McTiernan. Just finished Edward Yang and now on to John McTiernan—talk about a pair- haha—hopefully anyone reading this gets a chuckle out of the juxtaposition here. McTiernan delivered not one, but two superb action films in the 1980’s—Predator and Die Hard. Die Hard lands in my top 500 of all-time (fewer and fewer directors left that can say that on the list of course) and that’s a strength. Many call it the ultimate/best/definitive action film- tough to say (another great debate is whether it’s a Christmas film? Haha) but the consistency genre work from McTiernan is worthy of praise even if the filmography doesn’t extend too far beyond those two films (three total in the archives or years (all the archiveable films come within a 4 year stretch of each other from 1987-1990).

Best film: Die Hard

  • Like McTiernan’s 1987 entry, PredatorDie Hard is an updated (and modified) western. Instead of The Magnificent Seven (Seven Samurai) it’s Shane here in many ways
  • Clichés are clichés for a reason and Die Hard would go on to be so influential to the action genre that it may seem cliché now—but it isn’t—it’s an architype – a standard and the premise has been copied a hundred time sense (DP Jan de Bont did it pretty well himself in Speed)
  • Pure good and pure evil—much like Shane with Ladd and Palance—we have Willis and Rickman here
  • It’s not Bergman or anything intellectual, but I think it’s smarter than most critics give it credit for. I don’t think it’s a coincidence or lazy that it’s the 80’s and all these terrorists want is money
  • Willis became a star and his performance here is deserving. He’s an everyman who is cool and witty. “Does it sound like I’m ordering a f*cking pizza?”-haha
  • Very smart narrative addition to have Reginald Vel Johnson as the cop who Willis talks to and becomes friends with
  • There are still a handful of cheeseball “thanks for the advice” one liners and even poor Willis’ wife is falling to her death nearly while her husband is delivering a one-liner
  • Willis is brilliant but Rickman is equally masterful—the film doesn’t work as well without those two in lead
  • Paul Gleason (principal from breakfast club) has some good comedic lines as does the dueling FBI agents both named Johnson (Robert Davi and Grand Bush)
  • Hart Bocher as “Ellis” is pure comedic genius as well
  • Very smart to set this film in Xmas- it feels grounded to have it during the Christmas holiday, at a holiday party, “Ho Ho Ho” line by Rickman and Run-DMC “Christmas in Hollis” song
  • Lens flare galore here- pre JJ Abrams
  • Haven’t seen glass breaking like this since the Joanna Cassidy death in Blade Runner
  • Countless “cowboy” references (including a John Wayne reference and one during climax) which helps my McTiernan as modern day western director theory
  • There are some plotting issues- Willis checks the building directory clearly to show that she’s now going by her maiden name…. it’s a set up—the guard then says they’re the only ones left in the
  • During the finale it’s absolutely ingenious to have Willis tape the gun to his skin—I thought it was/is brilliant

total archiveable films: 3

top 100 films:  0

top 500 films:  1 (Die Hard)

just a brilliant shot, Willis is so good here, but the camera choice is important, too

top 100 films of the decade:   2 (Predator, Die Hard)

most overrated: McTiernan doesn’t have an overrated film. He has only one in the TSPDT consensus top 1000 and that’s Die Hard at #506. I have it at #448—extremely close. Predator isn’t doing as poorly

most underrated Predator but it isn’t a travesty. It isn’t doing as poorly as you’d think on the TSPDT which shows you how much critics have come around on it since the terrible reviews upon release in 1987—right now it sits at #1545—not awful.

from Predator – critics have come around on it since the terrible reviews upon release in 1987

gem I want to spotlight : The Hunt For Red October

  • It doesn’t have the haunting claustrophobia of Das Boot but it’s a superb thriller
  • Strong Tom Clancy source material – the plot actually rides pretty closely to Dr. Strangelove without the comedy of course
  • It’s better than the weak metacritic score (58 at the time I’m writing)- but you could see it as a disappointment with McTiernan (coming off Predator and Die Hard) and that cast
  • The cast is outstanding. Much is made of Connery with that accent playing a Soviet naval commander but he’s very good here- frosty, melancholic— and the supporting players are strong and abundant- Baldin, James Earl Jones is great, Richard Jordan is very good, Stellan Skarsgård in an early small role—I think Scott Glenn comes off very well—perhaps the best in the cast
  • Great canted angle shot of Stellan Skarsgård showing the stress and claustrophobia
  • Sam Neil’s sweet “do you think they’ll let me live in Montana?” monologue.
  • The shot of Baldwin crawling in the ship is shot very much like McTiernan shooting Willis in Die Hard
  • Baldwin vs. Harrison Ford here as Jack Ryan—Baldwin plays him more as an everyman- Ford is more of a super hero—hard to imagine Ford’s Ryan turning green from smoking
  • Ends on a high note- quoting Christopher Columbus and Baldwin saying “Welcome to the New World”
  • Recommend- not in the top 10 of 1990
a great shot here from Red October– the cap to a very fine run from 1987- 1990 for McTiernan

stylistic innovations/traits:

  • Modern day westerns—Western as action genre- , PredatorDie Hard is an updated (and modified) western. Instead of The Magnificent Seven (Seven Samurai) it’s Shane here in many ways. Die Hard– Countless “cowboy” references (including a John Wayne reference and one during climax) which helps my McTiernan as modern day western director theory
  • Gorgeous use of 65mm for special effects in Die Hard– including the slow-motion death from falling shot (so well done) with Rickman
Gorgeous use of 65mm for special effects in Die Hard– including the slow-motion death from falling shot (so well done) with Rickman
  • Again it isn’t on the level of Spike Lee’s powerful use of dutch or canted angles in Do the Right Thing but McTiernan used them occasionally to add a heighted sense of suspense or tension

top 10

  1. Die Hard
  2. Predator
  3. The Hunt For Red October

By year and grades

1987- Predator HR
1988- Die Hard MS
1990- The Hunt For Red October R

*MP is Masterpiece- top 1-3 quality of the year film

MS is Must-see- top 5-6 quality of the year film

HR is Highly Recommend- top 10 quality of the year film

R is Recommend- outside the top 10 of the year quality film but still in the archives