Production Year: 1988 - Action/Adventure, Action & Adventure - Director: John McTiernan - Original Language: English - Classification: 18 years and over - Starring:Bruce Willis, Bonnie Bedelia, Paul Gleason, William Atherton, Hart Bochner, Alexander Godunov, Robert Davi, James Shigeta more
On Christmas Eve a New York cop goes to Los Angeles to visit his estranged wife at her company's Christmas party, held on the top floor of a huge skyscraper. The building is... more
action stories: "Terrorists take over a (blank) and a lone hero, unknown to the villains, is trapped with them." InDie Hard, those bad guys, led by the velvet-voiced...
action stories: "Terrorists take over a (blank) and a lone hero, unknown to the villains, is trapped with them." InDie Hard, those bad guys, led by the velvet-voiced...
action stories: "Terrorists take over a (blank) and a lone hero, unknown to the villains, is trapped with them." InDie Hard, those bad guys, led by the velvet-voiced...
estranged wife Holly (Bonnie Bedelia) and their kids in an attempt to patch things up. He arrives at his wife's high tech office building in the middle of their Christma...
Die Hard
High above the city of L.A., a team of terrorists has seized a building, taken hostages, ... more
and declared war. But one man slips away unnoticed - an off-duty cop named John McClane (Bruce Willis) - and now he's the only chance anyone has. A crackling action thriller from beginning to end, Die Hard explodes with heart-stopping suspense!
Die Hard
High above the city of L.A. a team of terrorists has seized a building, taken hostages, ... more
and declared war. But one man has managed to escape detection...an off-duty cop. He's alone...tired...and the only chance anyone has.Bruce Willis stars as New York City Detective John McClane, newly arrived in Los Angeles to spend the Christmas holiday with his estranged wife (Bonnie Bedelia). But as McClane waits for his wife's office party to break-up, terrorists seize control of the building. While the terrorist leader, Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) and his savage henchman (Alexander Godunov) round up hostages, McClane slips away unnoticed. Armed with only a service revolver and his wits, McClane launches his own one-man war. A crackling thriller from beginning to end, DIE HARD explodes with heartstopping suspense.
Die Hard
On Christmas Eve a New York cop goes to Los Angeles to visit his estranged wife at her ... more
company's Christmas party, held on the top floor of a huge skyscraper. The building is invaded by terrorists, leaving the cop, who's escaped to the roof, as the other partygoers' only hope for survival.
is seen twice.* Sturdy metal ring holds your keys securely.* Full color printed images or messages are included.* If you have new ideas or need help selecting text for your custom keychains please contact us.* Size: 1 3/4" x 1 1/2" (45 x 35 mm) plus frameShipping might take 5 business days.
selected original 35mm film from Die Hard. The collection has a black mount with black frame, an individually numbered plaque and certificate of authenticity.
Die Hard- Trilogy Film Cell
This limited edition film cell presentation features a medley of hand selected original ... more
35mm film and pictures from the first three Die Hard movies. The collection has a black mount with black angular frame, an individually numbered plaque and certificate of authenticity.
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
A review by SRowlands on Die Hard (Special Edition) (DVD) February 8th, 2005
Author's product rating:
Did you enjoy it?
Loved it
Story
Characters / Performances
Outstanding
Special Effects
Outstanding
Soundtrack
Outstanding
Advantages:
The Best Action Movie Ever . . . With Added Bits
Disadvantages:
Lack Of Commentary Feature From "Brucie" .
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Prior to 1987, very few people had heard of an actor called "Bruce Willis". Apart from a couple of uncredited film appearances, he was best known for his role as David Addison in the cult television detective series "Moonlighting" alongside Cybil Shepherd. In 1987, he was cast as workaholic Walter Davis in the mediocre romantic comedy "Blind Date".
