--- title: "Die Hard: With a Vengeance" year: 1995 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/die-hard-with-a-vengeance" fi1m_id: "die-hard-with-a-vengeance" imdb_id: "tt0112864" tmdb_id: 1572 wikidata_id: "Q106871" fi1m_score: 78 critics_score: 59 critics_reviews: 9 published: "2026-09-13" updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:18.571532+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Die Hard: With a Vengeance (1995) Directed by John McTiernan · 2h 08m · MPA R · Action, Thriller ## Identity Die Hard: With a Vengeance - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/die-hard-with-a-vengeance - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** die-hard-with-a-vengeance - **IMDb ID:** tt0112864 - **TMDB ID:** 1572 - **Wikidata ID:** Q106871 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112864/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/1572, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q106871 **Fi1m score: 78** · Critics 59 from 9 reviews *In a sentence:* New York is falling apart and Bruce Willis still cannot get through a conversation without an argument > *Die Hard: With a Vengeance* works because Willis and Jackson make the friction as entertaining as the danger. The plotting grows untidy and the last act tires, but the partnership earns this sprawling action thriller our recommendation. ## Synopsis John McClane (Bruce Willis) and Zeus Carver (Samuel L. Jackson) are thrown together in New York, where Simon (Jeremy Irons) drives a succession of races against the clock. Their route takes them across the city, through chases, explosions and arguments that neither man is inclined to abandon simply because time is short. McClane and Carver have to work together while Simon keeps them under pressure. Larry Bryggman plays Chief Walter Cobb, with Graham Greene as Joe Lambert and Colleen Camp as Connie Kowalski, in an action thriller built around a partnership neither participant finds comfortable. ## Review John McTiernan makes *Die Hard: With a Vengeance* worth the noise and the running about, chiefly by putting two men together who have no patience for each other. We recommend it, with a warning that the last act is appreciably less satisfying than the chase that gets us there. Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson have enough comic friction to keep a sprawling action thriller lively between explosions. McTiernan lets their irritation compete with the danger, and gives both enough attention to keep us interested. Willis’s John McClane works better with someone prepared to argue back, and Jackson’s Zeus Carver supplies plenty of resistance. Jackson makes his objections feel urgent enough to belong in the action, rather than interruptions inserted to give everyone a rest. We laughed at their bickering even while the reckless cab drive had us tense. The pleasure comes from watching two performers keep an argument alive while the film hurries them towards the next danger. Peter Menzies Jr.’s cinematography gives the New York action a useful sense of distance: getting across the city looks like work. The cab sequence benefits from that physical scale, because the speed feels reckless and the journey difficult. John Wright’s editing keeps those immediate problems legible even when the larger plot becomes harder to follow. We can stay with the scramble in front of us without having to pretend that every connection in Jonathan Hensleigh’s screenplay is equally convincing. Jeremy Irons gives Simon enough relish to make him an entertaining source of trouble. His performance is pitched to a film in which the adversary has to compete with two leads who already provide plenty of noise. The emphasis on their partnership does leave him less room to dominate proceedings. Still, he is good company for a villain, and the film would be duller with a more solemn performance. Jackson De Govia’s production design helps the demolition feel suitably large, though it is less distinctive than the human business in front of it. The spaces serve the pursuit without giving us much reason to study them. Michael Kamen’s music keeps pushing alongside the action, which works while the chases retain their urgency. When the film begins to tire, that insistence becomes another demand on our attention. A little less pressure from the score would let the exhaustion of the situation register more clearly. Hensleigh’s script is the main limitation: moving to another emergency too often substitutes for making the existing one more interesting. Wright can keep individual sequences brisk, but he cannot make the succession feel necessary. The last act loses momentum just when it ought to be tightening, and its haste does not disguise that loss. An action thriller can survive an implausible connection or two; repeatedly having to renew our interest is a more serious problem. Most critics disagree with us about how much the partnership compensates for the untidy plotting. The complaints about repetition and sprawl are fair, but we think they understate the pleasure of Jackson giving Willis someone so difficult to get along with. Against the action genre’s usual reliance on bigger destruction, the sustained irritation between these two is a worthwhile reason to keep watching. Choose it for their company, and allow for a finish that cannot quite keep up. *Fi1m score 78, published 13 September 2026.