Format: Movie
Released: 1988
Screenplay By: Jeb Stuart and Steven E. de Souza
Directed By: John McTiernan
Run Time: 127 minutes
Character: John McCLane
New Role: Terrorist Fighter
Plot summary of the 1988 action, classic Die Hard continues below…
Story Structure Analysis: Die Hard
DRAMATIC PHASE ONE: THE SETUP
All of the main characters are introduced. The story world and its mechanics are established. Foundations are laid for the main throughline, subplots and central conflict.
We meet gruff New York City detective John McClane en route to LA. He’s picked up from the airport by Argyle the limo driver, who takes him to Nakatomi Tower, the main setting of the story.
There we are introduced to John’s wife Holly and several of her coworkers including Mr. Takagi, Ellis and Holly’s pregnant assistant, Ginny.
Hans and his team are introduced as they take over the building with military precision. John evades capture and becomes the sole force of opposition in the building. He begins trying to contact the authorities, kills his first terrorist and lets the others know he intends to fight back against them.
ACT ONE: DEALING WITH AN IMPERFECT SITUATION
A character in an Imperfect Situation faces Oppressive Opposition as he pursues an Initial Goal. But when there is a Disturbance to his routine, he faces a Dilemma regarding his situation and must assume a New Role.
Rough-and-tumble New York City cop John McClane visits his estranged wife in Los Angeles (the imperfect situation) and is out of place in the cavalier decadence (oppressive opposition) as he tries to reunite with her (initial goal). But when the building is locked down by a group of armed terrorists who take everyone hostage (the disturbance), John acts quickly to evade capture, uncover their intentions (the dilemma) and become the lone force of opposition to the terrorists’ plans (the new role).
The Imperfect Situation: Although John McClane and his wife Holly are still married, they are separated, with her living in LA and him still living in New York. John is afraid of flying but makes the trip to LA to visit her for Christmas to convince her to come home. Holly is shown to be succeeding at her job in LA, much to John’s chagrin. Despite their obvious love for each other, they start to argue almost immediately upon reuniting.
Meanwhile, Sergeant Al Powell is on permanent desk duty after mistakenly shooting a kid left him unable to draw his gun.
Initial Goal: Visit Holly in LA to reconcile their relationship.
Oppressive Opposition: John makes a dangerous air trip to California where his tightly-wound New York attitude clashes with the laid back local customs. Holly rightly refuses to admit any wrongdoing in the dissolution of their relationship. Holly’s coworker Ellis tries to rub Holly’s success in Jon’s face. Armed terrorists storm the party, corral all the other guests like cattle, and send John on the run.
Episode 1: Out of Order: 0 minutes (0%) – Although still married, Jon and Holly live on opposite sides of the country. John, who hates flying, is forced to fly to LA to see his wife and kids. It is revealed that this is a result of his stubbornness when his limo driver Argyle rightly guesses John expected Holly to come running home in failure.
While using the touchscreen John discovers Holly has reverted to using her maiden name. At the party he is greatly out of place and even kissed on the cheek by a strange man. He meets Ellis who is a coke-addled prick.
Episode 2: Turning Point Catalyst – The Disturbance: 14 minutes (11%) – Ominous music plays as we see the Pacific Courier truck navigating the LA streets. Holly and John discuss Ellis in private. Holly invites John to stay at her house but he starts an argument with her over her use of her maiden name and what their marriage should be. Holly leaves John to clean up while she gives a speech to her coworkers. The courier truck arrives at Nakatomi tower. Two of Hans’ crew kill the security guards with practiced ease and the rest of the team arrives. They lock down the building and kill the phones while John is in the middle of a conversation with Argyle.
Episode 3: Turning Point One – The Dilemma: 22 minutes (17.3%) – Hans’ gang crashes the Christmas party. When John hears the gunshots and commotion he escapes through the stairwell to a different floor. He commands himself to think of a solution. Seeing a phone on a construction floor, he tries it only to find it’s dead.
The New Role: John becomes the lone force of opposition against a gang of terrorists.
Act Run Time: 25 minutes (19.6%)
ACT TWO: LEARNING THE RULES OF AN UNFAMILIAR SITUATION
The character Learns the Rules of an Unfamiliar Situation and faces Incidental Opposition in pursuit of a Transitional Goal. But when he receives a Reality Check, he makes a Commitment to his New Role.
Act Start Time: 25 minutes (19.6%)
Locked in a skyscraper with a gang of terrorists (the unfamiliar situation) who half-heartedly address the threat he poses (incidental opposition) John tries to alert the authorities to the situation (transitional goal). But when John’s attempt to call the fire department alerts the terrorists to his presence and he’s forced to kill one of them (the reality check), he sends the corpse to the others with a taunting message and eavesdrops on their conversation (the commitment).
