Jason versus A Good Day to Die Hard

OK, OK. I'm really late to the party and everyone on the planet has watched A Good Day to Die Hard and given their 69 cents. Most people mildly enjoyed it or didn't like it. So what does this Basement Dweller think? Stick with me.

John McClane travels to Russia to help out his seemingly wayward son, Jack, only to discover that Jack is a CIA operative working to prevent a nuclear-weapons heist, causing the father and son to team up against underworld forces.

I'll start with what doesn't work. This isn't a Die Hard movie. It's a big, Hollywood action movie that John McClane just happened to wander into. McClane is a superman who lives through more near-death experiences in the first half hour than a normal human being could ever survive. This is contrary to what made the original Die Hard work so well -- a normal guy caught in extraordinary circumstances.

The whole father/son dynamic is forced. Why does Jack need to work for the CIA? And why does he not get along with his dad at the outset? How Hollywood! Granted, a few of the exchanges between Bruce Willis and Jai Courtney did remind me of back and forths with my late old man. And I'm sure many allude to future chats with my son.

All this shit aside, I still enjoyed A Good Day to Die Hard. There's a car chase to end all car chases through downtown Moscow and most of the action scenes are stellar. This is a good action movie by mainstream standards, it's just not a Die Hard movie.

Also loved some of the humour and profanity. Yes, McClane is a superhero, but the McClaneisms are alive and well. So is use of the F-bomb and my personal favourite, motherfucker. No yippee ki yay motherBLAMs here.

Gotta love the Ode To Joy ringtone, by the way.

What to give A Good Day to Die Hard? By Die Hard standards it's a Bad. But I know I will watch it again when I want to enjoy the ride. And by Basement standards that rates a Good. Sue me. I co-founded this shit and can do what I want.

Motherfucker!

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