However, in 1988, Bruce was offered the role of "John McClane" - a New York Cop, based upon the book "Nothing Lasts Forever" by Roderick Thorp. The adapted screenplay was originally written as a sequel to the movie "Commando", and Arnold Schwarzenegger had been offered the leading role, but rejected it. Offering the role to Willis was a tough decision - after Schwarzenegger had rejected the role, the casting director then went on to offer it to Sylvester Stallone, Burt Reynolds and Richard Gere - all of whom also turned down the role.
As the movie opens, we see New York Cop John McClane flying to L.A. to spend Christmas with his wife and family. McClane travels directly from the airport to the Nakatomi Plaza - a forty-story office block, which is where his wife, Holly, is now working, following a promotion that involved the move to L.A. Coincidentally, the Nakatomi Plaza is also the focus for a group of European "terrorists", headed by Hans Gruber (played by Alan Rickman), who intend on stealing $640,000,000 in negotiable bearer bonds from the buildings vaults.
The action begins very early into the film, when Hans Gruber, and his group, gatecrash the office Christmas Party. Fortunately for the guests of this party, John McClane is already in the building, and prepares to tackle the threat in the only way he knows how... with force !
As McClane takes out the terrorists one by one, the tension grows as Hans Gruber becomes more and more frustrated. You know that this film is building to a tremendous climax, and it doesn't disappoint in this area.
Die Hard is one of the most successful action movies of all time. It combines all the essential elements required in a good film - a great story, a hero, a "damsel in distress", great sound effect and big explosions !! Many action films have learnt from this movie, with varying degrees of success. The soundtrack is excellent, and fits in really well with the film. Of course, as the movie is set on Christmas Eve, there is a lot of Christmas music in there - climaxed by what has become the unofficial Die Hard theme, "Let It Snow". Despite this, this is not essentially a Christmassy movie - you really can watch it at any time of the year and just enjoy all the action. Of course, viewing it at Christmas gives it that little bit extra !
Cast :
Casting the virtually unknown Bruce Willis as Lt. John McClane was a stroke of casting genius ! Bruce takes the role and blends it with his unique style, as fans of the television series Moonlighting will recognize. His dry humor mixed with quick one liners really suits the character, as does the "down on his luck" look that is almost a trademark characteristic of John McClane throughout the Die Hard series. Bruce Willis doesn't just compete with other "Action Hero" stars such as Swarzenegger and Stallone - he came onto the scene with gloves off and ready for all out war ! He has the fairly unique position in the genre to actually get hurt - both mentally and physically. The scene where he is pulling shards of glass out from the soles of his feet is genuinely stomach churning, and the dialogue in that scene is actually all improvised yet could have been written by the most gifted scriptwriter.
Alan Rickman plays "Hans Gruber", the mastermind behind the heist. English actors are commonly typecast as the "baddies" in action and adventure movies - so it was perhaps a clever move to cast an Englishman in the role as a German. Incidentally, when the movie was released in Germany, the terrorists were described as "Europeans", and Hans Gruber became Jack Gruber ! Rickman is the perfect baddie ! In this movie, we see him play both the evil mastermind, Hans Gruber, but also the panicky nice guy when he first meets McClane.
Another excellent performance comes from Reginald VelJohnson, who portrays Sgt Al Powell - (usually referred to as "Al" in the movie). He plays the typical cop who has had an experience in the past that makes him scared of guns. He becomes McClane's buddy on the outside, and often defends him and his actions. Al also provides some comedy relief, for example when we first meet Al, he is buying loads of "Twinkies". The store assistant says "I thought you guys only ate donughts", to which Al replies... "They're for the wife".
More comic relief in the movie comes from Special Agent Johnson and Agent Johnson of the F.B.I. (no relation !), played by Robert Davi and Grand L. Bush. They have several great lines that lighten the tension, but do not detract from it.
William Atherton plays slimy news reported Richard Thornburg - often aptly referred to as "Dick" ! He's the type of reporter who will do anything for a story - no matter who gets hurt in the process.
There are many other notable performances, but every other member of the cast plays their roles perfectly, and to the best of their abilities.
