Audio Video News

Twentieth Century Fox is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the 1988 action classic Die Hard with a remastered 4K/Ultra HD Blu-ray release of the film, a limited-edition Steelbook version, and a box set featuring the five-film series — all due out May 15.

In the thriller that launched the billion-dollar Die Hard franchise and became an instant home theater favorite on laserdisc, Bruce Willis stars as John McClane, a New York City cop who flies to Los Angeles on Christmas Eve to visit his estranged wife at a party in her company’s lavish high-rise. By the end of the evening the party turns into a crisis when a group of terrorists, led by Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman), seize the building and take everyone hostage while McClane slips away unnoticed and wages a one-man war.

The 30th Anniversary package will include a 4K UHD disc, standard Blu-ray disc, and digital download for $24.99 and can be pre-ordered on amazon.com.

The limited-edition Steelbook version, which will be available only at Best Buy, can be pre-ordered for $44.99 at bestbuy.com.

The Die-Hard box set will be available only at Walmart and Best Buy, and include the series’ five films: Die Hard (1988), Die Hard 2 (1990), Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995), Live Free or Die Hard (2007), and A Good Day to Die Hard (2013). Pricing and other details were not announced.

The UHD Blu-ray release will include bonus features previously available on Blu-ray, including commentary by director John McTiernan and production designer Jackson DeGovia, scene-specific commentary by special effects supervisor Richard Edlund, subtitle commentary by various cast and crew, The News Casts featurette, an interactive style gallery, interactive articles from Cinefex and American Cinematographer, the full-length screenplay, movie trailers, and TV spots.

The remastered film runs 132 minutes and is presented in 2.35:1 with DTS-HD-MA 5.1 (English) and Surround Dolby Digital (English).

Reviewing the Five Star Collection DVD release of in 2002, Tom Norton wrote:

This original "Bruce Willis in a bloody T-shirt" movie and the first of three (so far) Die Hard entries is still the best. It's also one of the quintessential action films of all time. You'll see echoes of it in dozens of other action flicks made since its 1988 release, but seldom done as well as this. Structurally, it's hard to fault, though viewers should be aware that it's extremely violent.

The strength of this video transfer is its consistency. It's not the sharpest DVD ever made, but it's not soft-looking, either. As in the theater, medium and long shots are less crisp-looking than close-ups, but there are no obvious (and always futile) attempts to goose them up with edge enhancement. The sound is excellent, both clean and punchy. The bass may have been upgraded for this DVD; if so, the results are impressive and don't sound tacked-on.

Related:

A Good Day to Die Hard (2013 review)