This is one of the best action movies out there. You have good acting, plenty of fighting, and buildings exploding. What more could you want? In a time where computer generated graphics were in its infancy this film produced some terrific action sequences. And even compared to today’s movies it still holds up well.

Our hero John McClane (played by Bruce Willis) is flying into Los Angeles from New York to meet with his wife and try to decide what to do with their marriage. He is a New York cop that doesn’t want to move to L.A. and she is part of a successful business that moved to L.A. At the beginning of the movie he meets up with his wife at an office party. While he is trying to unwind from a long plane flight from New York, the party is rudely interrupted by a group of terrorists. McClain is able to sneak out to a stairwell while the terrorists are busy rounding everyone up. It is now McClane’s self-proclaimed mission to disrupt these terrorists any way he can.

Our chief villain is Hans Gruber (played by Alan Rickman). In my opinion, he gives the best performance out of the entire cast. He is a pleasure to watch. His character has taken over a large building and also gains hostages in the process. He then starts to play the role of a terrorist demanding the release of several imprisoned individuals. Throughout the movie his character plays different roles which pushes him as an actor. He really sells the part. Even though Bruce Willis does a good job, it is really Alan Rickman that pulls this movie along and makes it so engaging.

The one thing I liked about this movie was that it was believable (for the most part.) In this movie our hero actually gets hurt. He isn’t invincible and doesn’t go into the situation with guns a-blazing while walking out unscathed. Rather he is usually in a situation where he has to react quickly and defensively. It’s is more of a defensive reaction than a proactive one. The stunts themselves are well done but nothing is over the top. They keep it realistic and believable.

The character building is one of the weaker parts of the movie and in my opinion it is not that well done. We only get to know our hero at a superficial level. We know he’s a New York cop and that his relationship with his wife is on the rocks, but other than that we don’t get to know what motivates him or what his true passions are. He is just a generic hero caught in a horrible situation that is trying to save the day. His wife is developed less than him and never really becomes a likable person.

Our villain has the best character building and it occurs throughout the movie. When you watch this movie for the first time you really want to know what is motivating this man. He is sinister, crafty, and has a strong command presence. But he constantly morphs to a different person depending on what the situation calls for. Sort of like real life?

In the end you will have a captivating story with descent acting, with plenty of action and explosions going on.

The key players
Director: John McTiernan
Story by: Roderick Thorp
Screenplay by: Steven De Souza, & Jeb Stuart
Music: Michael Kamen

Rating
R

Duration
132 minutes

Other action movies.
The One
T2
Ninja Scroll


Recommended:
Yes