Quick Reviews!!

Rating: 9/10 (30 November 2004)

Easily a favourite of action movie fans, and for many it is still the archetypal modern action film. Guns, explosions, stunts, fights yes, as well as plenty of one-liners all wrapped around the familiar 'one man against the bad guys' plot, and set inside a sky-scraper. Considerably more clever than most action films, thanks mainly to the script, we find ourselves cheering for McClane rather than simply sitting back and waiting for him to sweep up the bad guys. Rickman is perfect, shifting between being charming to being psychotic, innocent, whatever he wants to be, and Willis deals with the action and one-liners admirably. Veljohnson and Willis' relationship is just one of the many reasons for the film's unexpected success. McTiernen is an expert in this genre, and directs action better than anyone else in the period. Although the sequels are good, they could not match the action, claustrophobia, tension and charm of the original. 9 out of 10