I almost balked at writing up my thoughts on Die Hard after my most recent Christmas Eve watch. It's a movie I view annually during the holidays, and many better and wiser critics than I have talked and debated the film. What's a bum like me gonna add? Stick with me!
John McClane, officer of the NYPD, tries to save wife Holly Gennaro and
several others, taken hostage by German terrorist Hans Gruber during a
Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles.
Die Hard is one of the most vivid memories I have of watching a movie in a theatre. I saw it with my dad and Grandpa Newel during it's initial run in the summer of 1988. It was a blast some 25 years ago, and it's a blast today.
There isn't a weak link in Die Hard, from the writing and John McTiernan's expect direction to the one liners, bloody shoot outs, and performances. This isn't just a classic action movie, it a classic of cinema. Although there have been several sequels, and more than enough imitators, this is still the original and best.
It's not just Bruce Willis' performance as McClane or Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber that make it great, it's the little moments. It's Al Leong sneaking a candy bar as a police SWAT team storms the building or McClane pausing to look at a girly calendar while being chased by the bad guys. Everything in this movie works. Everything. Not many flicks can say that.
Die Hard is as exciting today as it was in 1988, and it's just as fun. Aside from some 80s hair and a much younger Willis, this movie hasn't aged a day. It's a Good. Hell, if The Basement had such a rating, it'd be a Great.
Yippee-ki-yay, motherfucker. And Merry Christmas.
Die Hard is one of the most vivid memories I have of watching a movie in a theatre. I saw it with my dad and Grandpa Newel during it's initial run in the summer of 1988. It was a blast some 25 years ago, and it's a blast today.
There isn't a weak link in Die Hard, from the writing and John McTiernan's expect direction to the one liners, bloody shoot outs, and performances. This isn't just a classic action movie, it a classic of cinema. Although there have been several sequels, and more than enough imitators, this is still the original and best.
It's not just Bruce Willis' performance as McClane or Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber that make it great, it's the little moments. It's Al Leong sneaking a candy bar as a police SWAT team storms the building or McClane pausing to look at a girly calendar while being chased by the bad guys. Everything in this movie works. Everything. Not many flicks can say that.
Die Hard is as exciting today as it was in 1988, and it's just as fun. Aside from some 80s hair and a much younger Willis, this movie hasn't aged a day. It's a Good. Hell, if The Basement had such a rating, it'd be a Great.
Yippee-ki-yay, motherfucker. And Merry Christmas.
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