'I Just Put A Drone Under Him... ': Collage and Subversion in The Score of 'Die Hard'

'I Just Put a Drone under Him...
': Collage and Subversion in the Score of 'Die Hard' Author(s): Robynn J. Stilwell Source: Music & Letters, Vol. 78, No. 4 (Nov., 1997), pp. 551-580 Published by: Oxford University Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/737639 . Accessed: 02/05/2013 02:09
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COLLAGE 'I JUST PUT A DRONE UNDER HIM...': AND SUBVERSION IN THE SCORE OF 'DIE HARD'
BY ROBYNNJ. STILWELL
WHEN IT WASreleased in 1988,Die
albeit Hard was regardedas just anotheractionfilm, Die a whopping good one. Time has proved that it was somethingmore significant: emergedas a virtual but it swiftly greatblockbusteraction film, Hard was not the first templateforthose that followed.As with Singin' in theRain (1952) forthe musical, behind Die Hard forthe filmboth to epitomizeand therewas enough history however, to commentupon the genre. Action filmstend to be based on simple juxtapositionsof hero and villain. As in musicals, so much of the film'srunningtime is taken up with set pieces-songs and schematicplot, individualizedonly by dances, chases and demolitions-that a fairly ofthe keyplayersin But whilethe identities clarity. local detail,is essentialfornarrative is not so clear, and Die Hard are clear,just who is antagonistand who protagonist the the nominal hero and elevating elementsundercutting music is one ofthe primary Yet, as has been pointed out time and time again, approaches to 'villain'to anti-hero. have filmhave traditionally been veryvisually orientated.'Even though film-makers oftencompared theirwork to music,2scholarlyanalogies have been to photography, paintingand sculpture.This approach tends to negate music, not onlybecause music is aural ratherthan visual but also because it evolvesthroughtime. In the past ten to the voice has been givento sound, but largelyconcerning fifteen years,more attention of Freud terms,drawingheavilyon the formulations and usually in highlytheoretical the hegemonyof methodshave shattered and Lacan.3 Althoughthese psychoanalytical the auteur-basedtheories of early film studies and have focused attentionon the least thatare at the very theories contentious theyare based on highly receiver-subject, deeply ingrainedwithpatriarchaltendencies.Even withinthe studyof 'sound', sound are generallyignored,and music tends to be separated fromsound altogether. effects While protesting against the visual bias of filmstudies,many scholarsof filmmusic make the same mistakein reverseand examine only the music. In the past decade or of sound and vision, so, therehave been some attemptsto deal with the interaction
comments on draftsof I would like to thank Nicholas Cook, Peter Franklin and Claudia Gorbman fortheirthoughtful this essay, Philip Tagg forhis encouragement in its early stages, Victoria Vaughan fortipping me offabout the Nick in who provided the Kamen interview and the anonymous reader forMusic & Letters Hansted article in The Guardian, and IASPM in theMovies.Various versionsofthis essay have been read as papers at thejoint meetingofScreen Musiscfrom Glasgow on 2 July 1995, at the 'British Musicology' conferenceat King's College London on 20 April 1996 and at the conferenceon 'Cross(over) Relations: Scholarship, Popular Music and the Canon' at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester,NY, on 27 September 1996. ' A concise critique of the visual bias of filmstudies may be found in Rick Altman, 'Introduction: Cinema Sound', Studies,xl (1980), 3-15. rale French 2 For a historical see Chapter 3, 'Musik des Lichts', ofHelga de la Motte-Haber & Hans Emons, Filmmusik: overview, Beschreibung, Munich & Vienna, 1980; fora more philosophical approach, see David Bordwell, 'The Eine systematische Studies,xl (1980), 141-56. Musical Analogy', rale French works include Mary Anne Doane, 'The Voice in the Cinema: the Articulationof Body and Space', 3 Representative and Cinema, Mirror:theFemale Voicein Psychoanalysis rale French Studies,xl (1980), 33-50; Kaja Silverman, The Acoustic Cinema,Oxford, 1991. in ClassicalHollywood Bloomington,1988; and Amy Lawrence, Echo and Narcissus:Women'sVoices
551
althoughthesehave been somewhatgeneralin scope and isolatedin detail,and in any case they have rarelybeen verymuch concerned with music. Two of the best such and Michel SoundTrack Hitchcock's Alfred Scream: studiesare ElisabethWeis's TheSilent as theory, Weis's studyis bounded by the auteur Soundon Screen.4 Vision: Chion's Audioadmirable but thiswas an can be seen in its subtitle,and it is musicallyrathernaYve, terms, Chion's work is more sophisticatedin theoretical earlyattemptat integration; but it deals verylittlewith music and concentrateson single eventsratherthan on over time. In contrast,Claudia Widgery provides a detailed large-scale structures analysis of the kinetic, rhythmicinteractionof music and film,but since she is examiningdocumentarieswith a particularpolitical outlook,she touches only upon It seems that many of the musical and film-musicalrhetoricand not narrative.5 methodologicalpieces ofthe analyticalpuzzle are presentbut are hardlyeverbrought together. Although integratedanalyses of film with music are still rare, there has been by way of the somethingof a revolutionin this area in the past decade, particularly analysis music have combined who Kalinak,6 Kathryn workofClaudia Gorbman and narrative-cinematic and how musical detail some with filmanalysis, explicatingin processes interactin classical film practice (roughly in the period 1930-60 and in Hollywood). Discussion of the interactionof filmand music has predominantly polarizingmusic been conditionedby the theoriesof SergeyEisenstein,7 traditionally to it in is which that and counterpoint the image with) thatis parallelto (in agreement frequently have scholars the of scene). Although the evidentmeaning (contradicting nature of this duality, it has persisted with only slight noted the unsatisfactory since the dawn of the sound era. modification The theoreticalweakness of this duality is in some respects a result