* ## What the critics say The reviews are evenly divided between positive, mixed and negative, but praise clusters around the stunt work, Manhattan set pieces and the testy pairing of Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson. Even some detractors acknowledge the action’s physical impact, while warmer assessments find enough energy and humour to make the spectacle satisfying. Jackson is a particular asset, earning approval even from critics who find the surrounding formula tired. The main divide is over whether the larger, city-wide adventure refreshes the series or sacrifices its tension and coherence. Collider sees a revitalised sequel that preserves the original’s desperation and humour; Time Out finds familiar chases and explosions with little originality. Reservations recur around the scattered plotting and loss of momentum towards the finish, with even Collider calling the ending rushed and anticlimactic. Jeremy Irons’s villain also divides opinion: some enjoy his presence, while others find him wanting beside the original’s antagonist. ## Straight answers **Is Die Hard: With a Vengeance worth watching?** *Die Hard: With a Vengeance* is worth watching for anyone who wants an action thriller carried by two leads who cannot stop arguing, and we scored it 78. Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson make the bickering as entertaining as the explosions, and Jeremy Irons is good company as the villain. Allow for untidy plotting and a last act that tires. **How long is Die Hard: With a Vengeance, and what is it rated?** *Die Hard: With a Vengeance* runs 2h 08m and is rated R by the MPA in the US. It is an action and thriller film. **Where can I watch Die Hard: With a Vengeance in the US?** *Die Hard: With a Vengeance* is available to rent from Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV from $3.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service. **How violent or frightening is Die Hard: With a Vengeance, and is it suitable for children?** *Die Hard: With a Vengeance* carries a 15 certificate in the UK and an R in the US, so it is not for children. It is built around chases, explosions and a reckless cab drive across New York, with sustained violence and coarse language implied by the rating. Older teenagers used to loud action thrillers should cope; it is not a frightening film so much as a noisy one. **How does Die Hard: With a Vengeance compare to Die Hard 2?** *Die Hard: With a Vengeance* is the livelier of the two, because it gives Bruce Willis a partner to argue with and a villain with some relish, where [*Die Hard 2*](https://film.one/film/die-hard-2) never found an adversary worth his trouble. The earlier film is the tidier and more straightforward; this one sprawls and loses momentum late. Choose the airport for brisk fun, the city for the company. **Do you need to have seen the other Die Hard films before Die Hard: With a Vengeance?** *Die Hard: With a Vengeance* can be watched without seeing the earlier films, because its pleasure comes from a partnership that begins here. John McClane is simply a New York cop in trouble, and Samuel L. Jackson’s Zeus Carver meets him at the same time we do. Knowing the character adds a little, but the arguments and the chases need no background. **What order should I watch the Die Hard films in?** Release order is the safe choice for Die Hard, and it is the order [our collection page](https://film.one/collections/die-hard) lists them in. *Die Hard: With a Vengeance* is number 3 of the 5 Die Hard titles on Fi1m; before it comes [*Die Hard 2*](https://film.one/film/die-hard-2) and after it [*Live Free or Die Hard*](https://film.one/film/live-free-or-die-hard). [The full order.](https://film.one/collections/die-hard.md) ### Reviews we read (9) - **Radio Times**, David Parkinson (4/5): Positive take on the third Die Hard as cracking entertainment. Singles out Jeremy Irons as a strong villain and the testy Willis-Jackson pairing for their quips and action chemistry. