Round I: The Story
Story is hardly the most important element in a Die Hard film – the original succeeds spectacularly by employing a simple, straight-to-the-point premise that always remains secondary to the action and characters – but these are narrative exercises nevertheless, and the plot must be discussed if we are to discover the best film. It is a hard category to decide, though, as every Die Hard sequel is, to a certain extent, a riff on the original film, with John McClane facing a formidable, colorful adversary whose lofty goals typically include stealing mass amounts of money under more idealistic pretenses.
Ironically, the only film to break this trend is easily the most derivative of the lot. Die Hard 2 may retread mountains of familiar ground from the first film, borrowing the general plot structure wholesale and relocating it to an airport just to repeat many familiar beats, but its villain is the only one in the Die Hard-verse who isn’t motivated solely by greed. Not a major positive attribute, granted, but at least worth a mention.
Still, the second film does not hold much of a candle to the remaining films, both of which are quite a bit more creative with their storytelling. Die Hard With a Vengeance is arranged as an action-based scavenger hunt, with Jeremy Irons sending McClane and unlikely partner Zeus Carver (Samuel L. Jackson) on a race through the city to accomplish various goals. It is an undeniably fun and clever set-up, one that retains the intense, claustrophobic atmosphere of a Die Hard film while opening the action up to an entire city. The twist involving the New York Federal Reserve provides a goofy shot in the arm at the halfway mark, and having Irons play Hans Gruber’s brother is a nice nod to the original film.
Still, when it comes to story, I am drawn mostly strongly to Live Free or Die Hard. It is not only the most different of the four, with McClane battling cyber-terrorism across the eastern seaboard, but it also has the best emotional center of the sequels, with McClane driven by a desire to reconnect with – and, eventually, rescue – his daughter Lucy (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). It is a device lifted largely from the original film, where McClane was on a mission to save his estranged wife, but it works here too, in part because Winstead is such an immediately appealing presence. Pairing McClane with a younger, non-action-inclined partner (Justin Long) is another successful decision, and while the film certainly lacks any deep or complex themes, it is nicely cognizant of modern technological paranoia, and remembers that McClane himself has always been a bit of a luddite no matter what the era. Live Free or Die Hard is the most narratively intriguing and successful of the lot, and while this round is close, I think I prefer the fourth film over its fellows.
The Winner: Live Free or Die Hard
Current Score: 0-0-1
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