“Who are you then? “

“Just a fly in the ointment. Hans. A monkey in the wrench. A pain in the ass…”

– Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) and John McClane (Bruce Willis)

An N.Y.C. cop comes to L.A. to reconcile with his wife at her corporate Christmas party, and ends up having to save her from a band of terrorists who have taken over the high rise.

MILESTONES OF THE JOURNEY

What makes Die Hard a rich, successful action picture is that John McClane travels two Journeys. We remember the main Journey of a lonely New York cop who must defeat a band of terrorists who have taken over a 40-story high-rise. Yet John gets into this situation when he arrives in Los Angeles to reconcile with his wife. This his primary Journey, is interrupted at its worst moment by Gruber’s Call. In fact, he tries everything possible to avoid the situation until he has no choice but to act. However, through the physical ordeals of the Higher Cause, McClane learns to acknowledge his stubbornness with his wife. Interestingly, John’s stubbornness (a quality that threatens his marriage) becomes a Special Power the Hero needs to thwart Gruber’s plan.

Shapeshifters are effectively used in Die Hard to heighten suspense. Several of the Journey’s Ordeals are key moments when the true identities of Shapeshifters are revealed. Two such moments include McClane’s first face-to-face with the Shadow, and the Shadow’s discovery that Holly is actually McClane’s wife.

While McCLane relies on resourcefulness and sheer determination, Gruber is the ultimate villain. This clever Shadow has his ingenious plot planned out to the very last detail. Everything has been anticipated (the police and FBI standard procedures) to work in his favor. Nothing is left to chance.

THE JOURNEY

A 13 year veteran of the New York city police force, John McClane has been separated from his wife Holly for the last six months. Her good job turned into a great career, and Los Angeles became the new home for their two kids. McClane is stubborn, resourceful and gutsy, yet human – he is afraid of flying. He needs to save his marriage, his initial OUTER PROBLEM, and to take wife and family back to his ORDINARY WORLD in New York, his INNER PROBLEM.

The story’s Opening Image shows John McClane’s plane landing at LAX. He passes through this THRESHOLD of his Journey to save his marriage, white-knuckling his armrests. A businessman, the MENTOR OF FREQUENT FLYING, suggests a cure for flight anxiety and layover: balling your bare feet into fists (a key setup for McClane’s physical trials yet to come).

MClane’s Journey to reconcile with his wife takes center stage as he enters its TEST PHASE. His kimo driver, Argyle, becomes an ALLY, who offers to wait in the Nakatomi building’s underground parking garage until McClane knows how things pan out with his wife, the impending ORDEAL.

McClane uses the building’s computerized directory, an Electronic THRESHOLD GUARDIAN, to locate Holly, grimacing when he learns that Holly has been using her maiden name, Gennero.

McClane takes the elevator to the 32nd floor and the company Christmas party, APPROACHING THE INMOST CAVE. The C.E.O. Tagaki reveals himself as an ALLY welcomes McClane and escorts him to Holly’s office, where they interrupt Ellis, a RIVAL for Holly’s heart. Holly arrives. They embrace awkwardly, and she takes him away to wash up.

Alone in a private office, Holly offers McClane the spare room at ther house, confessing that she’s missed him. McClane swiftly dashes the hope of reconciliation with his impulsive observation that she hasn’t missed his name. Their argument (ORDEAL) is interrupted by Holly’s assistant, a THRESHOLD GUARDIAN. Holly excuses herself to ‘adress the troops’, leaving their relationship in an awkward death-state.

At this worst possible emotional moment when McClane is the furthest from any reconciliation with his wife, the ‘action’ plot kicks in, derailing him from his personal Journey. A SUCCESSION OF CALLS finally raises the stakes, forceing McClane to accept his darker Journey.

The Terrorists, led by SHADOW Hans Gruber, swiftly usurp the Nakatomi building. They effectively replace the building’s security with their own THRESHOLD GUARDIANS (a SHAPESHIFTER terrorist becomes the front desk officer, elevators are limitied, phone lines are severed).

A barefoot McCLane, trying to relieve flight stress, hears gunfire as Gruber takes control of the party (CALL TO ADVENTURE) REFUSING to be a hostage. McClane quickly escapes to the stairwell to figure out his next move.

Gruber and his men take Tagaki to the Conference Room where they try to get this THRESHOLD GUARDIAN to reveal the computer access codes. Tagaki can’t give them the codes. They shoot him and McClane witnesses it. Stakes have been raised, yet he flees (a REFUSAL).

Safely on an upper floor under construction, McClane berates himself for not stopping the murder. His REFUSAL is pretty reasonable; he’d be dead. He needs help from the outside and pulls the fire alarm. Gruber and his men quickly thwart his plan and use the building’s security system to track down McClane.

