Hard to beat

Rating: 7/10 (20 June 2017)

I saw Die Hard at the cinema in 1988 and countless times on VHS. At the video store in 1988 or early 1989 when Die Hard was a new release the VHS cover read: 'The best action movie you will see' or 'The best action movie you will ever see'; can't remember. But either way Die Hard quite possibly lives up to the claim. Why? Part of Die Hard's genius is the setting; the Nakatomi building. It's almost a metaphor for being under appreciated. John McClane's alone; trapped inside a high rise towering above the unaware, unsympathetic world below. Eddie Murphy's character (Reggie Hammond) in 'Another 48 Hours' says 'I've been having a very bad day'. That's John McClane; he's having a very bad day; adversity's coming at McClane from all angles including the Nakatomi building itself. And the cat and mouse, cyclical nature of the action; it goes round and round like the winding stairwells. Clever. Die Hard's exhilarating e.g. the helicopters. Is it perfect? No. Criticisms: it celebrates violence i.e. at the end when pacifist Powell draws his gun on the Fabio lookalike as if shooting someone is a glorious thing. And as if McClane's body wouldn't be cut by the glass as he crashes through the window and dragged by the fire hose at the end. But I'm nit picking.