of the modernist,auteur-basedapproach of film studies (and musicology) given that it focuses on the point of creation rather than reception. The receivergets all the codes-audio and visual-at once, and the impact of the compositeis more complex ofboth sound and the dynamicinteraction it involves than a simple additivefunction: How can one duality. the of parallel/counterpoint the slipperiness lies image,wherein of determinants the of one is music the when from 'counterpoint' 'parallel' distinguish the the in process, one at film-making point least at But of the scene? the meaning does indeed come into play: at howeverslippery, dualityof parallel and counterpoint, broad sense of everything the in use 'scoring' music (I the of scoring the stage are in an intriguing musical Composers its score). with a film to provide required as a complete or film the see time, the of they most a of film; the in creation position and special photoeffects sound often lacking if statement, visual complete nearly to contradict or reinforce to whether decide to have then They processes. graphic what theysee on the screen. Their perceptions,and the way theyrespond to a film, or a lens. stand betweenthe visual-dramatic textand the audience, at least as a filter Die Hard is an excellentexample: like any filmscore,Michael Kamen's forDie Hard is of the filmand a part of the completetext.As I shall show,an both an interpretation
ed. & trans. onScreen, Sound NJ,1982;Audio-Vision: Rutherford, SoundTrack, Hitchcock's Alfred TheSilnt Screen: 1994. New York, Gorbman, Claudia (unpublished Documentaries of 1930's America of Music and Film: Three Interaction and Temporal 5 The Kinetic 1990. ofMaryland, University dissertation), Score: Kalinak, the Settling 1987;Kathryn Film Music, Bloomington, Narrative Melodies: Unheard 6 Claudia Gorbman, Madison & London,1992. Film, Hollywood andtheClassical Music ed. a Theory ii: Towards ofMontage, Works, Selected M. Eisenstein, Montage'in Sergey and 'Vertical 7 See '[Rhythm}' 227-48. 1991, pp. London, Michael trans. Glenny, Taylor, & Richard Glenny Michael
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in the filmreveals an unusual emphasis on the examinationof the scoringstrategies laid in the textby nominal villain,assistingin a subversionof the dominantnarrative a networkof issues in and of themselves.The music also highlights the film-makers gender constructions the filmcentredon class but complicated by national identity, it is first But in orderto understandthe score's operationsin the film, and filmhistory. necessary to understand, as far as possible, what Michael Kamen saw before he responded to it musically.
WHAT MICHAEL
Die Hard is set in Los Angeles on Christmas Eve. A New York policeman, John McClane (Bruce Willis), has arrivedto spend the holidays with his estrangedwife in the huge, Holly (Bonnie Bedelia) and theirtwo small children.He goes to her office name, to her maiden has reverted newlybuiltNakatomi Plaza onlyto discoverthatshe married Gennaro, because the Japanese company where she works does not favour about her name and with an angryconfrontation women. Their reunion is prickly, while his the country across her move necessitated has careerthat about the successful he could that implied it is York-although New in him keeps career not-so-successful interrupts secretary Holly's way. in the stood not had if his pride with her moved have the argument: Holly is required to put in an appearance at the Christmas party. McClane sulks in her office. a dozen men descend on the building like a well-oiledmachine, During the party, Hans hostage. They are led by an elegantGerman intellectual, the party-goers taking Gruber (Alan Rickman), whose chiefsidekicksare a chattyyoung African-American German,Karl Theo (Clarence GilyardJr.),and a sullen, graceful computerspecialist, band is composed primarilyof Europeans of (Alexander Godunov). The terrorist but it also includes an Asian-Uli-and Eddie, who seems to nationalities, different hail fromthe American Southwestand who looks like the rock singerHuey Lewis. conceived; His plan is also brilliantly terrorist. an equal-opportunities Hans is evidently he and his band seek to heist $640,000,000 in negotiable bearer bonds fromthe works his way through six of the seven security Nakatomi vault. Theo efficiently but he warns Hans thathe cannot disengage the last one: thereis no way to barriers, lock locally.But Hans has his angles covered: in the case of a cut the electromagnetic all powerto thebuildingwill be cut by the FBI and the electromagnetic attack, terrorist taken by the thieves.As the film's lock will fail-this explains the cover of terrorism campaign proclaimed, the only thing Hans 'hadn't figuredon is John advertising floorsof the building above the vault. McClane', who escapes up into the unfinished betweenthe two,mediated The filmevolvesin a seriesofcat-and-mouseencounters by hand-held CB radios and escalatingin the amount of damage caused to property withthe offSub-plotsabound: McClane's friendship and to Hans's band ofterrorists. Al Powell (Reginald Veljohnson), also conducted by CB radio; duty police officer Karl's desire for revenge when McClane kills his brother; an arrogant television the incompetenceofthe deputypolice chief;the ruthless pursuitofthe story; reporter's between rivalry of two hot-doggingFBI agents; interdepartmental short-sightedness almost who executive a of cocaine-snorting the police and the FBI; the machinations and appreciation out growing Holly's alive; of the getting hostages any chance destroys of her husband's derring-do.This dramatic structurediffusesthe central conflict of the subplots and the mediationof McClane and Gruber's the intertwining through confrontation. interaction by CB radio, delayingtheirface-to-face foran action film,and indeed it is Die Hard has an unusually complex narrative 553
KAMEN SAW: 'DIE
HARD
WITHOUT
THE MUSIC
