Ah, the Xmas tradition that is watching Die Hard.
I discovered that this blockbuster, which has gone on to be preserved in the Library of Congress – deemed as being culturally significant! – had a long and troubled genesis.
Based on a dream that became a book, that became a screenplay, Bruce Willis was initially resisted as a casting choice, and then assumed to be a liability, upon release.
Movie execs, eh!? Where do they get off!?
Okay, so it’s Xmas Eve, and we’re back home, after an afternoon at mum’s, watching Die Hard. What silly fun!
This film was initially pitched as Rambo in an office block, of the Towering Inferno variety. And it’s easy to see why. I won’t synopsise the film here. That’s been done to death elsewhere.
There are, of course, some fairly ludicrous moments. Well, truth be told, the entire film is nothing but a constant sequence of ludicrous moments. But I s’pose – not that it really matters or ‘signifies’ in any way – I want to enumerate a few.
Some are just those ordinary everyday generic movie tropes, such as the one whereby an ordinary Joe (or Roy/John, in this case) bests a whole mob of supposedly elite-villains, whilst also making everyone from local law enforcement to the FBI look like flat-footed clowns.
Others are more to do with the mechanics or physics of reality, such as the iconic lift-shaft sequence, or his ‘gun taped to back’ routine. Both of these, and many others, involve our willing suspension of disbelief, and feed into that perennially popular fantasy of the lone maverick taking on the world, and winning.
As has been written about copiously elsewhere, Die Hard also addresses many other subjects, some more overtly than others.
One of the many minor themes in this movie, has to do with wealth: we have the hi-tech location – with echoes of the Death Star, in that it’s unfinished – Takagi’s shiny suit, Holly’s Rolex watch, Ellis snorting coke, and Gruber’s grubby little robbery, all undone by an ‘umble copper.
McClain manages to shed gallons of blood without losing consciousness. Impressive!
The issue of race is handled in an interesting way. Some of it consciously so. Some in the unstated ways that leak out of cultural norms. But returning to the fantasy of unbridled masculinity, Sgt. Al Powell, desk-jockey Cop, gets his manhood/Mojo back, by blasting the reanimated zombie of Karl to Hell, with his handgun.
What could be more American than that!
As already alluded to above, the film has an interesting history. Starting out as a dream, becoming a book – Nothing Lasts Forever – and so forth.
It’s also interesting to see how the film was made. From script, to storyboarding, to models, sets, and so on.
In putting this post together I learned that director John McTiernan wound up serving about a year (well, ten months) in prison, over… well, read about it here, if inclined.
