Die Hard (1988) review

Die Hard (1988)

Directed by: John McTiernan

Produced by: Lawrence Gordon, Joel Silver

Screenplay by: Jeb Stuart, Steven E. de Souza

Starring: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Alexander Gordunov, Bonnie Bedelia

We’re still in December, so I wanted to close out the Christmas season with one “alternate” Christmas movie; screw it, we’re going with “Die Hard.” Directed by John McTiernan—fresh off the success of “Predator”—and based on the Roderick Thorp novel “Nothing Lasts Forever,” the sequel to “The Detective,” which inspired a 1968 Frank Sinatra film—in fact, the studio was contractually obligated to offer the lead role to Sinatra, now in his 70s and mostly retired—this action masterpiece that put future star Bruce Willis on the map has attracted plenty of debate over whether it actually is a Christmas film. I’m willing to make the argument that it’s about a man who re-discovers how important his family is to him on Christmas Eve; it just happens to take place while fighting off a group of terrorists in a Los Angeles skyscraper. But hey, screenwriters Steven E. de Souza and Jeb Stuart have declared it a Christmas film, so that should be good enough for all of us.

John McClane (Willis) is an NYPD detective who arrives in L.A., hoping to reconcile with his estranged wife Holly (Bonnie Bedelia) at a Christmas party taking place at the Nakatomi Plaza building where she works. But shortly after arriving, a heavily armed team led by German radical Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) seizes control of the building, taking the employees hostage. However, McClane—off in a separate room and without shoes or socks—escapes through the staircase with a pistol in hand. Feigning political terrorism, their plan is to break into the building’s vault containing $640 million in bearer bonds, while McClane exhausts every method in his limited arsenal to slow them down and stay alive, with LAPD Sergeant Al Powell (Reginald VelJohnson) as his only contact through a stolen walkie-talkie. As time passes, other outside forces create more obstacles for McClane, who only becomes more determined to rescue Holly and the other hostages.

Something that many action films don’t get is that the best ones aren’t about kicking as much ass as possible; they’re about putting their main characters in situations where you’re genuinely concerned for their survival. Look at McClane in this movie; he’s certainly capable of holding his own, but not the most imposing figure, so you can feel how strongly the odds are stacked against him, and are therefore constantly invested in his fate, getting increasingly battered and bloodied. It’s a significant departure from the typical action stars of the 1980s, who were usually muscle-bound beefcakes like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Jean-Claude Van Damme, etc. Willis is much more of an everyman—or, as Honest Trailers put it, “The guy from ‘Moonlighting’ who looks like your dad.” Yes, he was more known for TV romantic comedies at the time, but this is what broke him into the genre, and he still has well-versed comedic timing as well, spitting plenty of sarcastic gems. He even gets to shine emotionally, confessing his regrets about Holly to Powell at the eleventh hour; this apparently originated from a near-accident Stuart had, which inspired him to apologize to his own wife after an argument.

Another thing about the best action movies is that they have a villain just as strong as their hero, and we get one of the best ever with Alan Rickman as Gruber. In a clever stroke, his scenes are almost presented as though he’s the protagonist, which was apparently a deliberate decision by de Souza; after all, everything that happens is by his design and plan. He’s so charismatic and layered, you could frame the entire movie as though they’re actually stealing from a really corrupt organization, and McClane is just some hotshot seeking glory; it could be like a “Dog Day Afternoon” situation or something similar. Their walkie-talkie interactions are pitch-perfect, with plenty of dry humor and tense back-and-forth where neither wants to let on too much; this especially comes out in their initial face-to-face scene, as Gruber fakes an American accent in an attempt to gain trust. This was Rickman’s first film, and he would become one of the most uniquely renowned and beloved performers in all of entertainment.

The supporting cast is every bit as interesting; Bonnie Bedelia has great wit and personality as Holly, Reginald VelJohnson—in between other cop roles in “Ghostbusters” and “Family Matters”—has a warm, comforting presence, and De’voreaux White is very charming as Argyle the limousine driver. Moreover, even the antagonists have such distinct characteristics; most of these movies just have the nameless henchmen, but each of Gruber’s goons stand out, like the vengeful second-in-command Karl (Alexander Godunov), his tech specialist Theo (Clarence Gilyard), and even Uli (Al Leong), the one who swipes a chocolate bar while a SWAT team is on their way in. Then there’s Powell’s deputy chief Dwayne Robinson (Paul Gleason), TV sleaze reporter Richard Thornburg (William Atherton), and the weaseling cocaine-snorting Nakatomi executive Harry Ellis (Hart Bochner). All end up providing even more problems for various reasons; in fact, a recurring motif is characters acting like they know more than they do and thinking they’re helping, when they actually know much less. As much as I dislike the cliché of Robinson’s character, it is funny how much he tries to act like the man in charge, yet when he’s actually given the chance to talk to Gruber, he’s immediately stuttering and indecisive.

But of course, the main selling point is the action, and this film is loaded with fantastic fights and set pieces; there’s enough gunfire, explosions and macho brawling to get the adrenaline pumping. The director of photography, Jan de Bont, worked on a lot of high-profile films in the ‘80s and early ‘90s, and he gives us plenty of sweeping shots and use of props. Some of them are even infused with bits of humor; the elevator explosion near the end always makes me laugh. There’s a variety of different spaces, putting McClane on rooftops, in air vents and elevator shafts, and through shrapnel-littered offices. The movie has a keen eye for detail, having him map out his surroundings and stealthily survey the bad guys for information. Admittedly, some of the story’s logistics are a little wonky, but the overall presentation is so great that it doesn’t matter; the cherries on top are Michael Kamen’s musical score—which features a terrific use of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, more commonly known as “Ode to Joy”—and the Christmas visual touches. How can you not think of the holiday when you’ve got a dead terrorist being given a Santa Claus hat and having “Ho ho ho” written on his sweater, or McClane saving the day with a gun stuck to his back with Christmas tape? I’m sorry, just any argument to the contrary is invalid.

In all honesty, it doesn’t really matter if “Die Hard” is a Christmas movie or not; I would say it is, but at the same time, it’s universally watchable. You can put in on any time of the year, and it just feels right; the action is stellar, the characters are memorable, the pacing is solid, the script is tight, and the music is subtly epic. In a not particularly great year for action, this film was a game-changer. Since then, there’s been a franchise of four sequels; two of them were also adapted from other published works, with another from a repurposed script called “Simon Says.” Those are also really good films, while “A Good Day to Die Hard,” the most recent sequel and only one with an original screenplay, was by far the weakest. It also inspired a ton of imitators who put other protagonists in similar high-tension situations, such as “Under Siege,” “Passenger 57,” “Cliffhanger,” “Speed,” “Air Force One,” and many more. I could talk about this movie forever, but I’d never be able to do it justice; so if you want something with a Christmas vibe but a little more fun and rip-roaring, look no further.

My rating: 9.5/10