Bruce Willis, Reginald VelJohnson, Bonnie Bedelia, Alexander Godunov, Paul Gleason ...( see more  see more... ) , Alan Rickman , William Atherton , Hart Bochner , Clarence Gilyard Jr. , Robert Davi , Grand L. Bush , De'voreaux White

A New York City cop gets trapped in a Los Angeles high-rise occupied by terrorists on Christmas Eve.

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91% liked it

485,577 ratings

Critics

94% liked it

50 critics

R, 2 hr. 11 min.

Directed by: John McTiernan

Release Date: July 15, 1988

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DVD Release Date: March 9, 1999

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Stats: 32,286 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (32,286)


  • January 22, 2008
    An adrenaline-fueled actioner that has completely reinvented the action-adventure genre for years to come. Pure escape entertainment at its best.
  • November 30, 2009
    Die Hard is an undisputed classic. Not only has it remained the absolute high point of the action movie genre for 20 years, no film has come close to capturing it's spark. The originality in this film still shines through. First to thank are the two leads. Willis and Rickman make...( read more) the perfect duo. Willis, more famous for sitcom than action at the time, has an everyman persona and wit that makes him easy to relate to. Rickman has the charm and terror that make him a bad guy you kind of love when he isn't killing innocents. It also has all the 80's supporting characters that I really miss. The most annoying arsehole characters (Atherton and Bochner) and the mostly silent 'heavy' (Godunov).

    The film is also a buddy cop film, without the two cops ever meeting. This avoids any annoying 'let's put our differences aside' moments. Instead, they are generally concerned with helping and supporting each other. However, when all is said and done, my favorite moments are those little bits, those tiny details, that modern directors overlook in favour of huge explosions. Would did film be as good if Bruce Willis wore shoes? Not on your life. Let's not forget the heartless, yet still comical, betting between two of Rickman's men as Rickman contemplates shooting a man in the face. And everybody's favourite FBI agents Johnson and Johnson (no relation). These moments and more punctuate the amazing action sequences.

    It's also a wonderful Christmas movie. It's got everything.
  • November 28, 2009
    The only thing that keeps me from giving this more stars is the stupid chief. Is not just any average stupid chief, it is THE most dumb ass, idiotic excuse for a character stereotype to shat over such a good action movie like this one.

    Aside from that, everything else is quite...( read more) good.
  • October 20, 2009
    Die Hard was probably the end all, be all of action movies 20 years ago, but by now the things that it helped make so popular have become genre staples. Someone who is seeing the movie for the first time in 2009 (like me) can't help but compare it to all the other action movies t...( read more)hat I've seen before.

    John McClain is certainly a unique character. It's not too often that you have a main character in an action movie running around with bare feet and talking to himself. But, who wouldn't be a little crazy in that kind of circumstances?

    The action scenes are about what I expected. A lot of shooting, a brutal fistfight or two, and some explosions. There's nothing about Die Hard that particularly irked me, I just wish I could have seen it earlier, when it would have had more of an effect on me.
  • September 17, 2009
    The original ?Man in a vest kicks ass? action movie. The difference with this film is that unlike action movies of its kind that came before, Bruce Willis wasn?t a muscle-bound moron with no acting abilities. He was a just a nice guy with a good sense of humour. Classic action mo...( read more)vie from the 80?s and great stuff.
  • February 9, 2010
    GREAT ACTON AND SUSPENCE
  • February 9, 2010
    ONE OF THE BEST ACTION FLICKS OUT THERE
  • February 8, 2010
    Not as dumb as I expected- actually quite well written, but I saw and knew the subtext going in and that changed the way I viewed it. However its pretty well done- surprissingly good actually. I didn't get however, why when the Germands spoke to each other they switched to Englis...( read more)h when it was a point necessary to the plot ot important for McClaine to hear. Plus, is Alan Rickman Alan Rickman in everything he does?
  • February 7, 2010
    die hard is a great action/thriller film with action hero bruce willis die hard is a great action film that had came out in the 80's
  • February 7, 2010
    "Nine million terrorists in the world and I gotta kill one with feet smaller than my sister."-John McClane

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    Director:John McTiernan
    Cast:Bruce Willis,Alan Rickman,Bonnie Bedelia,Alexander Godunov
    Genre:Action,Thriller
    Year of release:1988
    Running Time:131 minutes

    Plot:
    John McClane is a cop from New York City who is on his way to Los Angeles to see his kids and his wife Holly, who moved to LA because of a job at the Nakatomi Corporation. When he arrives at Nakatomi Plaza, he meets Holly's boss Joe Takagi and her co-worker Harry Ellis. He and Holly go into a private bathroom and get into an argument. When Holly leaves to give a speech, thirteen armed terrorists lead by Hans Gruber seize control of the building and take the occupants of the 30th floor, who are the only ones left in the building, hostage. Luckily, they missed John since he was in the bathroom. He sneaks out and witnesses Gruber kill Takagi. He goes to floor 32 and pulls the fire alarm, but the terrorists cancel the alarm and send someone up to kill John. However, he kills the terrorist and steals his machine gun. Now he has to kill the rest of the terrorists and save the hostages before the terrorists get their way.