by RoderickThorp, LastsForever somewhatmore complexthan the 1979 novel,Nothing oftencontradictory and abundant of narrative-the 'surfeit' on whichit is based. This why the filmhas of the reasons one be well film-may sets of codes operatingin the to draw upon. of elements a variety wide imitators giving emergedas so influential, A entitled'If at chart very quickly. emerged formula Hard' 'Die However,a schematic of Empire issue 1996 May in the appeared Die Again' Firstyou Don't Succeed, Die, always must 'that rules five into the formula down breaking I), P1. (No. 83, p. 117; see hostage; [blank] take [blank]s renegade in which a plot peril; in be obeyed': a location English)'; and a hero; a 'cerebral but demented villain (preferably a misunderstood lists sixteen chart the hero. Although the for garment soon-to-be-soiled distinctive, copies.8 blatant most the includes it only films, A certainamount of fading has set in with all these copies. Bruce Willis's John physical McClane was an unusual action hero, neitheran obviouslysuper-developed Bond, a James like trained nor specially Stallone or Schwarzenegger specimen like with invincible more become he has although expert, martial-arts a or Beret Green blatant the beyond reaching of Die Hard, influence profound most the But each sequel. brilliant, of Hans Gruber.Hans is intellectually copies, was Alan Rickman's portrayal he is his many imitators, But unlike charming. disarmingly and efficient ruthlessly an In Will. of embodiment amoral is the he nor immoral; psychopathic neither 'he that remarked Hansted Nick critic the and role, actor of conflation ambiguous instead on charisma'.9 anarchic,not pausing foran agenda, relying was refreshingly Bruce Willis came to the role of John McClane with an established persona as a By contrast,Alan wisecrackingdetectivefromhis hit televisionseries Moonlighting. blank slate Rickmanwas makinghis screendebut as Hans Gruber; he was a veritable to filmaudiences. His only exposureto Americanaudiences had been as the seductive and the dangereuses, Vicomte de Valmont in the Broadway productionof Les liaisons with that of the Royal audience of Die Hard was unlikely to overlap significantly were quick to creditthe debutant with Shakespeare Company. But the film-makers the most imitatedcharacterin moderncinema. Accordingto the script-writer creating You can't take your ofDie Hard,Stevende Souza, 'Alan Rickman was just fascinating. in these films[thatimitateDie Hard],whichare him,and that'sveryimportant eyes off drivenby the villain."0The producerof Die Hard,Joel Silver,was even more specific: luckywhen we gotAlan, because it . .. set the stageforthatkind of very 'We werevery, evolutionof the bad guy'." Indeed, Rickman has become the touchstoneforvillainy, thoughvillainywith depth. Quentin Curtis noted thatJeremyIrons's Simon Gruber (1995), is, Hans's brother)in the second sequel, Die Hard witha Vengeance (ostensibly 'like so many villains before him, a pale shadow of Rickman','2and withouteven the Die Hard trade name, Mark SalisburycommentedthatJohn Travolta mentioning
taking band ofterrorists 8 The 1974 thriller The TakingofPelham1-2-3 has a plot similarto that ofDie Hard, witha in its 1970s-stylerealism, lacks the a subway train hostage for one million dollars in ransom. But the earlier film, hero is between the antagoniststhat drivesthe engine of Die Hard. Walter Matthau's world-weary spectacular friction and although the active Willis's Bruce presence; physical lacking centre, a communications in immobilized virtually he lacks Alan Rickman's aesthetic head baddie Robert Shaw is appropriatelycerebral and demented (and English), flair. 'The Crazy Gang', The Guardian,1 July 1996, ii. 10. BBC2 television 19 March 1995. MovingPictures, BBC2 television,3 October 1994. The post-Die Hard villain may Madly,Alan Rickman, The 'LateShow' Special: Truly, of Nottinghamin as the Sheriff his Rickman outrageouslyflamboyantperformance himself; have reached its peak with Costner had the Kevin star titular the that audiences with preview (1991) proved so popular of Thieves RobinHood: Prince scenes. proportionof the sheriff's filmrecut to remove a significant 20 August 1995, p. 14. on 2 'Flash Bangs Go up in Smoke', The Independent Sunday,
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(1996) was 'unable to make an Alan Rickmanout ofhis ... Arrow as thevillainofBroken baddie'.'3 opposed. Whereas Hans is articulate,well The two antagonistsare diametrically McClane, proletarian educated and elegantly dressed,he is pittedagainstthe distinctly is left who who is shown to be unable to express himselfverballywith his wifeand engage in humour,but Hans's is the in his vestearlyon.'4 Both prominently barefoot arrogant wit of control, McClane's the flippant wisecrack of the subordinate.'5 McClane, in short,is a classic underdog. One can argue that Hans's dominance makinghim thatmuch morethe hero. But de merelygivesthe hero more to surmount, ofDie Hard.16It is his Souza statedunequivocallythatHans Gruberwas the protagonist to read the film and the audience is giveneveryopportunity plan whichdrivesthe film, againstthe grain,to rootforthe villain;as Nick Hansted noted, 'Rickman's agendaless appeal [is] at the heart of his film'smomentum'.'7Each of McClane's attacksis met from Hans-it is his minionswho fail-and plan ofcounter-attack witha calm, efficient which must be breached to open the vaultresonatewiththe barriers the sevensecurity Theo may actually seventasksfaced by the heroes of so many fairy-tales. mythological holds the secretHans and but onlyunder Hans's direction, breakdown thebarriers, the magic key-to the finalbarrier. Hans's statusas an anti-hero seems to protect resolution conventional Even the film's the his dramaticintention, of indications than a villain.If we followde Souza's rather achieved is Hans's film: the of goal climax sequence is the structural vault-breaking celebratedmusically,as we by the 'hero'. This scene is certainly and is not thwarted two things:thatHans demands shall see below. Classic Hollywood closure, however, of course, happens, but reconciled. This, are die, and that Holly and John McClane more likely to be no seems Hans throughthe most strained of plot contrivances; to her husband's in does than capitulating Holly by McClane's tritetactics distracted not back 'in her still is this in Holly film, heroism(in fact,despite the 'happy ending' echoed more are crucial points plot place' in the sequels). But these conventionally with conflict McClane's of resolution The in anotherdeath and reunion. dramatically and McClane between face-to-face meeting first the in Karl's death,and Karl, resulting incendiary and musical with and greater detail in more Powell are both dwelt upon is to mitigatethe impact of Hans's death, as indeed does the onbombast. The effect as any normal villain screen depictionof that event.Rather than plummet 29 floors,
