"love 'em both but die hard is kinda the inspiration"
Not really.
― Fig On A Plate Cart (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 13:54 (fourteen years ago) link
just watched die hard again the other night; unmitigated classic, gets my vote
― SKATAAAAAAAAAAA (cozwn), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 14:25 (fourteen years ago) link
die hard for fuck's sake.
it isn't 1993, we don't have to pretend hong kong action films are interesting.
lol jokes but i did see 'triangle', which david bordwell said was hot shit, and it was about as good as 'die hard 4' only without a trace of lol.
― a young thug's brutal coming of age (history mayne), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 16:14 (fourteen years ago) link
close call but die hard has a better lead villain (anthony wong doesn't have much to do here and apparently he didn't like working for john woo).
i guess the next poll should be 'die hard 2' vs 'the last blood' aka 'hard boiled 2' (UK title)
― omar little, Wednesday, 9 December 2009 18:14 (fourteen years ago) link
This is actually a really good, er, face off, but I'd have to go with "Die Hard," a definitive '80s films that has aged shockingly well. Just absolutely solid. Woo ... I'm kind of torn on him. The "poetic violence" element is worthy of discussion, of course, but I love the ironic beats of "Die Hard" more than Woo's style. I mean, both are preposterous flicks, but "Die Hard" seems to recognize it more, if that makes any sense.
― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 9 December 2009 18:25 (fourteen years ago) link
Uh I'm pretty sure that Hard Boiled recognizes its ridiculousness.
― Fig On A Plate Cart (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 19:18 (fourteen years ago) link
I mean every single cop-action movie stereotype is in that movie! It's a treasure trove of ridiculousness.
― Fig On A Plate Cart (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 19:19 (fourteen years ago) link
this is a for real difficult choice. Have watched Die Hard most Xmases for about ten years. Hard Boiled also a perennial favourite tho.
― Pedro Paramore (jim), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 19:23 (fourteen years ago) link
die hard: better story, Hans fucking Gruber. Hard Boiled: better action scenes, Chow Yun Fat and Tony Leung Chiu-Wai are pretty awesome, better score.
― Pedro Paramore (jim), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 19:32 (fourteen years ago) link
I'm truly unsure how aware Woo is of his own ridiculousness. His films are so stylized but also so earnest, and if the presence of every single cop-action cliche in a film means the director recognizes its ridiculousness, then Michael Bay is a post-modern master.
"Hard Boiled" is kind of an ultra-violent cartoon. But "Die Hard" is practically a comedy.
― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:26 (fourteen years ago) link
Hard Boiled no contest. I hate Bruce Willis
― mr. strawman spotter (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:30 (fourteen years ago) link
there's an intolerable smugness present in everything he does, really irritates me.
― mr. strawman spotter (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:31 (fourteen years ago) link
it's not present in die hard
― cozwn, Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:38 (fourteen years ago) link
die hard is really good, and i think woo kind of sucks. how about some more slo-mo to pad things out? ok! be impressed!
― goole, Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:41 (fourteen years ago) link
if this was the killer vs. die hard then bruce would be goin down, but as it is die hard has to take it
― what u think i steen for to push a crawfish? (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:43 (fourteen years ago) link
srsly shakey if smugness is what you hate about willis you should love die hard!
in re "inspiration" i'm not taking down woo at all, but die hard is four years ahead and hard boiled nods to it pretty directly. i'd actually have more trouble with die hard vs the killer tbh. all great, no losers here, etc.
xpost feelin a hoos here tbh
― all yoga attacks are fire based (rogermexico.), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:44 (fourteen years ago) link
glad to see die hard supporters coming out of the woodwork--the movie is undeniably radical, one of the greatest american action movies
― max, Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:46 (fourteen years ago) link
max otm
die hard completely changed the paradigm for action flix and broek hearts of a whole bunch of actors who'd been lifting and tanning way too much in the hopes of becoming the next sly/arnie
― all yoga attacks are fire based (rogermexico.), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:51 (fourteen years ago) link
plus reginald veljohnson!!
― max, Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:53 (fourteen years ago) link
plus yippie kai yay motherfuckers
― jazzgasms (Mr. Que), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:55 (fourteen years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpG9YaPF-nM
― Pedro Paramore (jim), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:56 (fourteen years ago) link
"what do you want it to say on your tombstone, john?""how about......yippe...ki....yay...mother...fucker"
― what u think i steen for to push a crawfish? (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:56 (fourteen years ago) link
argyle is great in die hard
― cozwn, Wednesday, 9 December 2009 20:58 (fourteen years ago) link
"then Michael Bay is a post-modern master"
It's pretty hard to argue that Michael Bay is unaware of his films' ridiculousness. Not saying that makes him a post-modern master.