    Review:
    Die Hard is the movie that changed a genre forever back in 1988 and until today this amazing classic still thrills the audience.I was familiar with Die Hard because i first watched the sequels but i was really forward to see the beggining of the adventures of John McClane and i had that shot back in 2003 when i watched Die Hard for the first time.It really grabed me for the beggining and i couldn t get tired of this amazing film with a lot of action and pure adrenaline.Die Hard is such a spectacular ride that will take you to a 40 store of sheer adventure
    .
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    Bruce Willis delivers an oustanding perfomance as John McClane and he s the man who humanized the image of the action hero.McClane is a New York cop who travels to Los Angeles with the intention of spending a nice Christmas with his separated wife Holly.When a group of terrorists takes control of Nakatomi Plaza,takes everybody hostage except McClane,who escapes without any suspicion.Finding himself in a complicated situation,John must put his life on the line to save the hostages,kill the terrorists and regain his wife s love.Willis is perfect for the character because he brings such a realism and vulnerabillity to McClane in a way not even Arnie or Sly couldn t bring.Even in some tough situations,McClane always keeps his sense of humour.After this experience,John McClane will love to spend a nice christmas at home.Alan Rickman is absolutely brilliant as Hans Gruber,the best villian of the series and also of movie history.Rickman doesn t make Gruber the typical.He s basically a inteligent and respect man who has a purpose:money and he won t allow that anyone gets in his way but the last thing he would expect is John McClane.Alan Rickman is such a great actor and when comes to badguys,he s the best.Bonnie Bedellia was great as Holly Gennero,John s wife.She has a lot of strenght for someone who s not the typical lady in distress.Alexander Godunov is fantastic as Karl,Hans Gruber s relentless hencman.He has one of nastiest death scenes when McClane hangs his neck with a steel chain.That s badass.

    John McTiernan is one of the most influential action directors of all time and Die Hard shows McTiernan at his best.His direction was absolutely brilliant on mixing the action,the suspense and the comedy with Michael Kamen s oustanding score as one of the best things of the movie.

    Die Hard is one of the greatest and the most influential action movies of all time that is a landmark of the genre.One of my all time action movies of all time along Mad Max 2,Lethal Weapon,Predator and Aliens,Die Hard is a classic adrenaline rush.

Critic Reviews


January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Inappropriate and wrongheaded interruptions reveal the fragile nature of the plot and prevent it from working. full review

View more Die Hard reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • hanyfaky
    October 13, 2008
    I watched this movie many many times & evry time i feel my body shaking from this movie
    Bruce willis in all the four parts is amaizing.
  • hanyfaky
    October 13, 2008
    I watched this movie many many times & evry time i feel my body shaking fro this movie
    Bruce willis in all the four parts is amaizing.
  • xhorek
    October 5, 2008
    die hard
  • xhorek
    October 5, 2008
    Credit to Alan Rickman, for bringing the villain Hans Gruber to life. 'Die Hard' easily outshines director John McTiernan's other great efforts in 'Predator', 'Hunt for Red October' and 'Last Action Hero'. I found more videoclips - http://loadingvault.com
  • SkywalkerJones
    September 26, 2008
    i love this movie since i watched it 4 years ago.no other action flick will beat Die Hard.
  • mariefuller80
    July 22, 2008
    My favourite Die Hard film out of the 4. Brilliant one-liners from Bruce Willis, brilliant special-effects and plenty of action.
  • scarface130
    July 17, 2008
    best family christmas movie ever
  • vincentstjohn
    April 14, 2008
    Hans Gruber is so evil!!
    "Now I have a machine gun, HO HO HO..."
  • SkywalkerJones
    April 9, 2008
    I love John McClane.who doesn´t like this guy?
  • SkywalkerJones
    February 29, 2008
    20 years of exciting action and the birth of our favorite tough cop John McClane.Happy Birthday Die Hard.

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Die Hard Trivia


  • Which "Die Hard" movie was directed by Renny Harlin?  Answer »
  • John McClane and his new best friend have to find out who the 21st President was. Which Die Hard movie is this in?  Answer »
  • in which die hard film where there many bombs to defuse  Answer »
  • Which movie in the Die Hard saga is about a techno-terrorist hacker that launches as attack on on the USA's computer systems over the 4th of July weekend.  Answer »

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