Die Hard - The Anti-80’s Action Movie
Die Hard - one of the greatest action movies ever made, and yet when the movie is discussed it’s mostly about whether or not it is a Christmas movie. Hey, the film takes place on Christmas Eve night, there are numerous Christmas songs throughout the film (including Christmas in Hollies from Run DMC), etc. So why not call it a Christmas movie?
But what’s more interesting to me is how well Die Hard still works after over 35 years, where most other action films from the 80s are barely watchable these days. And yes, it still works. Like gangbusters. Start with Bruce Willis at his most charismatic, portraying the John McClane character as funny, charming, tough, but also vulnerable. The compact, logical, and well-coordinated action scenes still hold up, thanks to the reliable direction of John McTiernan. (McTiernan’s streak of 3 films in the late 80s and early 90s still impresses, with Predator preceding this film and The Hunt for Red October following). And of course, the film has one of the best action film villains of all time in Hans Gruber – devious, cunning, super intelligent, and charismatic in his own right.
Other 80s action moves do not hold up nearly as well, to put it kindly. Your basic 80s action movies – Commando, Rambo, Missing in Action – were usually filled with illogical plots, cartoonish villains, and two-dimensional heroes who were near indestructible supermen. The 80s movie tough guy demonstrated little to no pain, remorse, or any emotion other than anger. These characters never folded, never compromised, never gave in. The 80s films were a product of their time, as America was still reeling from the scars and moral complexities of Vietnam. Film audiences seemed eager to escape into worlds where the bad guys were easy to identify, and the good guys were American heroes who were not only always right but also never wrong.
But Die Hard was not your typical 80s action movie, and that’s a big reason why it still works today. Sure, John McClane is a tough and determined action hero/cowboy but he’s no superman – he’s flawed, compassionate, and boy, does he get beat up through the course of the film. McClane is the anti-Schwarzenegger (ironic since at one point the producers wanted Arnold for the role). And one could argue that his character’s arc is a deconstruction of the tough guy persona, when most action heroes of the time had no arc at all.
Before we dig into McClane’s story, however, it’s worth noting that the deconstruction of the “tough guy” stereotype does not just reside in Bruce Willis’s character. Case in point – the character of Deputy Police Chief Dwayne T. Robinson. From the moment he enters the scene at Nakatomi Plaza, he forces his authority as THE man in charge, even questioning McClane as an ally, suggesting that McClane “could be a fucking bartender for all we know.” With the standard, clichéd tough guy attitude, he directs his SWAT agents to “kick ass,” attempting a futile siege of the building that leads to a massacre.
During this particular action scene, you might expect both the SWAT team and the terrorists to exude toughness. Yet the film takes the time to present one terrorist stealing and eating a candy bar as he takes a defensive position, while a SWAT agent briefly halts his charge, shouting “Ow!” as he runs into a thorn bush. Not exactly what you’d expect in an 80s action movie, but another example of how smartly ironic this 80s film is.
At any rate, Robinson is not the only character that foolishly takes a “shoot first,” guns blazing macho man attitude. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the miracle that is the FBI, two agents referred to as (not kidding) Big Johnson and Little Johnson in the film’s credits. Once they are in charge (and they certainly make clear they are in charge from the moment of their introduction) their actions do nothing but help but Hans Gruber and his overall objective. The Johnsons (no relation) shoot first and ask questions later strategy is even more foolish than the police chief’s. Their plan of utilizing attack helicopters (“just like fucking Saigon!”) includes accepting the loss of “20% - 25% of the hostages,” as Little Johnson states. Of course, Gruber is one step ahead, and the Johnsons’ plan literally blows up in their face. Need more FBI agents, I guess.
But really, all you need is one guy – John McClane. Tough guy – check. A bit of a cowboy – of course. But even from the opening scene, McClane’s vulnerability is clearly present. His nerves about flying are apparent, as the passenger sitting next to him observes (and recommends making fists with your toes, which I can confirm does NOT work). McClane exits the plane carrying a huge teddy bear for his daughter.. Not exactly your usual action hero introduction.
