A heavily reworked script that originally started as a Commando sequel. A star who was best known as the sarcastic and schlubby half of what was then TV’s favorite romantic comedy. A director with only two films under his belt that were both critical failures. Do these sound like the makings of one of the greatest action movies ever made, or one of the worst?
But that’s the beauty of Die Hard, a film that’s all about making do with the hand you’re dealt. For New York cop John McClane, that hand includes having to spend Christmas in L.A., trying to win back his ex-wife at her office Christmas party, while a sniveling William Atherton runs around as the living embodiment of coked-out 80’s excess. Oh, and if that weren’t bad enough, a bunch of terrorists, led by the dastardly and dapper Hans Gruber, have decided to crash the event, leaving world-weary McClane as the only one who can stop them.
Despite how much more like an Average Joe Willis looked like compared to the rippling bodybuilder gods of the era, there’s not an ounce of fat or excess weight to be found in Die Hard. When other action flicks were busy adding more and more firearms and fuselage, John McTiernan focused things down to a more intimate, grounded scale, where every shot, line of dialogue, and shard of glass counts.
Die Hard on a ______ became an industry term for years from people trying, and failing to recapture Die Hard’s perfection. Nakotomi Plaza was the bottle, and John McClane was the lightning.
So there you have it, our list of what we think are the 100 greatest action films. Did we miss any? Let us know in the comments below.