Anyway at the point where a baby is peeing out a fire it's kind of hard to argue that a movie is a 100% straight.
― Fig On A Plate Cart (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 9 December 2009 21:04 (fourteen years ago) link
see I watched Die Hard the other day (the inspiration for starting this thread) and I don't think it's aged particularly well. there are three good things about it imo: bruce willis, alan rickman, and johnson and johnson. I found the whole fake camaraderie between willis and Al to be 10x more cringeworthy than even the most broish love scenes in a john woo movie. also the veiled cryptoracism (am I using ilx newspeak right?) against the japanese
― 囧 (dyao), Thursday, 10 December 2009 00:53 (fourteen years ago) link
eh i thought nakamura came off OK in the movie? unless theres something im forgetting
― max, Thursday, 10 December 2009 00:54 (fourteen years ago) link
there's the "do you even celebrate christmas in japan" with the "we couldn't get you with pearl harbor so we're selling you tape players instead" plus according to wikipedia nakamura's password is a reference to one of the carrier ships in pearl harbor. I mean I realize on one level it's supposed to be 'joeks bruv' but I don't like the insinuation that no matter how americanized nakamura is his loyalty lies first with japan, which I think reflects the uneasy tension between japan and america back in the late 80s
― 囧 (dyao), Thursday, 10 December 2009 00:58 (fourteen years ago) link
the fake camaraderie IS cringeworthy but srsly it's a movie from 1988... i forgivenore a lot of that stuff the same way i forgive the weird speech rhythms in Bringing Up Baby...
― all yoga attacks are fire based (rogermexico.), Thursday, 10 December 2009 01:08 (fourteen years ago) link
yeah I was surprised to see so many people repping for reginald valjohnson, all those "all the boys down here are rooting for you" and "you got kids" lines were...ugh. and the ending with reginald shooting the bad guy after the whole "I shot a kid" bit!
I think my problem with Die Hard is that it never has the courage to turn into a full out and out satire/comedy, willis & rickman basically will it into a good movie by sheer force of charisma. think it would have been much better as a verhoeven piece
― 囧 (dyao), Thursday, 10 December 2009 01:17 (fourteen years ago) link
― 囧 (dyao), Wednesday, December 9, 2009 7:58 PM (25 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
hm i guess i forgot about this. at least he comes off way better than the beardo yuppie guy.
― max, Thursday, 10 December 2009 01:26 (fourteen years ago) link
what is the matter with these scenes? besides troubling politics i guess
tbh one of the great things about HK cinema back in ye olde 90s was that you didn't have to cringe at the cringeworthy stuff because it didn't feel as close to home.
― all yoga attacks are fire based (rogermexico.), Thursday, 10 December 2009 01:27 (fourteen years ago) link
just felt really canned and calculated, like the ending of a john irving novel xp
― 囧 (dyao), Thursday, 10 December 2009 01:29 (fourteen years ago) link
cringeworthy maybe but i dont know its like complaining that a sting song is "too lush" or something
― max, Thursday, 10 December 2009 01:29 (fourteen years ago) link
i mean it fits with the tone of the rest of the movie. imo.
― max, Thursday, 10 December 2009 01:30 (fourteen years ago) link
I don't think so! the repo man-ish tone set by the incompetent police, media sharks & sadistic fbi agents is totally at odds with the fake camaraderie
also I will never accuse a sting song of being too lush, <3
― 囧 (dyao), Thursday, 10 December 2009 01:32 (fourteen years ago) link
people still like john woo? woow
― abanana, Thursday, 10 December 2009 02:31 (fourteen years ago) link
Just cuz he made Broken Arrow and Windtalkers doesn't mean that his HK films aren't still great.
― Fig On A Plate Cart (Alex in SF), Thursday, 10 December 2009 02:43 (fourteen years ago) link
think it would have been much better as a verhoeven piece
What wouldn't (at least with Ed Neumeier writing)?
You want perfect and efficient character introduction? Check out all the beats in the first ten minutes of "Die Hard" alone that establish who John McClane is, culminating in him riding the limo with Argyle ... in the passenger seat.