The Director, John McTiernan also deserves a well earnt mention. Prior to Die Hard, McTiernan had previously worked on the movie "Predator", although this was only his second major movie. His vision and adaptation of the movie from storyboards to celluloid is what really made this movie the success that it was.
Special Features :
The Special Edition 2-disk of Die Hard comes crammed packed with special features. One Disk 1, as well as having the digitally remastered version of the film (which really does improve the sound and visual quality !), you also have several commentaries from the Director, the Production Manager, and the cast and crew. This is done in either a spoken commentary over the original soundtrack or, in the case of the cast & crew commentary, in the form of text boxes. There is also an option to view the entire movie with the addition of a deleted scene, called "Turning Off The Power".
Disk 2 is where the bulk of the special features are located. To start with, there is the "Cutting Room Floor". This unique little feature enables you to choose scene footage from different angles, which you can arrange to recreate the scene in a number of ways. Whilst the options are somewhat limited, it's a great idea and gives you an insight into what goes into editing a movie. On similar tracks, there is also an "Audio Mixing" utility, in which you can view scenes, and change the dialogue, music and sound effects. Next up is a featurette explaining why the "letterbox" ratio was used when converting the movie to video format. In brief, it clearly demonstrates the differences between the letterbox format and full screen by talking you through a scene in both formats. It's short... but interesting ! Then there is a short feature which allows you to view scenes and shots from different camera angles. An essential part of any "Special Features" section on DVD's is the outtakes and deleted scenes section. You can also view the entire deleted scene which has been inserted into the branched version on disk 1. Throughout the movie, there are numerous news broadcasts. These can be viewed in full on the special features, along with alternative versions and some errors that were made during shooting. A major part to the success of "Die Hard" is down to the publicity. The production took a huge gamble in casting Bruce Willis in the leading role, and paying him an unheard of (in 1988) $5,000,000 ! They had to ensure that this risk was minimized by pulling in the audience, through a large scale publicity campaign. This is covered in two features - a featurette detailing the publicity campaign, and a section looking at how major magazines covered Die Hard. Another part of the campaign was, of course, the trailers. These are the short clips and adverts shown in cinemas and on television, where the film makers have between thirty and sixty seconds to catch the viewer’s attention. There are three trailers on this DVD, and it's interesting viewing them to see the slight changes made in each version. There is also a still picture slideshow, consisting of many photos from the movie. I find these slightly pointless, as if you really wanted to look at stills, you can use the "Pause" button on your DVD player, and they you have tens of thousands of possibilities ! Finally, you have the entire script to view ! This is a very lengthy section, but very interesting. You can see how the original script it translated from paper to the big screen. This sums up the "Special Features" disk, but what else could you really want ?!? Everything that a die-hard movie fan (excuse the pun !). The only thing that I would have wanted would have been an audio commentary by the man himself... Bruce Willis. This is quite a big exclusion, and there is no explanation for it. As John McClane himself might say, "Just a fly in the ointment, Hans. The monkey in the wrench. The pain in the ass." It's a shame, but does not detract from the value of this DVD.
You might be wondering why I'm reviewing this movie - after all, it is now nearly sixteen years old ! However, this film hasn't aged at all. Apart from Bruce Willis having more hair back then, it could have been made in the past couple of years and have been just as successful. Also, as one of my favorite films of all time (currently ranked at number three !), I feel as though I need to add this film review to my list of reviews written. It has the essential element of being an excellent film - one you can watch over and over again, and still enjoy it just as much as the first time that you saw it ! It goes without saying that I would urge any fans of Die Hard to go out and buy this DVD - even if you have the original DVD release. The picture and sound quality is amazing, the story is one of the most action packed films ever and the features really do add to your interest and appreciation of the movie. The Special Edition is available in the two disk "Die Hard" version, or as part of a four disk version which also includes the sequel, "Die Hard 2 - Die Harder".
The DVD is certificate 18, with a main feature running time of 126 minutes.