No. 83 (May 1996),31. Empire, Arrow', 'Review: Broken was a television Willis outat one levelofremove. carried unconsciously, is even,perhaps classsplit The high-low however, hero;Rickman, comiclead to action himfrom Die Hardtransformed until was faltering career whosefilm star intotheRoyalShakespeare wentdirectly and Arts Dramatic of the Academy Royal from medal a gold wth graduated Ballet. theBol'shoy from a defector Godunov, byAlexander Karl,is portrayed EvenHans's sidekick, Company. he can reasons of sorts all for Califomia hates He water. of out fish McClane is shownas a thebeginning, '5 From reason is but the underlying behaviourof the natives), the uninhibited Christmas weather, name (the sultry and its complex the Nakatomi building he dislikes to the film, More immediately Holly's'defection'. undoubtedly orin in darkness either shown is he the After name begins, siege him to change. reveals Holly's which system computer and elevator and roof, floors, unfinished offices, the empty as he creeps through building's light fluorescent harsh bright, On three suite. executive Nakatomi the of the in lights glowing is seen soft, hand, Hans,on theother shafts. ventilation In thefirst tellsus whois in charge. thelighting McClane and Hans are in thesameplace,and,eachtime, occasions, outwhatis goingon. to find ofan office floor the is McClane along crawling arrive, 'terrorists' the after just sequence, thetwomeetfaceto facefor Neartheend ofthefilm, offices. sanctum and subduedin theseinner is warm The lighting American Hans's masterful and he who sure is, not is he first at face: Hans's seen never has butMcClane time, thefirst unfinished an on is it first meet, When terrorists. the from they another as off escapee allowshimto passhimself accent intoa brightly move and control, they As McClanegainsconfidence is softened bysteam. lighting theharsh where floor McClane's 'lighting'. takesplace in darkness, stand-off The final litoffice. 19 March 1995. BBC2 television, Pictures, 6 Moving to Rickman. ofthefilm Gang'. Note,too,thatHanstedawardspossession 7 'The Crazy
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highabove in an extreme downwardsin slow motion,seen from would do, Hans floats angle shot superimposedon a matte paintingof the greatdistance he has to fall; we as his death is neither neversee the body hitthe ground,nor do we see it afterwards:18 and thus it is easier to disregard as thatofthe otherterrorists,'9 messynor as gratifying emotionally.
THE COWBOY
Die Hard is unmistakablya product of the socio-politicalatmosphereof the USA in 1988.It was an electionyear: the selectionofRonald Reagan's successorwould be seen who was at once one or a rejectionofthe policies ofa president as eitheran affirmation and, it must be of the most loved and one of the most loathed in American history, remembered,a president who had been one of the most popular film stars in Hollywood, an actor who specialized in playing such archetypalAmerican good guys as cowboys. By 1988, American politics and the movies had blended into one, rathersurreal ethos. Hollywood in the 1940s, the era of Ronald Reagan's heyday who cared fortheir ofWorldWar II moviesand ofmothers there-an era ofWesterns, melded with confences-was white picket homes behind in children patriarchal distrust ofbig government In the of 1980s. Die Hard, concerns the Republican servative the need for while agents as buffoons,20 of law-enforcement in the is evident portrayal ofthe villains. of business is embodied in the nationalities the economic protectionism West America's biggest competitorsin the world marketswere Europe, particularly German), and Japan: near the beginningofthe film, Germany(Hans is explicitlyWest the Nakatomi executiveJoe Takagi jokes that since Pearl Harbor 'hadn't worked', the Japan would conquer America with tape decks. In a resonantcircularreference, veryfactthatHans is German harksback to WorldWar II, as does the ominous hivelike presence of the japanese-owned Nakatomi Corporation.2"
ofa Los thebalcony hangsfrom thevillain Days(1995), Strange tothefilm resolution similar comically 18 In an almost joke about the expenseand the on to the hero'stie. The herocuts his tie (a running holding Angelesskyscraper, to fall to hisdeath thevillain as Holly'swatch (see below)),causing in thetiemakesitas significant invested personality blatant copyof body.In another a shotofthebroken ofhisdeathwith confirmation The audiencereceives in realtime. by Ian McKellen,fallsin slow III (1995),theking, portrayed Richard (or homageto) Die Hard,RichardLoncraine's is This reference on a fiery background. camerashot, superimposed deathin thesameoverhead to his(unseen) motion and hisRADA audition from III dating with theroleofRichard association by Rickman's madeevenmoreinvoluted Hood:Prince in Robin ofThieves ofNottingham theSheriff to pitch intention in hisstated through carried obviously most citedin in theDailyMail,2 August Powell with 1991, star'(interview Jeff III and a rock Richard 'between as somewhere be a fallmayitself London,1996,p. 127).Hans Gruber's Biography, theUnauthorized Alan Rickman: MaureenPaton, tothelaserdisc(Die Hard, notes in theliner (1942),as is suggested Saboteur Hitchcock's ofAlfred to theclimax homage 1995). 