Also, x-posting the above, yeah, Willis and Rickman are 90% of this movie, but "Die Hard" might have even worked as a minimally set stage play with these two in the leads.
The elements of "Die Hard" that have aged poorly are the same '80s elements that have aged poorly in virtually every single film of the same vintage (from "Crocodile Dundee" to "Rain Man" to "Big" to "Working Girl." The hair, random drug jokes, the (first?) token black hacker genius, the yuppies ... they're the visual equivalent of gated snares and chorus effects on guitars. The difference is that "Die Hard" set (or reset) the action film template, so its cliches transcend. And damn is it efficient. Watching it with an eye on the clock is an education. Characters are all introduced, action in motion precisely 20 minutes in.
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 22 December 2009 19:31 (fourteen years ago) link
Oh, and Al Leong!!!
http://www.avforums.com/images/obscure/AlLeong_1.jpg
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 22 December 2009 19:34 (fourteen years ago) link
i would <3 to see die hard the play
― the finest of display name homies (s1ocki), Tuesday, 22 December 2009 19:36 (fourteen years ago) link
max fischer style
― pantalols (omar little), Tuesday, 22 December 2009 19:36 (fourteen years ago) link
it would be called play hard
easily Hard Boiled
(I've only seen a few minutes of Die Hard on TV)
― Rage, Resentment, Spleen (Dr Morbius), Tuesday, 22 December 2009 19:41 (fourteen years ago) link
you should watch it--you will learn a lot about skyscrapers and Twinkies
― that sex version of "blue thunder." (Mr. Que), Tuesday, 22 December 2009 19:41 (fourteen years ago) link
― Rage, Resentment, Spleen (Dr Morbius), Tuesday, December 22, 2009 7:41 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
LOL
― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, 22 December 2009 21:16 (fourteen years ago) link
Seriously brah, quit voting in these poll threads that are about movies you haven't seen.
― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, 22 December 2009 21:19 (fourteen years ago) link
die hard is, at times, my favoriteest ever movie
― deej--nuts, butthurt, and yelly (gbx), Tuesday, 22 December 2009 21:31 (fourteen years ago) link
"Seriously brah, quit voting in these poll threads that are about movies you haven't seen"
Quit making stupid rules.
― Fig On A Plate Cart (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 22 December 2009 21:38 (fourteen years ago) link
I've never seen the entirety of Die Hard either so what
― larry craig memorial gloryhole (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 22 December 2009 21:39 (fourteen years ago) link
THANK YOU SYSTEM.
― j/k and the fa™an (s1ocki), Thursday, 24 December 2009 00:15 (fourteen years ago) link
love both of these a whole lot but am voting die hard because it's a christmas movie and tis the season or whatever
― did you mean: fart blasters? (nickalicious), Thursday, 24 December 2009 01:52 (fourteen years ago) link
also when they show it on tbs - the broadcast via which i will surely watch it in the next few days - mcclain says 'yippy kay yay my friend' which is just awesome
― did you mean: fart blasters? (nickalicious), Thursday, 24 December 2009 01:53 (fourteen years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.
― System, Friday, 25 December 2009 00:01 (fourteen years ago) link
https://bluecashewkitchen.com/shop/images/T/AGV18AZ.jpg
― Tannenbaum Schmidt, Friday, 25 December 2009 00:07 (fourteen years ago) link
Just watched Die Hard as Xmas eve entertainments
his whole character arc is learning to shoot people again!!
― reagan & sarah (s1ocki), Saturday, 26 December 2009 17:31 (fourteen years ago) link
yeah it's still lame tho
― =皿= (dyao), Saturday, 26 December 2009 19:44 (fourteen years ago) link
i wasnt saying that in its favour really
― reagan & sarah (s1ocki), Saturday, 26 December 2009 20:12 (fourteen years ago) link
Yippies, Up Against the Wall Motherfuckers, and CIA = Yippie Kai-Ai Motherfuckers
― antexit, Saturday, 26 December 2009 21:02 (fourteen years ago) link
oh great, bbc3 is showing 'e hard with a vengea'
possibly not in the proper aspect ratio.
