die hard 2 is an altogether <NEG> unfortunate fiasco , inferior to the original in every respect </NEG> . place the blame squarely on the shoulders of steven de souza and doug richardson , who wrote the film's <NEG> pathetic screenplay </NEG> . every line of dialogue <NEG> reeks of either smarmy sap or forced humor </NEG> . the plot is altogether implausible ; <NEG> the convoluted story line </NEG> involves a band of terrorists who take over dulles airport and shut down the control tower , leaving a dozen planes stranded in the air waiting to land . <NEG> the film has zero credibility </NEG> , and all of <NEG> the characters come off as cliched , cardboard cut-outs </NEG> . so much for the script . how about the action ? well , let's put it this way : director renny harlin could learn a few things from john mctiernan , who directed the original , as well as the hunt for red october and predator--all standouts for their hair-raising suspense . by contrast , harlin <NEG> doesn't have a clue </NEG> when it comes to choreographing action , and consequently , die hard 2 <NEG> never picks up steam </NEG> . die harder is impossible to take seriously even for a minute . in fact , the movie <NEG> often seems deliberately campy </NEG> , and it almost reaches the threshold of being so bad it's good . you do laugh , but you laugh at the film , not with it . die hard 2 <NEG> should have never been cleared for takeoff </NEG> .