Still, McClane certainly attempts to exude a tough guy image, quickly on the defensive when he first meets with his wife. While the argument mostly centers around the fact that she is using her maiden name with the company, it’s obviously a continuing one from the past that runs deeper, and, but one that he’s already lost. His wife had a great career opportunity, but deemed as a threat to McClane’s manhood, at least in his eyes. He may have felt compelled to stay in New York due to a “six-month backlog of scumbags,” but the truth was that he did not expect her to succeed. Perhaps he didn’t even want her to succeed.
A few moments before the terrorists arrive, McClane is stripped down to his undershirt and bare feet, as he attempts to calm his nerves with the fist as toes technique (again, it doesn’t work). This allows the film to show our hero against the odds, armed only with a handgun. But symbolically, it represents McClane at his most vulnerable internally. The events that follow are not only about taking on terrorists, but symbolically removing the “tough guy” defensive stand and uncompromising attitude that he held on to with his marriage.
It should be noted that throughout the film, McClane is very rarely on the attack. His main objective is not to blindly charge and fight the bad guys. He wisely looks for ways to contact the police – first through a fire alarm and then through a CB radio. It seems like common sense now, but this was very much against the norm of your action movies of the 80s where the hero had to present individual strength and an ability to handle problems alone. Shoot first, maybe ask questions later. It’s a testament to the intelligence of this film that McClane does not go this route, until he absolutely has to.
One by one, McClane fights off the terrorists, but not only is it usually in defense, it takes a physical toll on him that was rare to see in action movies of that era. You see it physically, of course, but also in Willis’s fantastic performance. By the time he drags himself into a bathroom after a shootout, his bloodied feet covered in glass, he seems nearly broken.
What follows is one of Die Hard’s best scenes, as McClane confides in Al, his CB police buddy who provides guidance and emotional support through most of the second half of the file. It’s a touching moment, partly because you see the bond that has formed from these two. But it’s also McClane truly opening up, allowing to be vulnerable, and admitting his mistakes and shortcomings as a husband. “Tell her that it took me a while to figure out what a jerk I’ve been,” he tells Al. He’s no longer playing the tough guy, and his vulnerability makes him stronger – the better husband, the better man. It’s a great arc for a great character in a great film. Interestingly enough, it’s after this moment of opening up where McClane begins to discover what the bad guys are up to, questioning why Hans was on the top floor in the first place and ultimately discovering the explosives set to blow up the top floors. It’s as if that moment of vulnerability opens a door to McClane to uncover the full details of the villainous plot, which ultimately allows him to save the hostages and stop the bad guys.
In the final showdown against Hans Gruber and one of his henchmen, McClane has a trick up his sleeve, a hidden gun taped behind his back. But in order for his plan to work, Holly, being held captive by Gruber, has to distract Gruber just enough to buy McClane the split second he needs to pull the weapon and shoot both terrorists. As the “yippee ki yay” joke creates some uneasy laughter during the standoff, the couple seems to understand the plan. McClane has to trust his wife, and she has to trust him. Touching, cowboy, touching. Yes, it also includes a gunshot to the head and the main villain plummeting thirty floors to his death, but it’s still touching, and more than you could ask for in an 80s action movie.
Now, I admit, detaching Holly’s watch, the Rolex given to her by the company for all of her success so that Gruber can fall to his death seems like a troubling symbolic gesture that Mrs. McClane should be “detached” from her career. That’s one of two main issues I have with the film (the other being Al being able to shoot people again at the very end of the film, killing Karl, who I guess was actually a zombie). And yes, referring to herself once again as Mrs. McClane as the film ends suggests she’s giving in to the patriarchy, so to speak. But McClane, after all, introduces her first to his police ally as Holly Genaro first, demonstrating the change in him to be more supportive and understanding. And, if we are allowed to cheat a bit and look at Die Hard 2, it’s confirmed McClane eventually moves to California, and there is also a blink and you miss it shot with her carrying a Nakatomi notebook, confirming she stays with the company.
So happy ending, right? The McClanes are in a better place, a place of understanding and a new found resolution to keep their marriage together. McClane, still the tough guy, still the cowboy, has opened up some vulnerability, elevating him above your typical action movie hero. As the movie ends, Argyle the limo driver states “If this is your idea of Christmas, I gotta be here for New Year’s.” The New Year, after all, means a new beginning, and for the McClanes, a new resolution to their marriage. So maybe Die Hard is a New Year’s movie?