McClane’s anticipation of victory is crushed. The fire trucks turn away and the elevator bell signals the arrival of the bad guy, and the beginning of the THRESHOLD SEQUENCE.

John McClane has REFUSED the journey for too long. He’s run out of hiding places and must fight this bad guy. In the struggle, they tumble ass-over-kettle down a staircase, breaking the bad guy’s neck. McClane has killed this THRESHOLD GUARDIAN, and now the HERO wants to send his own message to the SHADOW.

As Gruber announces the death of Tagaki to the hostages and his assurance that he and his cronies ‘have left nothing to chance’ McClane’s CALL arrives on the elevator. A dead terrorist with a message in blood. “Now I have a machine gun. Ho-Ho-Ho”. His message is clear McClane has committed to stopping them, completing the THRESHOLD SEQUENCE.

During the initial TEST PHASE, McClane must battle the terrorists while getting the proper help from outside. Both goals present overwhelming obstacles.

Hiding on the elevator roof, McClane overhears Gruber’s conversation, scouting the situation, calculating the total number of terrorists, jotting down names. McClane doesn’t realize that he has killed the brother of hot-headed Karl, who demands revenge (raising the stakes).

McClane sneaks to the rooftop and uses the dead terrorist’s walkie-talkie to contact the police. This TEST almost turns disastrous. The police won’t believe him, and Karl and his buddies trap him on the roof. The police finally hear the gunfire and send a dispatch, Officer Al Powell with his bag of Twinkies.

McClane avoids ENEMY gunfire and slips back into the building, finally using the building’s air ducts to escape Karl.

Al Powell (ALLY/SIDEKICK) arries at the plaza entrance. McClane spots him from the Conference Room and tries to smash the window to warn him of the terrorists. This ignites a shoot-out in the Conference Room. He kills two more terrorists (Tony and Marko) in this TEST.

Unaware of McClane’s battle and confident that the building is safe and sound, Power prepares to leave. A terrorist’s body (courtesy of John McClane) smashes into his windshield. Leaving no room for misinterpreting his CALL TO ADVENTURE, McClane sprays gunfire at the retreating Powell, forchin him THROUGH THE THRESHOLD of his own Journey, and finally bringing in the authorities.

With the police come the media, led by the SHAPESHIFTER Richard Thornberg. Since he plays an important role during the Journey’s ROAD BACK, his self-centered-everything -for-his-Ulitzer methods are quickly established.

McClane keeps Gruber aware of the odds, telling Gruber that he has killed Tony and Marko. McClane doesn’t realize that he has raised the SHADOW’S stakes. McClane has the detonators.

Die’Hard’s APPROACH TO THE INMOST CAVE represents an important stage of the Journey, a “calm of preparation” before all Hell breaks loose. WIth police and media activity, everyone now knows that Terrorists have taken ofer the Nakatomi Building. The police surround the plaza and prepare their next move. Holly makes a BOLD APPROACH to Gruber to ensure the hostages’ comfort.

Communicating by CB, McClane tells Powell all the facts and theories, infuriating the terrorists listening in. Gruber and his men are desperate to get this guy and Gruber needs his detonators. McClane hands the mess over to Powell and the police.

But Deputy Police Commissioner Robinson is skeptical of Powell’s source and REFUSES to believe the seriousness of the situation. The Police initiate their own disastrous series of TESTS that leave the SWAT team at Gruber’s mercey. McClane pleads for Gruber to let them pull back The SHADOW refuses, and McClane sends a chair filled with explosives down the elevator shaft, blowing an entire floor. Now, nobody wants McClane’s help. The Deputy Chief berates him for spraying the police with glass but McClane stands up to his MENTOR (setting up the his upcoming ironic ORDEAL with glass).

Hostage Ellis also wants McClane neutralized, and offers to hand him over to Gruber, in the Journey’s second APPROACH. Preting to be McClane’s friend, SHAPESHIFTER Eliis tries to convince him to surrender the detonators. McClane knows the SHADOW better than Ellis and warns him not to get involved. Gruber sees that these negotiations are going nowhere and kills Ellis for everyone to hear. He demands the detonators.

Gruber finally speaks with the police and lays out his demands in exchange for letting the hostages escape via the rooftop. McClane begins to suspect Gruber’s “smoke-and-mirrors”.

Gruber goes to the building’s roof to check the wiring for the explosives. He runs into McClane, and the SHADOW immediately feigns terror, pretending to be an escaped hostage, the HERO’S ORDEAL. McClane hands this SHAPESHIFTER a gun for protection. He turns his back allowing the SHADOW to reveal himself. Gruber fires at McClane – oops, the gun was empty, a REVERSAL and RESURRECTION. But Karl arrives and McClane barely escapes the gunfire, continuing the ORDEAL.

