# Which Die Hard movie is the best? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 20, 2018, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276 "2018-07-20T15:31:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kennedy1960](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ccd318/32.png) [@Kennedy1960](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kennedy1960)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/1 "2018-07-20T15:31:50Z")
Which is the best? ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/2 "2018-07-20T15:34:56Z")
The one with SLJ of course. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/3 "2018-07-20T15:36:25Z")
Only the first. the others are pale imitations. Accept no substitutes. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/4 "2018-07-20T15:38:57Z")
Whoever voted for Vengeance should be banned. Not just from the board, from the planet. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/5 "2018-07-20T15:41:13Z")
Die Hard is a great movie, Die Hard with a Vengeance was at least a good movie. The rest were crap or worse. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/6 "2018-07-20T15:46:47Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Whoever voted for Vengeance should be banned. Not just from the board, from the planet. You don’t know what you are talking about! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/7 "2018-07-20T16:03:25Z")
The first was by far the best. Vengeance a distant second. The rest tied for last place. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/8 "2018-07-20T16:04:40Z")
I can’t think of a movie, offhand, where a sequel was better than the first. ---
**Author:** ![SykoSkotty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@SykoSkotty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SykoSkotty)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/9 "2018-07-20T16:07:43Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I can’t think of a movie, offhand, where a sequel was better than the first. The Empire Strikes Back? ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/10 "2018-07-20T16:08:44Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I can’t think of a movie, offhand, where a sequel was better than the first. Empire Strikes. Back? ---
**Author:** ![Kron](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kron/32/12444_2.png) [@Kron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kron)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/11 "2018-07-20T16:11:47Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Die Hard is a great movie, Die Hard with a Vengeance was at least a good movie. The rest were crap or worse. Agreed. If I had to watch Die Hard with a Vengeance, I would not complain or feel too put upon. Anything made after that one, though, and I would rather watch a cooking show or something. Or grass grow. Or paint dry. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/12 "2018-07-20T16:23:44Z")
I actually liked Die Harder second best, after the original. Didn’t care much for Vengeance. The others were indeed crap (although I never saw the last one). ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/13 "2018-07-20T16:27:30Z")
> [@SykoSkotty](#): > > The Empire Strikes Back? > [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > Empire Strikes. Back? I consider that an installment in a series, which was planned from the beginning, rather than a sequel. When I say sequel, I mean that the first movie was successful and the producers said, “Let’s make bank on the name of the first movie and see if we can repeat that success at the box office.” The example from this thread, the Die Hard franchise, was not conceived as a serial story. The movies pretty much stand on their own, just with the same lead character. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/14 "2018-07-20T16:34:16Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I consider that an installment in a series, which was planned from the beginning, rather than a sequel. When I say sequel, I mean that the first movie was successful and the producers said, “Let’s make bank on the name of the first movie and see if we can repeat that success at the box office.” The example from this thread, the Die Hard franchise, was not conceived as a serial story. The movies pretty much stand on their own, just with the same lead character. Terminator 2? ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/15 "2018-07-20T16:44:48Z")
Two words: Alan Rickman Seriously, the quality of an action movie is directly related to the quality of the bad guy. Even the name “Hans Gruber” tells you this is a villain who will be a worthy opponent. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/16 "2018-07-20T16:48:28Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I consider that an installment in a series, which was planned from the beginning, rather than a sequel. When I say sequel, I mean that the first movie was successful and the producers said, “Let’s make bank on the name of the first movie and see if we can repeat that success at the box office.” The example from this thread, the Die Hard franchise, was not conceived as a serial story. The movies pretty much stand on their own, just with the same lead character. IIRC, the first _ **SW** _ was never expected to be a massive hit and took everyone by surprise when it was. Lucas may have had lots more material that he had to trim from the story, but he had little hope of ever being able to use it in another film. Hell, James Earl Jones even declined screen credit as the voice of Darth Vader, thinking the movie would never be a success. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/17 "2018-07-20T16:49:32Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I can’t think of a movie, offhand, where a sequel was better than the first. _ **Godfather II** _? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/18 "2018-07-20T16:51:49Z")
To answer the poll, the first movie. I also really liked the second, even though the story was even more preposterous. Things moved so fast you never had time to realize how silly they were. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/19 "2018-07-20T16:53:37Z")
> [@Paintcharge](#): > > Terminator 2? This, also _The Road Warrior_, _Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn_, and arguably _Toy Story 2_. And _Mad Max: Fury Road_ tops them all, but I’m not sure if it’s considered a sequel. As to the OP, how is this even a question? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Lancia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lancia/32/17174_2.png) [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2018, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276/20 "2018-07-20T16:55:36Z")
The first _Die Hard_ was by far the best, with _Vengence_ being second. _Die Hard 2_ wasn’t really good but at least it was watchable. The last two were a total waste of time. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-die-hard-movie-is-the-best/818276.md?page=2)