New York cop John McClane is visiting his estranged wife Holly in LA for Christmas. Arriving in time for her Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza skyscraper, he is unfortunately also just in time to see terrorists take everyone there hostage. As the only cop inside the building, McClane does his best to sort the situation out.
by Andrew Collins |
Published on
Release Date:
01 Jan 1988
Running Time:
132 minutes
Certificate:
15
Original Title:
Die Hard
The smart-mouthed, high-rise thriller which launched Bruce Willis as an action figure and accidentally rekindled Hollywoods enthusiasm for disaster movies (a worthy 80s cousin to The Towering Inferno). Die Hard has proved a reliable video fixture for the home and looks great on DVD; just dying to be racked alongside its two successors.
John McClane's smartmouthed New York cop was a career-defining turn, mixing banter, action heroics and a dirty white vest to stunning effect. Acting up to him every step of the way is Alan Rickman, at his sneering best - but the script and cast are pretty much flawless. The very pinnacle of the '80s action movie, and if it's not the greatest action movie ever made, then it's damn close.
Forget the inferior copycats that trailed along in its wake. Instead, enjoy the dynamic camerawork that redefined a genre, Bruce Willis' peerless Everyman action hero turn and Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber the best movie villain since Anakin Skywalker deve
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