total kick-ass movie

Rating: 5/10 (28 November 2008)

One of the original action flicks from the '80s, John McTiernan's "Die Hard" makes no pretense about being a kick-ass movie. Bruce Willis plays a New York cop John McClane, coming to LA to meet his estranged wife (Bonnie Bedelia). Sure enough, the building in which she works get hijacked by a group of German terrorists. Terrorist leader Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman in his debut), while totally evil, is also quite cultured. Even though the cards look stacked against John McClane, he's ready to take on every one of these terrorists.
Twenty years after its release, this movie will probably only appeal to Willis's fans. While mostly a litany of machismo, there are some cringe-inducing scenes (namely when John has to walk across glass). But the movie's main focus is to show Bruce Willis being a tough guy. They do everything possible to make him a superhuman individual to whom we can still relate.
All in all, this is a flick that you'll want to avoid if you're into intellectualism. But you'll love it if you're a testosterone-driven dude. I think that I'm content having seen it only once. Also starring Alexander Godunov (one of the Amish farmers in "Witness"), Paul Gleason (the principal in "The Breakfast Club") and William Atherton (the EPA agent in "Ghostbusters").
I wouldn't mind getting to ride off into the sunset with Grace Kelly.