Die Hard

(John McTiernan, US 1988, 132 min., 35mm)

(Mostly) Happy Holidays | 30th Anniversary. Bruce Willis changed the image of the 1980s action hero with his portrayal of “real guy” John McClane, a New York cop caught in a terrorist hostage situation in his estranged wife’s office building on Christmas Eve. Cut off from backup and from the bottom floors of the building, McClane must use his training, his instincts, and even a bit of wry humor to save the money, the hostages, his wife, and, hopefully, his marriage. The progenitor of its own subgenre of action fare, here on a gorgeous 35mm print, this film still has the ability to “blow you through the back wall of the theater!”