Die Hard (1988)

 

Let's settle the dispute once and for all: this is a Christmas film, pure and simple. 

It's also on of the best action films ever made ànd it made Bruce Willis a superstar after an era where heroes usually had enormously bulging muscles. Willis does it through tenacity and oneliners. 

Well, he did, before he started appearing in straight-to-video tripe. What happened, you wonderful man you?

(Note from the author: now we know it was due to his affliction, this was as yet a mystery at the time of penning this review.)

But I digress.

'Die Hard' is the story of police officer John McClane, heading to Los Angeles to be with his estranged wife and kids for Christmas. He is invited to a posh party at the Nakatomi building, but while most people are partying, a team of international robbers enters the building, intent on walking off with a massive amount of money in the guise of bearer bonds. They pretend to be terrorists in order to fool the authorities. The one minor problem they didn't take into account was one lone police officer who has a nasty habit of pissing them off and thwarting their plans at almost every step. 

What follows is a classic tale of cat-and-mouse, elevated to supreme status by excellent performances and action set pieces framed as only John McTiernan can do. 

Where to start? Willis is perfect as the tenacious everyman who attempts to save most of the people, whilst quipping funny lines that don't come across as cheesy. Heck, the first time he says: "Yippiekay-ay, motherfucker." is the stuff of legends that only got watered down over the years. 

But a hero is only as good as his opponent and once again this film delivers with an icy cold turn by Alan Rickman as the leader of the robbers. Rickman was always one of the coolest actors out there, but he made his Hans Gruber one of the essential cinematic villains. He doesn't have a convoluted plot, is intelligent and knows how to handle himself and his crew with near military precision. 

Oh, and Rickman's delivery is spot on. 

What else is there to say? This is a definite must-see on every level, even if you are not a fan of action films. The pacing, editing, sound design and music all come together to create something that can only be described as a 'classic'. Many films try to land that moniker, this one deserves it wholeheartedly.