It was the summer of 1988 when I went to see some silly action movie featuring some TV star. I figured it would be a good way to waste a couple of hours.
As it turned out, I was absolutely blown away and ended up falling in love with Bruce Willis.... In a strictly non-romantic, manly love kind of way, of course. Really. Though he did have really nice pecs.
Anyway, I went back and saw Die Hard another seven times in the theater. And when it came out on VHS, I bought the tape. And with eight theatrical viewings, Die Hard holds a record for me.
Some clarification on that record: I did spend more time sitting in a theater watching Titanic. With a running time of 3.5 hours, I spent 1260 minutes watching Jack & Rose's doomed love affair over the course of six viewings. Die Hard's eight viewings, at 2.25 hours each, only totals 1080 minutes.
I bring all this up because Live Free Or Die Hard--the fourth of the series--opened today. Is it worth the price of admission? I'd have to say yes, provided you like to see lots of things go boom. And any movie that can pull off a scene in which a police car sails through the air and crashes into a helicopter filled with bad guys has got to be good.
That said, it still doesn't quite compare to the original. Timothy Olyphant's bad guy just can't hold a candle to the suave and debonair Alan Rickman. And some of Bruce Willis' stunts are a bit of stretch for a 52 year old guy. But the important thing is that the wisecracks are still there. And that--as much as the action--is what makes a Die Hard movie.
As it turned out, I was absolutely blown away and ended up falling in love with Bruce Willis.... In a strictly non-romantic, manly love kind of way, of course. Really. Though he did have really nice pecs.
Anyway, I went back and saw Die Hard another seven times in the theater. And when it came out on VHS, I bought the tape. And with eight theatrical viewings, Die Hard holds a record for me.
Some clarification on that record: I did spend more time sitting in a theater watching Titanic. With a running time of 3.5 hours, I spent 1260 minutes watching Jack & Rose's doomed love affair over the course of six viewings. Die Hard's eight viewings, at 2.25 hours each, only totals 1080 minutes.
I bring all this up because Live Free Or Die Hard--the fourth of the series--opened today. Is it worth the price of admission? I'd have to say yes, provided you like to see lots of things go boom. And any movie that can pull off a scene in which a police car sails through the air and crashes into a helicopter filled with bad guys has got to be good.
That said, it still doesn't quite compare to the original. Timothy Olyphant's bad guy just can't hold a candle to the suave and debonair Alan Rickman. And some of Bruce Willis' stunts are a bit of stretch for a 52 year old guy. But the important thing is that the wisecracks are still there. And that--as much as the action--is what makes a Die Hard movie.
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