圣诞前夕，麦卡伦正在华盛顿的机场等待妻子乘飞机归来过节。然而无意中他却发现了一个重大的阴谋：被议会解职的特种部队施上校正率领部下准备解救被引渡的中美洲毒枭艾将军。麦卡伦将此事告知了机场警卫队的罗队长，但后者的官僚作风和愚蠢却使这一切未能得到阻止。施上校带领部下占领了机场附近的一座小教堂，设置了一个飞行控制中心，并切断了机场控制塔与空中的一切联系，使众多的客机无法降落。而麦卡伦的妻子霍莉此时却正在其中的一架飞机上。为了解救妻子和在空中的众多客机，麦卡伦不得不再次进行艰苦的努力。控制塔试图修复天线的行动失败，恐怖分子更诱使一架飞机坠毁以示警告。麦卡伦虽尽力阻止，但仍无济于事。军方特种部队在关少校的带领下赶到，麦卡伦再次被排斥在行动人员之外。
艾将军控制了押送他的飞机并在机场降落，麦卡伦企图抓住艾将军以控制局面，虽然功败垂成。但也因此而推断出了施上校的巢穴所在。关少校率部突袭教堂。而麦卡伦却在无意间发现，这一切都是一场骗局，关少校等人早已和对方勾结在一起。麦卡伦将消息通知了罗队长，但警卫队却因记者报道引起的混乱而无法行动。

眼看艾将军等人就要乘飞机逃脱，麦卡伦及时搭乘直升机赶到，在飞机的机翼上和对方展开了殊死搏斗。虽然被打落机翼，麦卡伦却乘机拧开了飞机油箱。在飞机即将离地时，麦卡伦点燃了跑道上洒落的汽油。一条火龙沿着油迹追上了刚刚起飞的客机，将艾将军人连人带机炸得粉碎。跑道上绵延数百米的火迹也成了指引飞机降落的指示灯，众多的飞机依次安全降落。在满天飞舞的雪花中，麦卡伦和妻子紧紧地拥抱在一起。

Once again, New York cop John McClane is in the wrong place at the wrong time - this time he''s waiting for his wife''s plane to arrive at Washington''s Dulles Airport when he uncovers a plot to sabotage the airport''s landing system. The criminals wish to free a drug baron being extradited to America for trial by holding the airport to ransom until they all safely escape on another plane. However, if they''d known that Holly McClane was on a flight home to the very airport they were hijacking, they would have picked another day.

影片片段：

General: Freedom!

John: Not yet! You''re supposed to stay in your seat until the plane reaches the terminal. No frequent-flier mileage for you.

General: Who are you?

John: A cop.

General: A cop?

John: Yeah, one of the good guys. You see you''re one of the bad guys. Now I''ve got your sorry ass, I''m gonna trade it with my wife.

John: Sit down!

Soldiers: Go in!

Soldier1: Where did he go?

General: In there.

General: I don''t believe this. Two months of planning, and you can''t anticipate one pendejo of a cop.

Soldier1: Come on, General.

General: Where the hell is Colonel Stuart?

Soldier2: General!

General: I''m all right! He said he was a policeman. I thought you had this place secured.

Soldier1: He went in the cockpit (驾驶员座舱).

Colonel Stuart: He''s going to hell! McClane! I assume it''s you, McClane! You''re quite a little soldier. You can consider this a military funeral!

Colonel Stuart: How many GREnades (手榴弹) we got?

Soldier1: Three each!

Colonel Stuart: Use them!

John: Oh, ****!

Colonel Stuart: Go!

John: Aaagh! Oh, shit!

Colonel: You lucky ****!

Soldier1: Fire trucks, sir!

Colonel Stuart: Fall back to the church. Now!

Key Words and Expressions:

1.frequent-flier mileage 飞机里数优惠券

一种飞行积分计划。乘客购买某些航空公司的机票可以累积免费飞行的里数。

2. pendejo 西班牙语 意为“ 傻瓜 ”

电影中将军是西班牙裔

3. You''re quite a little soldier.

这里Colonel Stuart不是说John是一个小兵，而是说John很有勇气。

4. fall back (to the church) 和go back (to the church)不同，侧重点是“迅速地退回”。