REVIEW: Die Hard 6 Spec Script – Featuring Schwarzenegger

Runtime: 130 Mins (est)
Rated: R (est)
What To Expect:  Screenplay for a movie that belongs in 1996, with fan servicing

I read a few screenplays in November.  One of them was a spec script for Die Hard 6 that I had come into possession of, which the great John McTiernan supposedly had in his cell with him during his time in that North American Gulag.  Speaking honestly I thought to myself before reading it, not another shitty Die Hard – can’t they just leave it alone?  I have less tolerance for reboot/latent sequel atrocities than ever.  This one though, called ‘Old Habits Die Hard’, surprised me.  I enjoyed reading it, it felt like continuation of the original movie trilogy, like the author ‘got’ what Die Hard is and put it to paper.  Perhaps for that reason though it’ll have a harder time getting picked up.  Not least because it would probably be quite expensive – and it has some big names in mind.

In Old Habits Die Hard, the story sees John McLane accept an invite by the Nakatomi Corporation to an event at their headquarters in Japan, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of ‘that thing in the building’.  Since the events in New York, McClane’s only friend is wise ass Zeus Carver – Samuel L. Jackson reprising the role.  Carver convinces McClane to accept the all expenses paid first class vacation to Tokyo, with Zeus as a plus one.  Like Kings, they are pampered at the space age Nakatomi building/skyscraper with free $800 cans of oxygen to clear their decrepit lungs.  But certain old foes await McClane in Tokyo, and they see to it that he ends up on the wrong side of the Japanese Yakuza, who want McClane’s head.  Starting with trapping him in the Nakatomi skyscraper.

This screenplay has a love for and understanding of John McLane.  That’s the first thing that struck me.  The McClane from the 80’s/90’s is a beaten up foul mouthed wino, and that’s who has returned in Old Habits Die Hard.  At the start of the movie a doctor is giving him a list of ailments that his battered and ageing body has, steel plates and joint screws included.  McClane, as the old one would’ve been, is suitably dismissive.  But that’s not the only thing that to me makes this a potentially really good Die Hard movie.  In Live Free or Die Hard and A Good Day to Die Hard for example, the shark was jumped.  I mean, surfing a truck whilst evading an F-35 jet?  That kind of thing belongs in The Fast & Furious series.  Here though, it’s back to basics.  There is no saving the world, no Chernobyl and no deliberate narrative architecture to appease some PG-13 money hunt for the studio.

It’s McLane. Stuck in a building. Taking on armed killers amidst claustrophobia with a slight veneer of humor, and not the cringeball type seen in The Expendables, the type that only occassionally appears and is actually funny, but not so much as to detract from the seriousness of the situation.  It knows not to insult our intelligence too, and delivers action that is both violent but also respects the laws of physics.  Grounded yet heavy.  A case in point is one scene where McLane is trapped in a swimming pool room with Yakuza members.  He is armed only with a hand grenade.  McLane’s action is to insult his impending killers with one liners before throwing the grenade into the pool, upon detonation imploding the pool into the floor below and flushing McLane out of a jam.  An added nice touch is that a ‘no bombing allowed’ sign is shown on the pool wall.

There’s something even bigger about this script though, should it even go into production.  The chief bad guy is written for Arnold Schwarzeneger.  In case we are left with any doubts, the script actually spells it out for us.  The hulking figure (more or less a villain) has been in unsanctioned captivity for decades (kinda like how Sean Connery was  in ‘The Rock’) and is now loose with vengeance in mind.  It’s the kind of role Arnold needs if you ask me, different, intriguing.  Not some tired and predictable good guy Terminator role with action tailored for the family.  The scene where he is busted out alone, at the start, surpasses most of anything he has done since the 90’s.

One downside to Old Habits Die Hard is the return of McLane’s kids, Lucy and Jack McLane.  I could’ve done without either to be honest, it reminds us of the bad taste of the two recent movies.  They might have even got away with unofficially retconning the two stains on this franchise, without tacitly doing so. Their inclusion is comparatively minimal though.  Speaking of old characters by the way, Holly McLane is back, again playing a significant role and this is a must for any serious Die Hard sequel.  Holly is central to the psyche of John and what motivates him. I also had a shit eating grin when Dick Thornburg also returned, and in true style worsens McLane’s situation.  Just added credibility points for real fans of Die Hard.

So then.  Arnold Schwarzenegger, oldschool John McClane, violent yet plausible action confined to a tall building, motorcycles rode through hallways like a classic scene from True Lies… it makes me want to implore Fox to make this movie.  I’d give this an 8/10, with the potential to go through the roof beyond that if they find the right director.  It feels expensive though, before we even get to the ambitious cast.  I mean Tokyo is more expensive than Eastern Europe, when filming a movie.  I don’t know if we’ll ever see it on screen.

Old Habits Die Hard could be the real Die Hard 4 in waiting…