite memorable, they are realistic giving the film the much-needed theme towards buildup of tension. The special effects team manages to deliver with impact scenes that are entertaining and visually stunning.
The editing done by John Wright adds to the films fast pace and adrenaline while still keeping narrative structure in check and giving some much needed character and tension building stages. The change from one scene to another is well orchestrated both from the point of view of pace as well as tension so that the audience remains interested and involved in McClane’s roller coaster ride.
This is a typical action oriented movie like most in the Die Hard series where the entire pace of the picture is fast and relentless, befitting the story of a man caught in a race against time. This is not an empty preamble; the film quickly puts a viewer into an increasing danger, intermitted by scenes that both advance character relations and do not disrupt the pace. It is a fast pace that keeps the viewer on the edge of their seat constantly waiting for a twist or the next big outburst.
A not insignificant portion of the dialog in Die Hard with a Vengeance is spoken in wit enhancing the emotions of the action scenes with the humor. The dialogue between Willis and Jackson is a great build up throughout the film showing the development of their relationship, but unlike Willis and Jackson’s witty flying sparring partner, Irons’ lines are spoken cold and calculated, giving a menacing threat to his character. The dialog takes care of more serious themes of the movie which are perseverance and unity in partnership which complement the strong action plan of the film.
Still, some film critics complained about some scenes in the motion picture being not as inventive as the two previous movies in the series. Some may consider it as purely an action movie and that may at times dilute the screenplay besides when the action starts, the stakes feel very high though the film is full of big set pieces. Still, it stands strong in terms of interaction of characters and McTiernan’s nonmatchable directorial ability to make it a worthy addition to the series. This movie aces the plot and character relations and provides a thrilling experience that leaves a viewer fully charged and ready for more of the film. This New York based film, raw feel, coupled with great performances from Bronson and Haynes make it stand out from the regular action films and make it a classic actioner.