8905-85, FoxVideo In thechauffeur, Argyle. unconscious bya punchfrom knocked unscathed, relatively Theo emerges '9 Intriguingly, theaction from out,removed canceleach other blackcharacters twosubsidiary correctness, fit ofpolitical an apparent characters. upon,noractedupon by,white acting butneither the he gives over: is glossed awaythepolice'splanofstorming McClane'sownstupidity onceinDie Hard, 20 Atleast have because the terrorists perhapsthisbungleis mitigated withPowell,although in his CB conversation building it out. figured already ofVietnam, traces Duringthehelicopter are theuntidy WarII references amidtheWorld 21Sittinguncomfortably partner, ofhisyounger likeSaigon!'totheamusement 'Just whoops FBI SpecialAgentJohnson on thebuilding, assault an McClane thrashes through Inside,a battered him,'I was in juniorhigh,dickhead'. whoreminds Johnson, Agent the showers activated system sprinkler as thebuilding's vegetation withtropical fumished water lushly garden indoor undercut yethe is immediately Wayne' moment, a heroic 'John is clearly theattack 'rain'.For'Big'Johnson, scenewith and McClane aremerely laughable; whomsuchmoments for a manofa generation Johnson, of'Little' bythecynicism ofthe thefutility whowouldprotest and bythose heroes abandonedbothbythegung-ho on theground, is Everygrunt could Vietnam: they couldnotcontain thefilm-makers that suggests ofthesemoments The interaction heroic gesture. ofthe is a celebration thefilm On thewhole, and contradictory. is ambiguous yettheutterance notleaveitunuttered, (whois comfortable Johnson ofLittle oftheinaction standsand an accusation which for BigJohnson sort ofheroism deathsin the in a firefight), yetbothofthemcrashto their per centofthe hostages withtheidea of losingtwenty recall strongly positioning and narrative Here McClane's appearance thecrucialexchange. after moments helicopter
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is establishedalmost immediThe film'sovertawareness of Hollywood convention Argyleexpressesthe McClane to Nakatomi Plaza, the chauffeur ately.Upon delivering in classical Hollywood terms:he says that'you run intoyour McClanes' reconciliation which recognizes lady's arms, the music comes up, and you live happily ever after', as 'The of strings flourish ones, the upward-surging scoringclichesas well as narrative End' is superimposedoverthe finalclinch in any number of Hollywood classics from to so-calledwomen's picturesor melodramas. McClane may be a policeman Westerns cowboy, but he is reallyan older hero type,the cowboy-not the historical in the story, Hans accuses radio conversation, In theirfirst of course,but the Hollywood version.22 McClane of being 'Just another American who saw too many moves as a child? he's JohnWayne?Rambo? Marshall orphanofa bankruptculturewho thinks Another Dillon?' McClane replies,'I was always kinda partialto Roy Rogers, actually.I really with these liked those sequined shirts.'Not only does he not deny his identification with the most to be identified movie cowboys; he also chooses, howeverironically, kind of move cowboy of all, the singingcowboy in the sequined shirt.His artificial to Rogers's cowboy is a reference motherfucker!', shotto Hans, 'Yippee-kiy-ay, parting his yodel. And Hans deliversthis line back to McClane in the final confrontation, ironies-the in multiple precise diction casting both the yodel and the profanity foreignnessof both kinds of expression to his vocality,the resulting shock and the reversalof theirpositions ridiculousnessof his speaking them, and dramatically, at thatpoint,withHans in control,his gun to Holly's head. McClane commentswith good cowboy', but Hans grudgingadmirationthat Hans would have made 'a pretty demonstratesthat he is unworthyof survivalby displaying a faultyknowledge of he confusesJohn Wayne and Gary Cooper in his movie analogy, Hollywood history: and McClane shoots him. as he is, the characterof Hans, too, has a classical Hollywood lineage. The Striking elegant European aesthete is a stock villain type of the 1940s, usually played by the English actors Claude Rains or Basil Rathbone, and Alan Rickman-also Englishcombines Rains's petulance and meticulous, almost prissy,attentionto detail with Rathbone's gleeful menace and swashbuckling flamboyance, overlaid with Paul Henreid's sophisticatedcharm. Hans, like McClane, associates himselfwith a hero, his classical education, Alexander the Great. However, despite his but one befitting and despite the overtonesof demonstrableskill at marshalling men and mat6riel, seems more apposite: Hans is far Nietzsche'sSuperman, anothercanonical archetype elegant and is He Lucifer: intelligent, hero. a more the fallen angel than military appearance-neat His his androgyny. seductive,with a hint of sexual deviance in beard, greyingtemples, light hazel eyes overemphasizedby eyeliner,and beautiful way of moving reinforcethe clothing in shades of grey-and his slightlytwitchy final Hans's appearance in the film is a and traditionalimage (see P1. II, below), long fall.23
to extricateprisonersfroma hostile enemy withoutassistance from-and even anotherReaganite hero, Rambo, trying feature A distinctive from-government agencies which one would expect to help him. experiencingactive irnterference would imply deep patriotismand of 1980s Republicanism is the inherentcontradictionbetween 'traditional'values that a focus of loyaltyand honour-and respectforone's elders and forinstitutions-all conspiringto make the government government'. a distrustof centralized 'big No. 58 and its score ('Die Hard: the Original', Film ScoreMonthly, 22 Mark J. Durnford's briefanalysis of the film Durnfordcasts McClane (1995), 16) is a varianton the dominant reading, with McClane reclaimingAmerican 'space'. on a basic level, the historical as an 'Indian' engaging in guerrillawarfareagainst foreignincursion; while acceptable sustained. be cannot this that mean interpretation implications racial and around Alan Rickman, going back at least to the London Times 23 Reptilian adjectivesand analogies clusterstrikingly In the entryon him in the as 'reptilian admirer' in Les liaisonsdangereuses. criticIrving Wardle's description of him
