To this day, Die Hard remains a perfect example of the action film genre. There have been many action films before and after, from the glamorised spy action of the James Bond films, to the gung-ho, invincible heroes of Stallone and Schwarzenegger, and the buddy action film characterised by the likes of the Lethal Weapon series, but none have reached the pinnacle that Die Hard attained on its release, in 1988, and in the many years since. Die Hard is a classic, a supreme example of pacing, action pyrotechnics, humour, and excitement all wrapped up into one tidy package. It utilised its premise - the almost-in-real-time, trapped-in-one-location, terrorist takeover plot - so well that it spawned a sub-genre of its own. Since Die Hard, not only have there been two sequels, but also Speed (Die Hard on a bus), Speed 2 and Under Siege (Die Hard on a ship), Under Siege 2 (Die Hard on a train), Air Force One and Passenger 57 (Die Hard on a plane), and The Rock (Die Hard on Alcatraz). That many of these films (with the notable exception of Speed) are pale imitations is a testament to the brilliance of the film that started it all.
I can still remember going to watch Die Hard during its initial release in Australia. It was during the study week just prior to my final high school exams. All the hype was, for once, true - Die Hard was an exhilarating thrill-ride, filled with great action scenes, a memorable hero, a suave villain, and lots of humour. Even watching it again after all these years, I was impressed by how smooth the pacing and John McTiernan's direction was, and still is. A lot of films of this ilk open with a bang (Speed and the second Die Hard sequel, Die Hard With A Vengeance, are good examples) and move at breakneck speed until the end, hardly allowing the audience a chance to breathe. Die Hard begins almost sedately, in a sense, though with an underlying current of menace as McTiernan injects shots of a huge truck roaring down a Los Angeles street. The first gunshot isn't even fired until about twenty minutes into the picture, and the first real action scene occurs some ten minutes later. Pretty soon, however, the pace and the action heats up. McTiernan builds on this, and each following crisis becomes bigger, more extreme and more exciting. The climax, involving helicopters with FBI snipers, hostages running for their lives, a bone-crunching, one-on-one fistfight, and a skyscraper rooftop primed to explode, fulfils, and even exceeds, the spectacle that the earlier action setpieces, as good as they are, promised.
The story in Die Hard is simple - Bruce Willis is John McClane, a New York City cop who has come to Los Angeles on Christmas Eve for a reunion with his estranged wife, Holly (Bonnie Bedelia). There is a Christmas party at her office tower, but little does he, she or anyone else know that a group of terrorists, led by Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman), is about to take control of the tower and hold everyone hostage. McClane is able to escape unnoticed, and begins to wage his own one-man war against the terrorists, even as the LAPD and, later on, the FBI make a general mess of things outside. As the crisis escalates, McClane must find out what grand plan Gruber and his henchmen have for the hostages, and stop them before they can follow it through. Can we say, "Yippee Ki Yay!"
The action scenes in Die Hard are scintillating. There are numerous gunfights, fistfights, and chases throughout, punctuated with a couple of massive explosions. McTiernan has a keen eye for action, and with the help of ace cinematographer Jan De Bont (who would later direct Speed) fashions a thrilling collage of non-stop conflict. The setpieces are necessarily claustrophobic and confined, but the director makes great use of stairwells, elevators, and ventilator shafts to convey movement and suspense. The action is not as large-scale as in, say, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, but it is just as explosive and probably even more kinetic.
Aside from the action, one of the defining facets of Die Hard is in the depiction of the terrorists. This is not an ordinary group of criminals, as evidenced by their military hardware, technical knowledge, and expensive tastes. All of this is personified in Hans Gruber, who is cunning and evil, cultured, well-read, and intelligent, yet not totally inconsiderate, as shown in a scene where he allows the hostages some creature comforts. That Die Hard is able to craft such an excellent villain is one of its crowning achievements. Alan Rickman's portrayal is superb, fleshing out the character of Gruber into one who must be respected and feared. The cat-and-mouse duel between McClane and Gruber is all the more interesting because we know how ruthless and smart Gruber is. Without such a great antagonist, Die Hard would still be a good action film; but with Rickman's Gruber, it is elevated into a modern classic. Rickman would go on to star in other memorable roles like the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves, but it was in Die Hard where he first displayed his genius for creating excellent characters.
Die Hard is the film that turned Bruce Willis into a bona-fide film star. While he had had some small screen success on TV's Moonlighting, his early forays into moviemaking (like Blind Date and Sunset) were not box office or critical darlings. He adds enough human qualities to turn McClane into someone we care for, unlike the indestructible commandos usually portrayed by a Stallone or Schwarzenegger. This is especially true during the early part of the film when McClane is desperately trying to notify someone, anyone, that terrorists have taken over the tower. McClane is trapped and alone, and the audience feels his despair. We want him to succeed, even if it is just to alert the authorities. When the terrorists catch up to him, McClane's police training comes to the fore, and he must use all his ingenuity to survive. Willis shows enough muscle to make us believe he is capable of dispatching terrorists as well.
Not only does Die Hard have two interesting lead characters, but amidst all the action and mayhem, it even has the time to develop some of the minor characters. McClane's wife Holly is established early on as a woman who favoured her career over her marriage. Though there is still some lingering tension between her and John, her admiration for her husband is rekindled when she realises that it's him who's proving to be the "fly-in-the-ointment" for the terrorists. As played by Bonnie Bedelia, Holly is tough, calm and able to throw a mean punch, yet emits a veneer of vulnerability when the situation calls for it. Another important character is Sergeant Al Powell (Reginald Veljohnson from Crocodile Dundee and TV's Family Matters), a street cop who befriends John McClane via walkie-talkie. It is here that Die Hard adds the buddy element, and the relationship between these two cops who don't even know each other is warmly developed. Finally, there is Thornburg (William Atherton, who played a similarly annoying character in Ghostbusters), a reporter who will do everything to get his story, including endangering the lives of the hostages. What he receives at the end of the film is justly deserved.
Most of the terrorists (aside from Hans Gruber) are fairly nondescript, though Alexander Godunov as the hotheaded assassin and Clarence Gilyard as the nerdy computer expert attract our attention. The forces of good, in this case the LAPD and a couple of FBI agents named Johnson, are shown to be extremely stupid and even an impediment to the negotiation process. At least they're good for some humorous interludes that relieve some of the pent-up tension.
Speaking of humour, Die Hard has plenty. Not just in the stupid supporting characters mentioned previously, but in the numerous one-liners Willis gets to utter as he is running around the various floors, elevator wells, ventilation shafts, and ladders. Not only do they build McClane's character, but they provide the necessary antithesis to the deadly serious terrorists.
Michael Kamen's score carries us along as John McClane runs up and down the stairs and exchanges bullets with the terrorists. Mixed in with excerpts from Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 and an unused piece from James Horner's score for Aliens, the music is a memorable, exciting and, at times, whimsical accompaniment to the on-screen action. It may not be as grand or as symphonic as a John Williams work, but it fits the movie perfectly.
Few action films work as well as Die Hard does in generating excitement and suspense. This is due to its clever script (by Steven de Souza), which grips you from the start and never lets go. Add the formidable villains, the wisecracking hero, the sensational action scenes, and smooth-as-silk direction, and you have a cinematic treat to savour. When the joyful strains of "Let It Snow" play over the closing credits, you, too, will be breathing a sigh of relief. Die Hard is my favourite action film of all time. Go see it.
