Movie Review: Die Hard with a Vengeance

Die Hard With a Vengeance (Die Hard 3) failed to retrieve anyone from the original cast save for Willis, but it reintroduces the intelligent and interesting villain that the second film sorely lacked, and retains the same high level of action, violence and humor. More than the first two, Die Hard 3 increases the verbal comedy with the addition of Samuel L. Jackson, who magnificently plays off of Willis' smart mouth with witty interjections of his own. Despite the fact that the original Die Hard is perhaps the finest action film ever made, Die Hard with a Vengeance holds true to the themes introduced in its near-perfect predecessor.

A mysterious terrorist blows up a building in Los Angeles and then demands that John McClane (Bruce Willis) be taken to Harlem to follow rather life-threatening instructions or another building will be destroyed. Calling himself Simon (Jeremy Irons), the bomber is quickly identified as Simon Krieg, the brother of Hans Gruber, who McClane dumped off a skyscraper in the first film. McClane is teamed up with Zeus (Samuel L. Jackson) who saves him from the mind games of Simon's vicious stunt in Harlem. Continuing to play Simon's deadly slew of riddles and clues, McClane eventually discovers that it may all be just a diversion to smuggle tons of gold bricks out of the Federal Reserve. Playing against time and the threat of a bomb planted in an L.A. school, McClane must use every resource to defeat the deceptive terrorist.