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is as obvious in its gendercodes as in itspolitical conservatism This film'sregressive ones. Although the treatmentof the film's one main female and film-historical characterat firstseems progressive,it is, in fact, a way of reassertingpatriarchal values. Holly's success in her career is mitigatedby her apparentunhappiness in her she shows withHans is containedby the way she goes all life;and the strength private to his name at the end of the gooey over her husband's physical braveryand reverts film. The way the two men react to Holly defines them as well. McClane is a than offensive, rather physicalcharacter:almostall his actionsare defensive completely even with Holly. He is angered by her independence and by her unwillingnessto to his idea of what theirmarriageshould be; even the momentthat should conform (not thathe was wrong, have been theirreconciliation-his admissionthathe was sorry but that he was sorry)-turns into a male-bondingmoment as it passes throughthe of Powell on the CB. In contrast,when Holly defies Hans, the latter intermediary responds with growingadmiration and respect,renderinghim complicit in female independence. And Hans's death and Holly's containmentare achieved in one fell her libidinouscolleague Ellis-thereforea swoop. A watchgivento her as a bonus from to othermen-literally symbolboth of her business success and of her attractiveness becomes Gruber's downfallas McClane stripsit fromHolly's wrist. has discussed the The male charactersare just as circumscribed.Susan Jeffords conditionedby the masculinity mannerin which the muscular male body constructs in Hollywood filmsduring the Reagan era,24 and this is graphically and reiterated 'Reaganite' representative in Die Hard.John McClane is one ofJeffords's represented built.The slimly is rather tall and Willis is not particularly hard bodies; but in reality, fifteen the first in vest to his strip by havingMcClane filmemphasizes his muscularity in but substantial; not muscular, jolly black man, minutes.His ally Powell is a rotund, nonand he is chubby white however, his 'superior', order not to overshadow although his male potencyis establishedthroughhis unseen, unnamed threatening, wife,who is characterizedonly by her pregnancy.In contrast,the three primary villains-Hans, Karl and Theo-are all tall, but very slender. Although they are by of emasculationor effeminacy theyare each suggestive quite different, individually wire-rimmed in a as nerd, computer is typical Theo represented standards. Reagan-era glasses,jumper, jeans and tweed jacket. Karl, played by the ballet star Alexander is hidden by a loose black sweatGodunov,appears somewhatgangly:his muscularity suit which makes him look much thinnerthan he really is. And with his elegant of his body,Alan Rickman double-breastedsuit accentuatingthe extremenarrowness in clothes and concerned Hans Gruber as a fashionmodel; he is interested portrays about his appearance, and even his neatlystyledhair becomes a symbol of control.25
characterizedas 'light(London, rev.edn., 1995), Rickman is alliteratively Actors of Character Directory Quinlan'sIllustrated No. 28 to his 'reptilianauthority' ('Closing his Eyes to Fame', Premier, haired and lizard-lidded'. Duncan Fallowell refers (May 1995), 66); Allison Pearson describes him as an 'icebox lizard' in Die Hard ('The Prince of Darkness', The on Sunday,30 August 1992, p. 16); and the directorDavid Giles praised his 'snaky sexiness' in the role of Independent (quoted Chronicles AnthonyTrollope's 'slithytove of a cleric', Obadiah Slope, in the 1982 BBC production of Barchester by Pearson). Pearson, it mightbe noted, describes him in the same role,withsome approval, as an 'upended cockroach', and the titleof her profileof him is an epithet synonymouswith Lucifer. 24 Hard Bodies: Hollywood in theReagan Era, New Brunswick,NJ, 1994. Masculinity 25 As small a detail as Hans's hair shows how tightly constructedDie Hard is. Throughout the film,the state of his when his control slips, as in the vault-openingsequence hair indicates the state of his control,only becoming ruffled error:the air when it is blown (see Plate II, below) by the air rushing out of the vacuum vault (an apparent continuity scene. When Hans is caught confrontation should be rushing in). This sign of vulnerabilityis amplified in the first unarmed, but anonymous, by McClane and pretends to be another escape fiom the party,his hair flops down in his face as he fallsto the floorand begs McClane not to kill him; almost immediatelyupon regainingthe upper hand, he throughhis hair, restoringits order. runs his fingers
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but awkward All these men also exhibit a grace at odds with McClane's forceful Karl gymnastic. and rather athletic or Powell's solid stasis.Theo is controlled, charging or he glides: his like a snake striking, stalkslike a panther.Hans eithermoves swiftly, withhis hands in his pocketsis the strut strolldown the Nakatomi corridors confident of a catwalkmodel. that it was The Reaganite aspects of Die Hard seem so integralthatit is surprising remarkably details are based on a book published in 1979. Some of the unimportant similarbetweenthe book and the film(such as McClane's spectacularleap fromthe have changed radically, features while other,more substantial tied to the firehose), roof reinforce and many of the ways in which the filmdepartsfromthe book significantly In the novel,the company under siege is Klaxon Oil; in the Reaganite interpretation. deals in banking-American economic the Nakatomi Corporationevidently the film, The archetypal its chiefvulnerability. through in each decade is highlighted insecurity qualities of the two antagonistsare heightenedeven by theirnames: in the novel,the charactersare called Joe Leland and Anton 'Little Tony' Gruber,while in the film, common,almostblank nameJohn(Hans is the diminutive bothmen are giventhevery is retainedeven ofJohannes,the German equivalentto John; note thatthe diminutive Rickman-at call to thoughthename is changed). Other thanthe factthatitis difficult to change reason no over40 yearsold and over six feettall-'Little Tony', thereseems Joe Leland is names unless it is to achieve some sortofsymbolicparity. the characters' of stamina JohnMcClane, althoughhe lacks the physical expertin his fifties; a security and therefore