The best action film ever made

Rating: 8/10 (4 January 2011)

Based on Roderick Thorp's novel 'Nothing Lasts Forever', 'Die Hard' is about an ordinary New York cop named John McClane (Bruce Willis) who goes up against a group of terrorists who have taken over an office building on Christmas Eve and are holding a group of office workers hostage, one of whom is John's wife Holly (Bonnie Bedelia).
It is strange when you think that 'Die Hard' is actually a splatter film - witness the gruesome, closeup bullet hits in the 'Shoot the glass' sequence, and the very nasty scene which follows in which McClane nurses his bloody feet which are torn up when he is forced to run across a floor covered with broken glass.
One of the reasons 'Die Hard' is so good is that its central character is not a Superman but an everyman. He is clearly flawed, as his frosty relationship with his wife demonstrates. But he is very a likable man who always has a witty quip - often a quite profane one - with which to take the bad guys down a peg or two. Like Matt Damon's Jason Bourne, McClane is far from invincible, and by the end of the film he is seriously injured and covered in blood.
But the real ace up 'Die Hard''s sleeve is Alan Rickman's wonderful performance as the deadly and silky smooth Hans Gruber. Gruber is as sophisticated as he is merciless, and his charisma is nicely juxtaposed against his ruthlessness. He is a nice opposite number for McClane - while Gruber gets about in a natty designer suit, McClane wears a white wife beater which becomes rapidly discoloured when he is forced to crawl through an airconditioning duct.
Reginald Veljohnson offers excellent support as a Twinkie-loving cop who becomes McClane's only link to the outside world. And Bonnie Bedelia is great as John's estranged wife. Rather than a token damsel-in-distress, she is a successful and intelligent woman who is unafraid and unimpressed by Gruber and his team of terrorists. When Gruber asks her, 'What idiot put you in charge?' she rejoins, 'You did. When you murdered my boss'. Also great is Hart Bochner as the coke-snorting Harry Ellis who fancies Holly and who makes the fatal mistake of attempting to strike a deal with Hans. He too has some fun lines, like 'Hans, booby, what am I, a method actor? Put the gun away; this is radio, not television'.
Once the action kicks off, it never lets up, and it climaxes with John leaping from the roof of the Nakatomi Plaza - where the action of the film takes place - just before said roof explodes in a spectacular and wholly satisfying fireball. This film is action heaven for fans of the genre, but the thrills are countered and complimented by an intelligent and very clever script by Jeb Stuart and Steven E. DeSouza. The Director of Photography was Jan DeBont who would go on to direct another action classic, 'Speed'.
And the public's appetite for the 'Die Hard' franchise just seems to increase, with each film in the series grossing more than its predecessor. 'Die Hard' has been much imitated since its release in 1988, but so far remains unsurpassed.