The Unfamiliar Situation: Outgunned and all alone, John finds himself locked in a building with a murderous gang of terrorists and no way to contact the outside world.
Transitional Goal: Alert the authorities to the situation.
Incidental Opposition: While trying to get the attention of the authorities, John inadvertently alerts the terrorists to his existence and location by setting off the fire alarm. Fortunately they underestimate him and only send one thug to investigate.
Episode 4: Rushed Initiation: 25 minutes (19.6%) The terrorists round up their hostages in the central area while firing machine guns in the air. Hans demands to know which of the hostages is Mr. Takagi. Because he doesn’t have a picture. Because there was no internet back then.
John makes his way up the staircase, making note of what’s on each floor while Hans takes Takagi to a private office. He sneaks into an adjacent conference room, overhears Hans tell Mr. Takagi they are after bearer bonds, and witnesses Hans shoot Takagi in the face when he refuses to give up the access codes. Hans tells his Token he hopes he can crack the safe now that Takagi is dead. It would seem the bad guys now have a Dilemma of their own.
Episode 5: Turning Point Catalyst – The Reality Check: 32 minutes (25.1%) – The terrorists begin lacing the roof with explosives. Theo explains the complexity of the lock to Hans. Jon berates himself for not saving Takagi. When he sees the fire alarm he gets the idea to use it to call the fire department. His attempt to bring firemen is quickly thwarted by Hans who calls and cancels the alarm. One of Hans’ goons is sent to the floor John is on to investigate. After a brief tussle, John kills his first terrorist.
Episode 6: Turning Point Two – The Commitment: 38 minutes (29.9%) – John robs the dead terrorist and sends his dead body down the elevator with a message informing the other terrorists he now has a machine gun.
From atop the car, John eavesdrops on the gang to gather information on their numbers. He is nearly crushed when the elevator goes up, signifying just how locked into the situation he now is.
Act Run Time: 17 minutes (13.3%)
DRAMATIC PHASE TWO: CONFRONTATION
The character is thrown in the middle of the Central Conflict and is placed at direct odds with the forces of antagonism. He undergoes a series of successes and failures as he works toward resolving the main throughline.
John engages in a battle of wits with Hans as John tries to thwart the terrorists’ plans and Hans attempts to track John down and eliminate him. John manages to take out more terrorists and learn more about what Hans is up to, but the LAPD, Ellis, the FBI and Channel 14 news all provide escalating levels of interference.
ACT THREE: STUMBLING INTO THE CENTRAL CONFLICT
The character stumbles into the Central Conflict and faces Intentional Opposition in pursuit of a False Goal. But when there is a grave Turn of events, he has a Moment of Truth.
Act Start Time: 42 minutes (33%)
John engages in a battle of wits with the terrorist leader (the central conflict) who has his goons begin seeking him out (intentional opposition) while he tries to assist the authorities with their operation (false goal). But when Hans kills the SWAT team and shoots Holly’s coworker Ellis (the turn), John realizes Hans’ demands of the LAPD are phony and vows to figure out what he’s really up to (the moment of truth).
The Central Conflict: John vs. Hans and the terrorists.
False Goal: Investigate the terrorists to aid the authorities in stopping them.
Intentional Opposition: Now that Hans and his gang know of John’s existence, they begin intentionally trying to find him and silence him.
Episode 7: Hard-Earned Progress: 42 minutes (33%) – John makes his way to the roof and uses the terrorist’s walkie-talkie to call 911 and provide what he’s learned about the terrorists. The dispatcher doesn’t initially believe his story, but ultimately relents to send a cruiser to do a drive-by. Officer Al “Eddie Winslow” Powell gets the call as the terrorists pursue John around the roof and back into the building. John narrowly escapes through an elevator shaft.
When Powell arrives at Nakatomi tower, he doesn’t see anything suspicious and is about to leave, but John kills another terrorist and drops his corpse on Powell’s car to get his attention.
The terrorists open fire on the squad car and Powell narrowly survives by driving over an embankment. Hearing the alert on police radio, the reporter Richard Thornburg requests to pursue the story and is given a van crew.
When the LAPD arrives in earnest, John calls Hans to taunt him. He finds the terrorists’ stash of C4 and detonators on one of the corpses. Hans realizes one of the men John killed had the detonators. Sgt. Powell calls John back and gets the rundown on who John thinks the terrorists are.