the to terrorists, he is able to respondintellectually who is in his thirties, of the contrast than oppositesat the centre the matchis more a contestbetweenequals of the film, with brute force and native cunning (McClane) versus intellectual education (Gruber). and aristocratic sophistication ofGruber are in the characters novelto film changes from Some ofthe moststartling the In novel, Stephanie Leland and of the femalelead, whose fatesare intertwined. Leland to kills Steffie, Gruber provoking at the climax, Gennaro is Leland's daughter; the and wife McClane's changing into kill Gruber. By turning Holly Gennaro the makes film the explicit maiden name, daughter's married name to the wife's female and by economic powers threatto the American nuclear familyby foreign independenceofthewomen in the novelextends independence.Moreover,the relative to Gruber's troops,which include several females. Leland also displays anguish at while in the filmMcClane displaysno regret killingboth male and femaleterrorists, 'deserved it'-and he is never given the clearly whatsoeverat killinganyone-they terrorist simplybecause no hero could be female a killing over foranguish opportunity Gruber'sband in the filmseems in terrorists female of seen killinga woman. The lack a largernegationwithinthe but women towards of his attitude not to be a reflection have been male terrorists the even then, but be to political;26 ability filmof women's in character underdeveloped rather a is he Although beliefs. their of political stripped planning terrorist, a is Gruber genuine Anton a pages, few on only appearing thebook, it to the people' rather to steal six milliondollars fromKlaxon Oil and to 'redistribute weapons bound forChile (anotherpoliticalresonancewith thanhave it used to pay for the 1970s). Hans Gruber is a 'grownup' Tony,accordingto Republican ideals, a oneradical who is 'conservatized'by becoming a thief.In the Wall Street time left-wing atmosphereof the 1980s,he has givenin to the allure of money. greed-is-good
is a beautiful,gracefuland charismatic Simon Gruber's sidekick in the second sequel, Die Hard witha Vengeance, mutilated so that she cannot speak, a been has she but Sam a Phillips), by singer, woman (played, intriguingly, character. remarkablyblatant and literalmanner of silencing a strongfemale
26
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McClane and Hans, then, representthe two sides of the Reagan era, the cowboythe hero and the corporatepirate. While we are conditionedto admire the former, usually comes out on top. In Die Hard,it seems thatonlyHans's bad luck keeps latter him fromwinning:ifJohn McClane had not happened to be there,he would have at ofthe actionfilmintervene heist.Althoughthe conventions a breathtaking pulled off we are giveneverypossible the last momentand Hans is stopped duringhis get-away, to read Hans as the hero ofa caper film.And as we shall see, the music is opportunity on his side. certainly
THE MUSIC OF 'DIE
saw the filmin roughcut,he reactedas both When the composerMichael Kamen first an audience member and a member of the creativeteam: John about Itwas peripherally AlanRickman. bad guy, Die Hard was aboutthisphenomenal was as bad as you ducts... I mean,AlanRickman McClanein a bunchofairconditioning linesand sucha so manyfunny bad guy.He had suchpersonality, get.He was a delicious forhim to go because you knewthatwas the end You were reallysorry greatattitude. ofhim.27 Kamen's response is deeply imprintedon his score: the music is farmore concerned withHans Gruberthan withJohn McClane, even thoughit is clear thatKamen knew that,in the end, Hans would have to go. The score ofDie Hard containshardlyan originalnote ofmusic in thematicterms.It is a collage of quotations froma wide varietyof sources. At the most obvious, even banal level, the holiday season is evoked by the use of several Yule-tide songsnone of them religiousand all of them evokinga snowylandscape that significantly, The song 'Jinglebells' is heard only once, could not occur in the Los Angeles setting. near the beginningon his way to the Christmasparty, itto himself as McClane whistles the score; in but orchestral sleigh-bellsare prominentin the percussion throughout as heard McClane's plane lands at musical sound in the film, fact, theyare theveryfirst The opening phrase of the seasonal favourite Los Angeles InternationalAirport. and Dick Smith) appears in a minor-mode Felix Bernard 'Winterwonderland' (by that occurs during suspensefulsituations;it is not fanfare as a brass transformation but withthe actions of the baddies. The last associated withany particularcharacter, holiday song to be introduced is the most prominent,and it is associated with Al Powell,McClane's policeman friend.'Let it snow,let it snow,let it snow' (by Sammy heard on Muzak as Powell goes intoa conveniencestoreto Cahn and Jule Styne)is first severaltimesthroughout buy Twinkiesforhis pregnantwife,and he singsit to himself versionappears at the end ofthe filmas the credits the film. Vaughn Monroe's familiar begin to roll; at that point, papers and glass fromthe finalexplosion rain down over Nakatomi Plaza, providingthe only kind of snow possible-or at least probable-in Los Angeles. theme, 'Singin' in the rain' Hans's appealing sidekick,Theo, also has a prominent by ArthurFreed and Nacio Herb Brown. This theme is put througha number of played in the minor mode, subjected to octave displacements,and transformations, as the four-notedescending motif is sequenced in quasi-Baroque Fortspinnung transposeddown by successive major sevenths(see Ex. 1). In keeping with Theo's
27 'Kamen Hard: Interview appearedonly No. 58 (1995),13. This interview Monthly, FilmScore by Will Shivers', be too farofideasI had feared might a number itconfirmed on thisessay:remarkably, thecourseofmywork during but also the ofHans in Kamen'smusicalconception notonlythe centrality including to proveconclusively, fetched below. discussed Orange to A Clockwork connections
HARD
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Ex. 1
of 'Singin' in the rain' Some of the transformations
I
version original
A
Jsi. r> i w..
