I can only think
of a few occasions where an action film has been too loud for me, compelling me
to turn the surround sound stereo to a more reasonable level. A Good Day to Die Hard is easily one of
noisiest action film I have encountered, but it is the consistent droning of
the noise which inevitably makes it unbearable. There are no ups and downs in
this film; it is consistently at level 10, which inevitably dulls the senses
and makes all of it seem like white noise by the conclusion. The action just
becomes boring to watch despite the volume of it.
I had issues
with the last Die Hard film, mostly because I can’t stand the idea of a PG-13
Die Hard. With that being said, at least it contained something of a script.
Everything in A Good Day to Die Hard feels underdeveloped, from the cliché
half-written plot to the half-ass dialogue which feels like it could have been
made up by the actors on set. The jokes don’t land, or make sense, and the
emotional father/son sub-plot is forced, predictable and completely
unbelievable. It feels as though everyone approached this film as if it were a
gag, from the writers all the way down. The only people who took it serious
were the producers, who threw enough money at the project to make sure there
are plenty of explosions.
This film plays
like a straight-to-video sequel to Safe House, with John McClane (Bruce Willis)
traveling to Russia to try and find his son, Jack (Jai Courtney), who is a spy
trying to hide a prisoner and thwart some generic world domination plot. Lots
of things blow up in an unbelievable manner leading to a large climactic battle
which has already escaped my memory. I would rather have forgettable than the
opening chase sequence, which is so bad that I can’t remove it from my brain.
The action is incoherent and incessantly noisy, it is overlong, and ends in a
CGI absurdity belong up there with the refrigerator escape in the latest
Indiana Jones film.
The Blu-ray
release includes both the theatrical and extended cut of the film. There is
also a DVD and digital copy of the film included. The special features have
many fluff piece featurettes, including one on the awful car chase sequence.
There are also a few deleted scenes with nothing really necessary, a still
gallery, and a commentary track featuring director John Moore and assistant
director Mark Cotone. The commentary is only available for the extended cut.
Entertainment Value:
6/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 1/10
Historical
Significance: 3/10
Disc Features: 7/10
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