Yippie-kay-yay!

''Yippie-kay-yay, motherfucker!''

New York cop John McClane gives terrorists a dose of their own medicine as they hold hostages in an LA office building.

Bruce Willis: Officer John McClane

Without a doubt one of the best known action movies ever made, Die Hard, did receive negative attention from critics upon its 1988 summer release, but the audiences unsurprisingly loved this diamond in the rough, charismatic John Macleane brought to life by Bruce Willis.
Overall action movies are always very similar and predictable, and this movie is too predictable, perhaps that is the only big weakness of this movie, because who can deny there is something special with Die Hard. Die Hard is simply a very progressive, accelerated and perfectly paced action movie, not only does it tell a good story, and even comes with a few complexes, it also brings some of the best and most solid action ever to be seen.

John McTiernan has proven to be a solid action director over the years, after the breakthrough with Predator he made this classic action flick, that never seems to be getting old, even now. 17 years later, it still works as well as it did 17 years ago, brilliant.

''You throw quite a party. I didn't realize they celebrated Christmas in Japan.''

''Hey, we're flexible. Pearl Harbor didn't work out so we got you with tape decks.''

This is just what I suppose we can call a perfect popcorn movie, the kind of movie where you lean back and just let the thrill ride begin, you know things will end happily, but still it entertains for the 2 hours it lasts, and it entertains at a very high level. Perhaps one of the weaknesses of the movie is the happy ending, I would have loved a darker ending, leaving something to think about, especially since there obviously is the problematic climax involved in the movie, there are some good side stories, especially the dramatic with John and Holly's marriage. Strangely that works out perfectly and we get to know everything about it, even though the movie actually doesn't spend much time explaining, it's just done so well and perfectly direct that we basically know everything about these two when the movie ends.

I am not sure if this was a final breakthrough for Bruce Willis, but he definitely shows in this movie what great actor he is, we see a lot of different sides of him, the tough guy, the soft guy, and even better, the funny guy. I like to have a laugh time to time in movies, and I hate movies taking themselves too seriously at times but the jokes in this movie are spot on, especially the one signed by Bruce Willis, I loved his attitude, a grand performance!
Die Hard was most often praised for the production at the time of release, with the brand new shiny Fox Plaza office tower serving as the fictional Nakatomi building. DH also attracted attention for the energetic and skillful direction of John McTiernan, whose most notable credit was the action-sci-fi thriller scorcher Predator, which was released the year before with amazing Arnold Schwarzenegger.

'' "And when Alexander saw the breadth of his domain, he wept, for there were no more worlds to conquer." Benefits of a classical education.''

Bruce Willis was the perfect actor for this performance in Die Hard, since he brings the wit and vulnerability to a role which has become iconic. If Stallone or Schwarzenegger were in this movie, I'm sure the effect would have been a lot different, in their own personified style.

On a personal level I think Die Hard is one of the greatest action movies ever, up there close to my fave Last Crusade.
Like Indiana Jones, Die Hard had an Everyman that we could relate to, or see ourselves as, was cast in the role of Macleane. He isn't a larger-than-life musclebound typical monster, he was a real guy that you cared for, who got hurt, and had real feelings like any of us do.

''Who's driving this car, Stevie Wonder?''

Another mention goes to Alan Rickman who shines as the Villain, Hans Gruber. The old cliche of an English bad guy playing the role of a German terrorist. Let's face it, us English play some of the classiest, evilest, crazy yet darkly amusing, bad asses around providing an ultimate villain to any American hero.
It is Rickman that dominates the film hands down, like in Prince Of Thieves, he is a delightful sneering bad guy who has great lines, great presence and gives his character believability mixed with memorable resonance.
Alan Rickman commented that he didn't view Hans as "the villain", but more as a guy who "has made certain choices in life, wants certain things in life and goes after them." All the same, Alan is the perfect villain for Bruce's wise cracking McClane, who is neither weak nor super human. Bruce worked very hard on this film and allegedly did a lot of his own stunts and really brought a lot of life and warmth to a character who could very easily have been just another grim loner. It's a shame that he's had to spend the majority of his career trying to get away from this character (kind of like Sean Connery trying to live down his glory days as James Bond). And to think that Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Burt Reynolds and Richard Gere all turned this part down (probably better that they did).

''I promise I will never even THINK about going up in a tall building again. Oh, God. Please don't let me die.''

Also should be mentioned that Die Hard is based on the counterpart novel by Roderick Thorpe. Bonnie Bedelia is Bruce's wife, and the late Alexander Godunov is Karl, who's vendetta with Bruce turns personal. Bonnie does well as the sympathetic wife with a bad haircut and Godunov, in a role very different from his debut part as an Amish farmer in Witness, is surprisingly menacing in spite of his pretty boy looks. Of course, it helps that his career as a ballet dancer gave him more dexterity than the usual hulking henchman. His knock-down-drag-out brawl with Willis is one of the best.
Die Hard overall manages to equal heart pounding and nerve shredding action, every single time viewed. If you are one of those many uneducated action-movie wise individuals who haven't experienced it yet, then now is definitely the time to rediscover a thrill ride classic and action masterpiece.

It's non-stop action, non-stop cliches, non-stop formulaic plots and villainous men with German accents, you've got to love it. Bruce Willis is at highest form in a role which needs nothing but highly toned abs and occasional smart alec NYC one-liners. Alan Rickman is the really lovable part of this film.

John McClane: You'd have made a pretty good cowboy yourself, Hans.
Hans Gruber: Oh, yes. What was it you said to me before? "Yippie-ki-yay, motherfucker."

10/10