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-dqzr8y/die-hard-with-a-vengeance/) - **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (75/100, inferred): The film is a cleverly made wind-up action toy delivered with high energy that delivers just what it advertises. It stands out for its sensational stunt sequences and set pieces around Manhattan. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/die-hard-with-a-vengeance-1995) - **The New Yorker**, Terrence Rafferty (65/100, inferred): It is passable fun and pretty good value for fans of dumb action-movie hedonism, though sloppier than the original. It stands out for nifty sequences like the reckless cab drive and tense elevator shoot-out. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1995/05/29/the-avengers) - **Empire**, Ian Nathan (60/100, inferred): The film is a buddy-buddy romp better than Die Hard 2 but not as good as the original, with breathless fun that runs out of steam in the last act and a villain inferior to Alan Rickman's. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/die-hard-vengeance-review/) - **Los Angeles Times**, Peter Rainer (60/100, inferred): The installment is a grand-scale demolition derby on steroids that relentlessly zeros in on sensation. It stands out for its non-stop explosions and beat-the-clock escapades all over New York. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-05-19-ca-3387-story.html) - **Time Out**, DW (40/100, inferred): Finds the formula wearing thin by the third film, with Willis as a standard action hero and little originality beyond familiar chases and bangs. Singles out Samuel L. Jackson for providing the best moments as the sidekick. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/die-hard-with-a-vengeance) - **Variety**, Brian Lowry (40/100, inferred): An overinflated mishmash that is the least accomplished of the three movies with a scattered and indecipherable plotline. It stands out for spectacular stunt-work and sound effects that provide much of the visceral appeal. [Read](https://variety.com/1995/film/reviews/die-hard-with-a-vengeance-1200441643/) - **The Independent** (30/100, inferred): The script self-destructs and the series runs out of steam, with an episodic plot across New York that lacks the claustrophobia of prior entries and a pale villain compared to the first film's. [Read](https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/the-critics-flash-bangs-go-up-in-smoke-1597083.html) - **Collider**, Matt Goldberg (A-): The critic considers it the true sequel to the original, bigger and bolder while retaining desperation, humor, and intensity, with strong praise for the buddy pairing of Willis and Jackson and the revitalized formula. The ending is called anticlimactic and rushed. [Read](https://collider.com/die-hard-with-a-vengeance-review/) ## Details - **Director:** John McTiernan - **Director:** John McTiernan - **Writer:** Jonathan Hensleigh - **Cinematography:** Peter Menzies - **Editor:** John Wright - **Music:** Michael Kamen - **Production design:** Jackson DeGovia - **Producer:** Michael Tadross, John McTiernan - **Cast:** Bruce Willis as John McClane; Jeremy Irons as Simon; Samuel L. Jackson as Zeus Carver; Larry Bryggman as Chief Walter Cobb; Graham Greene as Joe Lambert; Anthony Peck as Ricky Walsh; Nick Wyman as Mathias Targo; Kevin Chamberlin as Charles Weiss - **Runtime:** 2h 08m - **Certificate (MPA):** R - **Release (the US):** 19 May 1995 - **Genres:** Action, Thriller - **Part of:** [Die Hard](https://film.one/collections/die-hard.md) · 3 of 5 - **Budget:** $90 million - **Box office:** $366 million ## Where to watch in the US - Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, uhd - Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, hd - Apple TV: buy $19.99, hd *Checked 2026-09-13.* Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, IE, IL, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, TR, UA, US, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## Awards - MTV Movie Award for Best Action Sequence 1996: MTV Movie Award for Best Action Sequence (nominated) ## If you liked this - *The Taking of Pelham One Two Three* (1974): Dry New York humour gives another tightly scheduled thriller its prickly character - *Police Story* (1985): Physical danger and comic exasperation share the frame, with little room for bluff - *Speed* (1994), Fi1m 86: A simpler deadline keeps the action focused and the central partnership appealing — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/speed.md) - *Point Blank* (2010): A frantic French chase that keeps its ordinary protagonist under intolerable pressure - *The Nice Guys* (2016): Two argumentative leads make another hazardous investigation much funnier than it should be --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/die-hard-with-a-vengeance