Advantages: A good old fashioned action film that really wrote the book Disadvantages: Is it such a good idea to make Die Hard 4 19 years later
...has to be the original Die Hard. It was with this in mind and the arrival of Die Hard 4 next year that I decided to re watch the original today. It's the film that set Bruce Willis on his way to superstardom as the New York Police Officer John McClane. It also seems to have provided modern directors with what can simply be described as an Action movie by numbers set up. It's been 18 years since Willis hit our screens in this movie and it still seems ... ...simple the formula appeared that Die Hard is now viewed as one of the best films in this genre. It has a pretty simple concept where the bad guys take over the building, and the hero does everything he can to stop them to be reunited with the woman of the piece. Not only did McTiernan manage to put together a story that worked he also made it look fantastic with explosions left right and centre. This is certainly film making at its easiest, but with ...
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30.07.2006
Classic Review ofDie Hard (Special Edition) (DVD)by
jonesri
Advantages: Non-stop action, fighting Disadvantages: The vest
...the action scenes. In Die Hard, Alan Rickman is superb as Hans Gruber and Bruce Willis is excellent as John McClane. The supporting cast don't let the film down either with solid performances.
All the characters, including the supporting cast, in this film are well developed where possible. The dialogue between them is clever and the subplots and motives of the characters are great.
The only potentially negative thing you could say about this film ... ...if very much what you get. I guess that can be good or bad depending on what you are looking for. The important thing is, what the film lacks in complexity it makes up for in action.
Made in the late eighties, parts of the film do look a bit dated but generally I think it has aged well. The fact that they made two further films which have done well shows its popularity.
It is directed by John McTiernan and is very much in the mould of his other ...
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Story
Characters / Performances
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14.07.2004
(19.07.2004)
Yippy Kai Yay!! Review ofDie Hard (Special Edition) (DVD)by
cfcamm
Advantages: Possibly the best film of all time Disadvantages: they made die hard 2 because of it
...McTiernan (also directed; Basic, Rollerball, Die Hard 3, The Hunt for Red October)
Writers - Roderick Thorp (original novel; Nothing Lasts Forever), Jeb Stuart and Steven E. de Souza (screenplay
Languages - English (Dolby 5.1)
Subtitles - Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish, Dutch, English.
Year of Release - 1988
--- Special Features ---
Disc 1:
- Digitally re-mastered main feature
... ...Degovia)
- Scene Specific Commentary by Visual Effects Producer (Richard Edlund)
- Text commentary (Cast and Crew)
Special Branching Version (view the film with deleted scenes re-inserted)
Disc 2:
- The Cutting Room (use different angles in scenes to remake the film differently)
- Audio Mixing (manipulate the sound effects, music and dialog
- Featurette; 'Why Letterbox?'
- Outtakes with Deleted / Alternate scenes
- Newscasts (original news ...
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Advantages: You get to own a special edition Die Hard Disadvantages: You can't own all 3 in one box
...do you really need for Die Hard, If you don't know the story or seen a clip, where have you been... Anyway for those small few of you who don't know and for those of you that do, here is a small recap into the all American action film.
This is a story about a cop in the right place at the wrong time. Willis, a New York cop, comes to LA for Christmas to reconcile with his wife who moved there some months previously. It just so happens that the high-rise ... ...by a master thief played by Alan Rickman. He of course chooses the night everyone is going to be there for a Christmas party. Willis manages to evade capture and wreak havoc on the carefully laid plans of our evil guy. Running around the office block in the famous vest and with no shoes, he single handily manages to foil the plans of the criminal mastermind.
So with the basic story out of the way, we can now move on to the DVD that the film comes ...
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Advantages: It's DIEHARD! Disadvantages: The girlfriend won't want to watch it with you.
This is the classic Bruce Willis film. It epitomises everything about the action genre as a whole. This film has it all: terrorists, hostages, maverick cops, by-the-book men in suits who disapprove of the hero's actions, big explosions, lots of gunshots and plenty for every hot-blooded male between the ages of 18 and 45. I am yet to find one guy who does not at least like this film.