Episode 8: Turning Point Catalyst – The Turn: 64 minutes (50.3%) – Deputy Police Chief Dwayne Robinson arrives and begins questioning Powell’s insight. Richard Thornburg’s news team shortly arrives hereafter and begins reporting on the story.
Despite Powell and John’s protests, Chief Robinson sends in the SWAT team. Hans’ gang makes short work of them with a rocket launcher. John throws a makeshift C4 computer bomb down an elevator shaft as retaliation. This prompts Robinson to try to take over communication from Powell, but his criticism of John’s handling of the situation gets him blacklisted.
Meanwhile, Holly’s coked-up coworker Ellis attempts a negotiation with Hans and tells him he’s friends with John. The next time Hans calls, he calls John by his name. John warns Ellis that Hans is going to kill him if he doesn’t admit he and John aren’t really friends. Ellis doesn’t. Hans does.
Episode 9: Turning Point Three – The Moment of Truth: 85 minutes (66.9%) – After Hans shoots Ellis, Chief Robinson complains to Powell that John let him die. Powell tells him to wake up and smell what he’s shoveling. Hans contacts the police and rattles off a list of demands.
Afterward, John tells Powell there was nothing he could do to save Ellis. He also tells him that Hans’ demands are likely BS. The FBI arrives shortly thereafter and wrests control from Robinson.
Act Run Time: 48 minutes (37.7%)
ACT FOUR: IMPLEMENTING A DOOMED PLAN
The character implements a Doomed Plan and faces Self-Inflicted Opposition in pursuit of a Penultimate Goal. But when an unthinkable Lowpoint occurs, he pulls himself together and discovers a Newfound Resolve.
Act Start Time: 90 minutes (70.8%)
The FBI runs their hostage playbook (the doomed plan) and John is tricked by Hans who pretends to be a hostage (self-inflicted opposition) while John tries to figure out what Hans is up to (penultimate goal). But when Hans discovers Holly’s identity and kidnaps her before blowing the roof (the lowpoint), John narrowly survives the explosion and comes up with a plan to confront Hans (the newfound resolve).
The Doomed Plan: The FBI runs their standard playbook, playing right into Hans’ hands. John attempts to figure out what Hans is up to with the explosives, but uncovers the truth too late to prevent the FBI guys from dying.
Penultimate Goal: Figure out what Hans is really up to.
Self-Inflicted Opposition: The FBI guys follow their standard terrorist procedure and get blown up for it. John almost gets tricked by Hans who pretends to be a hostage. When he attempts to rescue the hostages from the roof, the FBI agents think he is a terrorist.
Episode 10: False Sense of Heroism: 90 minutes (70.8%) – John goes to up to the roof to scout it out at the same time as Hans. Hans pretends to be William, a fellow hostage in need of John’s help. John is skeptical but allows him to tag along because he’s not just gonna leave some guy to die. The FBI guys are confident they have the situation well under control, but Powell reminds them John is also in the building.
After a brief conversation over cigarettes, John offers Hans/William a gun. Hans reveals his true identity by radioing his goons in German and holding John at gunpoint.
When Hans insists on getting the detonators back, John realizes there are more explosives than the ones he used on the elevator shaft. Hans’ goons arrive and he tells them to shoot out the glass frames of the offices knowing that John has no shoes. John is forced to run over the glass shards barefoot because he’s a badass.
Thornburg’s crew acquires Johns name, badge number and all his personal info.
Episode 11: Turning Point Catalyst – The Lowpoint: 99 minutes (77.9%) – With his feet bleeding severely, John drags himself into a bathroom to get the glass out of his feet. Theo informs Hans that the electromagnetic shield on the vault has been activated.
Powell tells John the cops have a pool going on whether he’ll survive. When John asks why Powell is on desk duty, Powell tells him he’s been unable to draw his gun since accidentally shooting a kid. He also tells John the Feds have taken over the operation. Hans reveals the FBI cutting the power to the building was all part of his plan to access the safe.
The Johnsons call in airstrike helicopters to attack the building under the guise of picking up passengers from the roof, but Hans plans to blow the roof with everyone on it.
John is wisely suspicious of what’s going on and tells Powell to tell his wife he’s sorry if he doesn’t make it out, making the apology that he has thus far been unable to make in their relationship. Powell tells him he’ll be able to tell her herself. Questioning what Hans was doing on the roof, John returns there to discover all the explosives. He tries to call Powell, but is caught by the terrorist whose brother he killed. While the two duke it out, Hans discovers from a TV interview that Holly is John’s wife and kidnaps her. Again.
