Die Hard (1988)

1 commented-on entry since 16 Dec '24, 01:50

★★★★☆

Starring: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia, Paul Gleason, Reginald VelJohnson

Factual error: A few of Gruber's henchmen set up the rocket-launcher to blast the armored police vehicle. As one of them swings the legs of the launcher down, another uses a 'Hilti' gun to anchor the leg in place. A 'Hilti' gun is a construction device that uses gunpowder (usually a .22 shot) to 'blast' a nail into very hard material such as concrete. With the model they're using, the nail has to be manually loaded into the front of the gun for each shot before it can be used, however the guy using the gun never loads a nail into the gun. As it is, the result would be worthless.

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Suggested correction: Hilti sells powder actuated fastening guns with collated fasteners and gunpowder shots lined up. Usually one can fire 10 rounds in a magazine. The gang would have probably selected such a model for this feature.

blackbeltjeff

But that specific collated gun was not the one they were using.

Correct, but the pin could have already been in the Hilti gun, no? Any idea what model?

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Mistakes

Other mistake: Powell says he has a desk job, but he is driving a cruiser. Cruisers are for cops on patrol. A cruiser would not be issued for a cop at a desk, especially not one who's on his way home, as Al says he is.

More mistakes in Die Hard

Quotes

John McClane: Oh, you're in charge. Well, I got news for you, Dwayne. From up here, it doesn't look like you're in charge of jack shit.
Dwayne Robinson: You listen to me, you little asshole.
John McClane: Asshole"? I'm not the one who just got butt-fucked on national TV, *Dwayne*.

More quotes from Die Hard

Trivia

Trivia: The teddy bear that Bruce Willis brings to his son is the same bear Alec Baldwin brings home to his daughter at the end of "The Hunt for Red October," which is another John McTiernan film.

Cubs Fan ★

More trivia for Die Hard

Questions

Question: If the guy at the reception desk knew that the only ones left in the building were on the 30th floor, why did he tell John to use the screen?

Answer: Most large companies, particularly hi-tech or multinational ones, require visitors to check-in, especially afterhours. By having John search for Holly's name, it can be verified that he actually knows someone who works there, that there is an actual employee with that name, and otherwise assess whether John is a legitimate visitor. This scene's real purpose, however, is for plot exposition. John learns from the monitor that Holly now goes by her maiden name (Gennero) rather than her married surname. We see John's annoyed reaction to learning this, which sets up a later confrontation between him and Holly over their troubled marriage.

raywest ★

Answer: Any answer is speculation; but a simple explanation is he may have forgotten the only people left were there for the Xmas party until John mentioned the 30th floor. The guard also seems fairly proud of their new high-tech touchscreen system so he might have just had John use it to show off how nice the building is.

BaconIsMyBFF

Answer: Most likely he just wanted to showcase a nifty (by 80s standards) piece of technology to a visitor.

Jukka Nurmi

Answer: The party was on the 30th floor and John was asking for a specific employee, his wife. He had no idea where she was exactly.

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