Karl and Hans trap McClane in an inner office. The SHADOW gains much from this ORDEAL. McClane hands this SHAPESHIFTER a gun for protection. He turns his back allowing the SHADOW to reveal himself. Gruber fires at McClane – oops, the gun was empty, a REVERSAL and RESURRECTION. But Karl arrives and McClane barely escapes the gunfire, continuing the ORDEAL.

Karl and Hans trap McClane in an inner office. The SHADOW gains much from this ORDEAL. He retrieves the detonators and orders Karl to eliminate McClane by shooting out the glass. Karl fires on the office, an endless rain fo gunfire and glass. Karl caps the ORDEAL with a bomb but he must leave without the satisfaction of seeing the proof of McClane’s death.

Hans and Karl return to the hostages. Furious, Karl attacks a portable bar, a sign to Holly that McClane must still be alive. “Only John can drive a man that crazy.” (A RESURRECTION).

McClane crawls into a bathroom, his bloodied feet covered with glass shards. He talks to Powell. He needs this ALLY to give him the strength to get through the RESURRECTION of his ORDEAL. We learn about Powell’s past ORDEAL (accidentally killing a child) that the FBI is now in charge, not realizing the FBI is precisely what the SHADOW wanted.

Guided by the “universal terrorist playbook” the FBI has cut the city’s power, releasing the Vault’s electromagnetic lock, and its contents, to the delighted SHADOW.

McClane has been REWARDED with Powell’s friendship and with shared sympathy for their ORDEALS. Having faced death, McClane confesses that he’s been a jerk to his wife and that he’ll never have the chance to tell her. He asks Powell to apologize for him. POwell assures him he’ll have to tell her himself. McClane also gains the REWARD of greater awareness of Gruber’s plan. He realizes that Gruber had to be on the roof for a reason.

McClane returns to the roof and discovers Gruber’s explosives, initiating the ROAD BACK SEQUENCE. He tries to warn Powell but Karl cuts him off.

Richard Thornberg sets the TICKING CLOCK, continuing the ROAD BACK. Having pushed his way into Holly McClane’s home, he interviews daughter Lucy. Gruber watches Thornberg’s news report and finally makes the connection: Holly Gennero is John McClane’s wife. Gruber keeps her as a hostage and collects his bearer bonds, while his men herd the remaining hostages to the rooftop. Karl and McClane fight to the death. The FBI Helicopters move in.

McClane finally defeats Karl and rushes to the rooftop looking for Holly. But she isn’t there. He needs to get the hostages off the roof and uses his machine gun to drive them back inside. But the FBI believe he’s a terrorist and cut him off. Trapped on the rooftop, only seconds before the explosion, McClane uses a fire hose to leap from the roof and break back into the building. The rooftop explodes taking the FBI helicopter with it, completing the ROAD BACK.

With the hostages stampeding the terrorists for freedom, McClane must now focus on saving Holly from the SHADOW, Gruber. Our HERO has only two bullets left in his gun. He sees a roll of holiday packing tape and gets an idea.

McClane surrenders to Gruber, whose man now holds McClane at gunpoint. McClane learns that the entire terrorist plan was merely a fabrication to hide ththe robbery. Gruber prepares to shoot McClane, and the HERO laughs in the face of death. Soon we see why McClane taped the gun to his back. McClane’s RESURRECTION comes swiftly. He gets off his two shots perfectly, killing Gruber’s thug and shooting Gruber, who falls backwards through the window. Gruber grabs Holly and threatens to take her down twenty floors with him.

McClane grabs his wife and unclasps her Rolex watch (the company’s gift for a job well done) and Gruber falls to his death. McClane takes his wife into his arms and kisses her , their RESURRECTION.

McClane and Holly leave the building together. They have each other (ELIXIR of Love and Marriage Renewed) even if McClane can’t get Deputy Police Commissioner Anderson’s respect. And he doesn’t need the formal rspect from the L.A.P.D. McClane finally meets Powell (ELIXIR of Respect and Friendship). In a surprise RESURRECTION moment, Karl bursts from the building ready to shoot McClane and Holly. Powell rise s to this HERO’s moment and kills Karl. He saves McClane, and redeems himself for the tragedy in his past.

Argyle bursts from the underground parking lot. As McClane and Holly prepare to depart, Thornberg questions the HERO and his wife. Holly gives the reporter his answer, she decks him on national television. McClane and Holly drive away into the distance.