As Hans prepares to evacuate and John fights a terrorist, the FBI helicopters approach and the Johnsons discuss their willingness to lose hostages to get the terrorists. Having defeated the terrorist, John learns Hans took Holly from one of her coworkers. He attempts to get the hostages to leave the roof by shooting in the air. The FBI agents begin firing on John thinking he’s a terrorist. Hans blows the roof, destroying the helicopter and killing the FBI agents. John escapes by using a firehose as a bungee cord.
Episode 12: Turning Point Four – The Newfound Resolve: 118 minutes (92.9%) – Having survived the exploding roof and helicopter, John goes after Hans. Argyle sees Theo unloading an ambulance from the back of a truck and springs into action.
John overhears Hans getting rough with Holly. Realizing he’s out of bullets for his machine gun, he sees some Christmas tape and gets an idea.
Act Run Time: 29 minutes (22.8%)
DRAMATIC PHASE THREE: RESOLUTION
The character and the forces of antagonism engage in a final confrontation to resolve the Central Conflict. The main throughline and all additional subplots are resolved. The new status quo is established.
John confronts Hans, who has Holly in tow, as he and his remaining goons attempt to make their escape. John manages to dispatch the terrorists and free the hostages. Powell draws his gun for the first time since his accident. John and Holly finally reconcile.
ACT FIVE: TRYING A LONGSHOT
The character tries a Longshot and faces Ultimate Opposition while trying to accomplish the Ultimate Goal. But just when it seems All is Lost, he makes a Final Push against the forces of antagonism and either succeeds or fails.
Act Start Time: 119 minutes (93.7%)
With two bullets remaining in a gun taped to his back (the longshot) John confronts Hans and his remaining goon (ultimate opposition) to save Holly and stop Hans from escaping (ultimate goal). But when Hans stumbles through the window and tries to take Holly down with him (all is lost), John unclasps Holly’s Rolex, sending Hans plummeting to his death (the final push).
The Longshot: Down to his last two bullets, John tapes a gun to his back to face off with Hans.
Ultimate Goal: Stop Hans from escaping with Holly.
Ultimate Opposition: John faces Hans and his remaining goon in a final showdown.
Episode 13: Here’s the Plan: 119 minutes (93.7%) – Argyle crashes his limo into Theo’s Ambulance and punches him out, effectively thwarting the terrorists’ escape plans. John confronts Hans who has Holly in tow. John, Hans and his remaining goon have a Mexican standoff. Hans explains the brilliance of his plan before commanding John to drop his gun. John distracts Hans long enough to signal Holly to duck and draw the pistol taped to his back. He shoots Hans and his goon in true cowboy fashion.
Episode 14: Turning Point Catalyst – All is Lost: 122 minutes (96%) – Hans stumbles and crashes through the window but grabs Holly’s arm. John unbuckles the clasp of her Rolex and sends Hans plummeting to his death.
Episode 15: Turning Point Five – The Final Push: NA – Combined with Episode 14, when John saves Holly by removing her Rolex, and with Episode 16 when the dead terrorists comes back to life and points a gun at John only to be shot by Powell who has finally drawn his gun.
Act Run Time: 4 minutes (3.1%)
ACT SIX: LIVING IN A NEW SITUATION
Having accomplished (or failed to have accomplished) the Ultimate Goal, the character is shown living in a New Situation.
Act Start Time: 123 minutes (96.8%)
Hans and his goons are defeated. John and Holly are reunited (the new situation).
Episode 16: The New Situation: 123 minutes (96.8%): The terrorists are dead. John and Holly reconcile. For the first time since shooting a kid, Powell draws his gun and shoots someone who actually deserves it. Argyle shows up in his limo to take John and Holly off into the proverbial sunset. Instead of the hospital. Because John McClane is a badass.
Act Run Time: 4 minutes (3.1%)
To learn more about six act structure, purchase your copy of “Actions and Goals: The Story Structure Secret” today!
I can say, though, this post is very short, everything is described very well. There are so many examples, when the article is long, but it contains a lot of useless information.
I’m currently reading your book (absolutely love it!), but one thing I can’t figure out and as far as I can tell its not detailed in the book: what is the Preexisting Conflict in Die Hard?
Thanks!
Glad to hear you’re enjoying the book, Shiv. I would say the primary pre-existing conflict in Die Hard is between John and Holly. The emotional core of the story is predicated on their unresolved conflict. On the other hand you have Hans’ plot against the Nakatomi Corporation. While no one outside of Hans’ crew are aware of the plot initially, Hans himself has been meticulously planning out the attack long before the start of the story. Hope that helps.
Thanks for reading!
MD