― the shart of noise (history mayne), Wednesday, 30 December 2009 23:33 (fourteen years ago) link
you racist bastards
― Rage, Resentment, Spleen (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 31 December 2009 00:12 (fourteen years ago) link
lol
― who sharted?! (s1ocki), Thursday, 31 December 2009 00:19 (fourteen years ago) link
die shart
― ♖♘♗♔♕♗♘♖ (am0n), Thursday, 31 December 2009 00:42 (fourteen years ago) link
i can't believe this
― 龜, Friday, 27 May 2016 17:06 (seven years ago) link
http://i.imgur.com/7HxQAy3.jpg
― 龜, Friday, 27 May 2016 17:08 (seven years ago) link
Kinda surprised by Louis's woo enthusiasm
― a mom shaped pom (wins), Friday, 27 May 2016 17:12 (seven years ago) link
Speaking of which, I initially took this thread to be pitting die hard against hard target
― a mom shaped pom (wins), Friday, 27 May 2016 17:14 (seven years ago) link
― mr. strawman spotter (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, December 9, 2009 3:30 PM (6 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
― rip van wanko, Friday, 27 May 2016 17:44 (seven years ago) link
a better tomorrow 2 vs a good day to die hard vs tomorrow never dies
― adam, Friday, 27 May 2016 18:46 (seven years ago) link
i totally forgot that anthony wong played the bad guy
http://i.imgur.com/ByyUddN.jpg
― 龜, Saturday, 28 May 2016 02:31 (seven years ago) link
when does he not?
― like $500 billion in stuffed fart sales and I have an idea (contenderizer), Saturday, 28 May 2016 02:53 (seven years ago) link
― a mom shaped pom (wins), Friday, May 27, 2016 6:14 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
if the fabled director's cut of Hard Target was available then i'd have no problem pitting it against these two
― Noodle Vague, Saturday, 28 May 2016 10:13 (seven years ago) link
is it even sexier than this
http://www.gifwave.com/media/56298_jcvd-hard-target-punching-the-snake-beating-the-seent.gif
― a mom shaped pom (wins), Saturday, 28 May 2016 10:23 (seven years ago) link
so beautiful
― Noodle Vague, Saturday, 28 May 2016 10:27 (seven years ago) link
rly want to see HB at the cinema - thread revival got me to chase the trailer on YT
― xyzzzz__, Sunday, 29 May 2016 23:56 (seven years ago) link
i totally forgot that anthony wong played the bad guy― 龜, Saturday, May 28, 2016 3:31 AM (one year ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalinkwhen does he not?― like $500 billion in stuffed fart sales and I have an idea (contenderizer), Saturday, May 28, 2016 3:53 AM (one year ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
― 龜, Saturday, May 28, 2016 3:31 AM (one year ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
― like $500 billion in stuffed fart sales and I have an idea (contenderizer), Saturday, May 28, 2016 3:53 AM (one year ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
Infernal Affairs, Beast Cops, The Mission, Exiled, Vengeance, Full Contact (sort of not a bad guy), etc...
i voted for Die Hard, still might, but i love Hard Boiled. i saw every other Woo classic before i saw this one, but one day my video store got a subtitled copy of this one in and I rented it and i wanted to pass out from delight after i watched it. i don't know how much i paid to find a copy of it on tape, but it was worth it.
just the way Woo will film a pretty simple moment like a guy on a dock taking a shot at Tequila, missing, and hitting a post while the latter dives out of the way. or Tony Leung diving through a half-built car while it blows up around him, hit by a shotgun. it's beautiful.
― nomar, Sunday, 17 September 2017 05:26 (six years ago) link
oh yeah this
https://68.media.tumblr.com/76706accdbc1eff1cb1626d65f958658/tumblr_oc5u3fazmu1tbcweeo1_400.gif
― nomar, Sunday, 17 September 2017 05:28 (six years ago) link
saw the mission for the first time recently ,what an awesome movie
― Listen to my homeboy Fantano (D-40), Sunday, 17 September 2017 23:14 (six years ago) link
If you are in the mood for a John Woo B-movie, check out that Blackjack 'tv pilot film' from 1998 that is on Amazon. That thing is a doozy. It stars Dolph Lundgren and Kate Vernon (aka Mrs. Tigh from Battlestar Galactica) as Dolph's psychologist/lover along with Fred Williamson showing up in a smaller role. It's pretty wacky and kinda like Xena or Hercules in quality, but the action scenes do have some Woo style gun action.
― earlnash, Monday, 18 September 2017 00:29 (six years ago) link
I feel like Neil S. never got proper credit for this:
Too hard.
― El Tomboto, Monday, 18 September 2017 14:53 (six years ago) link