(In brief)
By any measure, "Die Hard" was a pretty muscular movie back in '88. It made cultural icons out of its two stars and the explosions were guaranteed crowd pleasers. The script (note-perfect) ran like clockwork with setup-and-payoff and was stocked with memorable characters throughout; the hero reluctant and vulnerable, his stakes ever ratcheting, while the action would just keep mounting until . . . Well, there wasn't any more opulent high-rise. It doesn't matter what time of year you watch this movie, it functions perfectly in July and December (or even today, so close to Halloween) and always his the spot. It's the ultimate "You can't go wrong with" movie.
(Less brief) After twenty minutes of story setup, BAM! The guns start blazing and the death toll gets going. At a certain point, this just becomes kind of a theme park ride as John McClane scrambles through the bowels of Nakatomi Plaza and everything's raining down around him.
McClane is the key to making all of this work after all. He's the ideal rally-behind character, neither hulking nor shredded and always thrust into a fight; and Bruce Willis is working at peak likability. But he's matched by Alan Rickman, the master scene-stealer, as devilish as they come. It's a rivalry commensurate with such a big movie.
And McTiernan's the perfect director for this gig. His direction is self-assured, his camera calm and measured. Sure, we're confined to this building the whole time, but the audience had plenty of moments to take a breath and soak it in. Put it this way: can you imagine someone like J. J. Abrams helming this? Stock up on Dramamine first.
I can go on and on, but the bottom line is this: "Die Hard" is just *fun*. There's joy in the gunfire, personal injury and wanton property destruction. I always feel great after watching this.
(Less brief) After twenty minutes of story setup, BAM! The guns start blazing and the death toll gets going. At a certain point, this just becomes kind of a theme park ride as John McClane scrambles through the bowels of Nakatomi Plaza and everything's raining down around him.
McClane is the key to making all of this work after all. He's the ideal rally-behind character, neither hulking nor shredded and always thrust into a fight; and Bruce Willis is working at peak likability. But he's matched by Alan Rickman, the master scene-stealer, as devilish as they come. It's a rivalry commensurate with such a big movie.
And McTiernan's the perfect director for this gig. His direction is self-assured, his camera calm and measured. Sure, we're confined to this building the whole time, but the audience had plenty of moments to take a breath and soak it in. Put it this way: can you imagine someone like J. J. Abrams helming this? Stock up on Dramamine first.
I can go on and on, but the bottom line is this: "Die Hard" is just *fun*. There's joy in the gunfire, personal injury and wanton property destruction. I always feel great after watching this.