Having said that, I'm still yet to find one girl who at least likes ... ...something to watch with that girl you like. This film is much more of a '10 guys, 50 beers, surround sound and widescreen HD' kind of film. Which is fine by me.
Bruce Willis plays the main character, John McClane, who is visiting his wife on Christmas at her new job. Sadly, all does not go to plan when German terrorists, led by Alan RIckman, take over the building and everyone inside is taken hostage. Luckily, and predictably, McClane was in the ...
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Advantages: AMAZING film!! :-D Even better than the first! Disadvantages: Some things in the film are "exaggerated..."!!
... DIEHARD 2
FILM ONLY REVIEW
Well this film was on TV last night so I thought I'd write up a review on it while it was fresh in my head!!
After DieHard became a huge hit, it wasn't surprising that a sequel was made in 1990. DieHard 2: Die Harder was just as entertaining as the first movie.
DieHard 2: Die Harder followed the pattern of the first film in having everything take place over the course of a few hours on Christmas Eve. I think it was supposed to be a year after the events of the first movie..
John McClane was waiting at the Dulles airport to pick up his wife ,Holly, on Christmas Eve.
John was already in Washington, D.C. with their kids to spend the holiday with Holly?s parents.
Unfortunately John wasn?t going to have a peaceful holiday. Colonel Stuart was leading a team...
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Advantages: A worthy sequel to a great original movie. Disadvantages: How can the same s**t happen to the same guy ??
...designed and has an image of Bruce Willis as John Mclane, making it instantly recognisable as a DieHard movie.
Upon inserting each disc, you are presented with an external image of Dulles Tower. This then zooms into the control room where menu options appear on various radars and equipment.
Special Features:
This SpecialEdition of "DieHard 2: Die Harder" comes on two discs. The first disc contains the movie, along with a commentary by director Renny Harlin. This commentary gives a better insight of how Harlin translated the story from script to screen, and is very interesting. DieHard fans (excuse the pun !) will gain a lot of information from watching the movie with the commentary turned on.
The bulk of the special features are contained on the second disc. These include -
- "The Making of DieHard 2" -
With a running time...
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Advantages: Two great films in one box set Disadvantages: Have to buy Die Hard 3 separately.
...that DieHard3 was done by a different Studio and in the UK there was a bit of a problem with the distribution rights, so DieHard 3 was sold as an individual purchse and not with this box set. Shame. Since then the films have been sold in a multi pack without the extras.
It is also funny to see Robert Patrick of Terminator 2 in this as well.
If you can get the boxed set of two films do so, the third is available as a specialedition with the same flavour of extras and a different ending. If you cant you'll have to buy them individually and that may work out a bit more, but will still be worth it. With DieHard 4 currently in production interest in these DVD's will soon be raised again.
Oh by the way these are the unedited versions of the film, which became evident when watching the second film with the stabbing in the eye by Mac...
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On Christmas Eve a New York cop goes to Los Angeles to visit his estranged wife at her company's Christmas party, held on the top floor of a huge skyscraper. The building is invaded by terrorists, leaving the cop, who's escaped to the roof, as the other partygoers' only hope for survival.
Release details
DVD Region: DVD
Studio(s): 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment; Deluxe Video Service - Fox
"...It works....Relentless energy and smashing special-effects extravagance..." (New York Times, p.C12, 15/07/1988)
Technical information
Dubbing Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 English DTS English
Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS
Aspect Ratio: 2.35 Wide Screen
Special Features: Audio Commentary Featuring Director John McTiernan And Production Designer Jackson DeGonia, Text Commentary Featuring Cast And Crew, Special Branching Version View The Film With A Deleted Scene Re inserted, The Cutting Room, Audio Mixing, Why Letterbox Featurette, Outtakes, Deleted Scenes, Alternate Scenes, Newscasts, Magazine Articles, Glossary, 3 Theatrical Trailers, Ad Campaign Featurette, Entire Shooting Script, Interactive Slide Show
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