Classic Review: Die Hard (1988)

Christmas was not the best of times in John McClane’s (Willis) life, at least not in the first two films in the Die Hard series. Flying from New York to Los Angeles to visit his wife Holly (Bedelia) and try to rekindle their marriage, McClane it struck in the middle of an attack by German terrorists to the company his wife works at. Managing to go unnoticed by the group at first, McClane starts counterattacking their criminal activities, in a game of cat and mouse with the leader of the group, Hans Gruber (Rickman).

The 80’s were a weird decade for action movies. It was a weird decade, period, but its action films were just insanely over the top. The character of the alpha male was portrayed by many actors such as Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger, men with unrealistic bodies and even more unrealistic ways of dealing with their problems. The body count was always massive. Then came McClane, a completely ordinary man. A NYPD officer, he wasn’t a superhero nor an alpha male. He was plain through and through. Willis brought a lot of heart as he grounded his character with his charm and wits, turning each of McClane’s confrontation into an exasperating experience. He was fallible; he could be hurt; he was stressed and tired and afraid. He couldn’t find all the answers or know exactly what to do at all times. He had to improvise a lot which did not always end up the best for him. In a decade when action leads were basically superhuman, he stood out because he felt like a human being.

After all so many years and so many attempts to replicate its success, Die Hard still holds up wonderfully. It’s still incredibly entertaining and engaging and is still just as powerful This is not only due to Willis’ winning performance but also for Bedelia’s powerful Holly. She didn’t have much to do (Ripley she was not) but Holly was just as much of a badass as John was. She is a woman who knows how to handle herself, fight for her friends and her family and doesn’t take guff from anybody, not even from John. Their chemistry was great, and we cheer for her every time Holly shows up. Meanwhile, they both have a fantastic villain to face: Hans Gruber is a marvelous creation by Rickman, a villain with plenty of charisma and charm. He is insidious and hypnotic at the same time, and Rickman was an amazing actor.

Besides the performances, what keeps Die Hard fresh is the simple premise and the amazingly tense moments. McTiernan creates fantastic action scenes where the best part of them was how they were both incredibly complex and totally simple. Of course, there are a few moments that defy belief (McClane throwing himself out of the building hanging on to a fire hose comes to mind) but their execution never overdoes it. They don’t go crazy with camera tricks or angles or use too many special effects… they are merely straightforward action sequences. Watching them today, after the visual effects revolution, they work very well. McTiernan builds tension to the max and puts us into one hell of a ride with McClane. One that is completely worth watching. As a bonus, the film doesn’t overdo the humor. It has funny moments, but they feel totally well balanced with the rest.

A great film.

still courtesy of 20th Century Studios

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