Die Hard: With a Vengeance (1995)

John McClane and a Harlem store owner are targeted by German terrorist Simon Gruber in New York City, where he plans to rob the Federal Reserve Building.

Director:

John McTiernan

Writers:

Jonathan Hensleigh, Roderick Thorp (certain original characters)

Stars:

Bruce Willis, Jeremy Irons, Samuel L. Jackson

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bruce Willis	...	John McClane
Jeremy Irons	...	Simon Gruber
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Zeus Carver
Graham Greene	...	Joe Lambert
Colleen Camp	...	Connie Kowalski
Larry Bryggman	...	Insp. Walter Cobb
Anthony Peck	...	Ricky Walsh
Nick Wyman	...	Mathias Targo
Sam Phillips	...	Katya
Kevin Chamberlin	...	Charles Weiss
Sharon Washington	...	Officer Jane
Stephen Pearlman	...	Dr. Fred Schiller
Michael Alexander Jackson	...	Dexter
Aldis Hodge	...	Raymond
Mischa Hausserman	...	Mischa

Storyline

John McClane is now almost a full-blown alcoholic and is suspended from the NYPD. But when a bomb goes off in the Bonwit Teller Department Store the police go insane trying to figure out what's going on. Soon, a man named Simon calls and asks for McClane. Simon tells Inspector Walter Cobb that McClane is going to play a game called "Simon Says". He says that McClane is going to do the tasks he assigns him. If not, he'll set off another bomb. With the help of a Harlem electrician, John McClane must race all over New York trying to figure out the frustrating puzzles that the crafty terrorist gives him. But when a bomb goes off in a subway station right by the Federal Reserve (the biggest gold storage in the world) things start to get heated.

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Plot Keywords:

john mcclane character | time bomb | good versus evil | male butt clench | motor car | 

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Taglines:

John McClane is about to have a very bad day

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence and pervasive strong language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English German Romanian

Release Date:

19 May 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

Die Hard: New York

Filming Locations:

Ray's Candy Store, 113 Avenue A, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$90,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$22,162,245, 21 May 1995

Gross USA:

$100,012,499

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$366,101,666

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinergi Pictures Entertainment, Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Trucks aren't allowed on the F.D.R., as stated in the movie by Detective Connie Kowalski (Colleen Camp), but the city made a special exception for the filmmakers.

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Goofs

When Katya shoots the comrade who discovered the gold had been replaced with scrap iron, the hammer moves to the cocked position as she pulls the trigger, the hammer stays in the cocked position as she fires three times.

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Quotes

Inspector Cobb: [over the phone after telling him there are dump trucks driving on the FDR highway carrying gold bricks] Have you been drinking, McClane?
John McClane: No, not since this morning.

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Alternate Versions

The UK cinema version was cut by 12 secs by the BBFC in order to receive a 15 certificate. Cuts were made to the stabbing of the guard in the bank, the shootout in the lift scene, and the shooting of the men in the dump truck. Profanity was mostly overdubbed throughout the movie and replaced by the distributors themselves. For example: "Fuck you, Joe" became "Go away, Joe", and "Ten blocks, you fucking kidding me?" became "Ten blocks are you really kidding me?" amongst many others. UK video - and some DVD - releases all feature the same cut print. The BBFC waived all cuts in 2008 and the UK Blu-ray is uncut.

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Connections

Referenced in Looper (2012)

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Soundtracks

Off Minor
Written by Thelonious Monk
Performed by Thelonious Monk
Embassy Music Corp. / Music Sales Corp. (BMI)
CD Title: "Thelonious Monk / Joe Turner in Paris"
Courtesy of RCA Victor/Disques VOGUE

User Reviews

Not your average action movie

This movie gets right to the point and starts off with an explosion. I love that. A crazy guy named Simon (played very well by Jeremy Irons) blows up a store, and asks to speak to John McClane, who is on suspension. The cops grab McClane, who is by now a heavy drinker, and put him on the phone with Simon. Simon makes him walk through Harlem with a very offensive sign. Just when he is about to get beat down, he is rescued by the racist Samuel L. Jackson, who plays Zeus. It seems as though Simon wants revenge on McClane for something, but nobody knows why. Now, Zeus and McClane are at the mercy of Simon, who meanwhile is committing a massive robbery.

This movie is considerably different from the other two, which is probably a good thing. Who wants the same thing three times in a row? The plot has as many twists and turns as a snake, and the movie keeps the viewer involved. Watching Zeus and McClane bicker is amusing as well. Samuel L. Jackson pulls off the role of the "racist black man" very well. I would highly recommend this movie.