In Stock at Asylum - Action

This is a pretty good action thriller. I appreciate the no-frills approach to the fight scenes and the verite camera work adds to the frenetic realism. Fights here don't look choreographed. They happen fast and ugly. The pacing isn't perfect and the logic is stretched thin, but everything fits together in a satisfying package.

The action is better in this follow-up, but the plot is less compelling. So it's a trade-off. But really, how many times can we be enthralled by Matt Damon walking away quickly, looking over his shoulder and hoping no one saw him do whatever it was he just did? A few more, I suppose, since I still enjoyed the flick.
And I was happy to see Mr. Bourne still with Franka Potente at the beginning of the film. Sequel-to-sequel fidelity is so rare in today's action star.

"Entertainment Weekly" named this the best action movie ever made and I don't think I can argue.
This film single-handedly changed what an action star was, from Rambo to regular guy and created a formula that's been imitated ever since. It set the template for modern action movies by giving its lead a heart to go along with his guts.
Even apart from any historical importance, it's just a really, really good flick. Its premise is pure and its plot is simple without being shallow. The pace is fast, but with plenty of moments of character development. Sure, we thrill at whizzing bullets and leaps from the roof, but a man sitting alone in the bathroom pulling glass from his bleeding feet and agonizing over what might be his last words to his wife... that's what sets this apart. That and the dynamic performances from Bruce Willis and Alan Rickman, of course.
John McClane is a screen icon for good reason and "Die Hard" is a masterpiece of the genre.

This sequel isn't bad, it just suffers from being in the shadow of the original. There are too many coincidences and self-conscious winks at the audience. I don't mind an "oh, this again" moment, but when it's repeatedly - and awkwardly - drilled home by the characters actually saying "oh, this again," you've lost me.
The plot isn't nearly as tight as the original and John McClane seems to have lost his cynical sense of humor and just become cynical. (And more brutal.) But Bruce Willis always keeps things interesting and there are more than enough exciting moments that help you overlook most of the flaws and just enjoy the flick for what it is.

While not as perfect as the original, this sequel is exciting and funny in ways the second installment didn't come near.
Its biggest fault is simply waiting an hour to get Jeremy Irons on screen. The villains make these things go and a voice on a phone just doesn't hold its own. There are also a few lapses in logic to contend with. (Did Simon really mean for McClane to solve all his near-impossible puzzles? Or would he have been happy to have a bomb go off in the park, shooting a hole in his "I'm a soldier, not a monster" claims?)
Despite any little nagging problems, this remains a great action movie. Set in New York, we get to see McClane for the first time not as a fish out of water but on his home turf and acutely aware of his surroundings. Also for the first time, the cops surrounding him are fairly competent. Add in Samuel L. Jackson as a race-baiting sidekick, some great action set pieces and a sense of humor, and you end up with a very solid sequel worthy of the name "Die Hard."

It's sad that this film is looked at as little more than 80s nostalgia or a punch line. As unrealistic and right wing goofy as it might be, I can't think of a better populist time capsule for the Cold War fears and patriotism felt in those years.
And let's not forget that it was written and directed by John Milius, the man who wrote "Apocalypse Now." There is a film pedigree here. Ignore the terrible movies that came later from the young cast. Here, in this film, they are something special as an ensemble.
Is it the most believable, politically correct depiction of war? No. Do I love every single RPG-firing, Geneva Convention-ignoring, bug-swallowing, father-avenging, snot-bubbling second of it? You bet. Wolverines!