(horn) version fanfare

'A
al
version escape-note' ! 4 * -i IA --~~~~~~-L

Fortpinnung ;:
a to combat the 'terrorists', humorous runningcommentaryon the police's efforts shoot terrorists as the versionsounds like laughterat the police variantof the fanfare whose trained on the building. But unlike the other characters, out the spotlights sub-vocal) McClane's (significantly singingstamps theirownershipon a song-theme, John at 'Jinglebells' fallsnoticeablysilentin the underscore.In fact, whistledattempt McClane has no theme at all. He has a fewmusical associations-a guitar strum,a and pedal in the low brass-but these are ofverylow-musicaldistinctiveness rhythmic of the third the first about film, after applied. (The guitardisappears are inconsistently device.) Indeed, McClane is accompanied and the pedal is a generaltension-building as low, indeterminaterumblings,string signifiers stock suspense largely by such but brass interjections, and screeching outbursts percussive tremolosand figurations, be to seems he almost siege, in the At one early as a fanfare. point, so dignified nothing in of An American a version like minor-key sounds suspiciously a which acquiring theme could is not pass easily theme (it this profiled highly very Ex. However, 2). Paris(see unnoticed as simple tension music), and it is heard only three times in quick to Holly as she watches Hans and Karl transferred succession,with the last iteration Then the theme arguingand deduces thattheyare upset overMcClane's interference. of classic filmin terms powerless McClane essentially leaving altogether, disappears by his panicked banter. ratherthan filled, music syntax;this vacuum is highlighted, Ex. 2 inParis'theme' McClane's AnAmerican
inParis AnAmerican
McClane's'theme'
arco
arco
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But by farthe most prominent themebelongs to McClane's nemesis,Hans Gruber; it is notjust a Christmassong, either,or even a jolly Hollywood classic, but the 'Ode one ofthe fundamental worksin the canon toJoy' from Beethoven'sNinth Symphony, of great classical masterpieces. The 'Ode' is firstheard being played innocently enough by the stringquartet at the Nakatomi party in a simple, straightforward arrangementsimilar to the section around bar 140 in the last movement of the symphony,but transposed to E flat and with a rhythmicizeddominant pedal. However, Hans wrests control fromthe stringquartet even before his appearance on screen. The bad guys arrive, bringingthe underscorewiththem: untilthismoment,except for the aforementioned sleigh-bellsand a few almost subliminal stringharmonics underneathMcClane and Holly's tense reunion,all the music has been source music. of the 'Ode' theme, augmented and As the quartet plays at the party,fragments formthe basis of the suspense music as played in the lowestregionsof the orchestra, the terrorists invade Nakatomi Plaza. Beginningon C (setting the theme in a melodic by a A flatmajor, althoughsupportingharmoniesare not presentor are contradicted minor setting), the theme is largelylimitedto the opening three pitches(C-Da-E5). The greatlyaugmented 'Ode' motifservesas a drone throughmuch of the opening a texturein which the melodies of the 'Ode', of 'Singin' in the rain' siege, supporting and of the 'Winter wonderland' fanfareintertwinealmost parodically, rendering escapades ofthe terrorists balletic as the music sculptstheirprecise,silentmovements into dance. Perhaps the most intensemomentof the first halfof the filmcomes when keypoised over Hans pauses at the front door ofthe Nakatomi building,the electronic the latch as he surveyshis surroundings;his power is demonstratedby the sudden and a long pause in the music, as if cessation of movement among the terrorists everyone,including the non-diegetic orchestra,were holding their breath. Then, Hans swipes the key downwards,spinningto toss it to a henchman as the decisively, and the camera pulls up and back in a graceful, bass dronereturns, superiormove that as the terrorists disperse purposefully holds Hans in the centreof the rounded foyer to the opposite end of the corridor under his controlling eye. The camera angle shifts leading towardsthe heart of the Nakatomi Building, and Hans turnson his heel, his hands pushing back his long coat as he slides them into his pockets and strides camera to the sinisterstrainsof the 'Ode' in the towards the floor-level confidently basses. and thenonThe twoversions ofthetheme,thediegeticstring quartetplayingin E flat as the 'terrorists' come together emergeintothe party diegeticsuspense music in A flat, two notes (a technique to the first is further fragmented (see Ex. 3). The C-D6-Et motif in the associated with Beethoven),the Dl servingas a sortof breath-marker certainly Ex. 3 The bad guysdisruptthe party J
A;SUbU
gunshots start
0-
et Strquarkt
F
__ ,90 D ,6. ^, ~~~~~I __^ x,i i t Ii d

f
I I
I Jfl J J
[
t?
Orch. bass
EJ
i~ I
~ ~~
I
S7~~~~~~~~~~~~~(inaudible)
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dissonance basses createsan affective pedal C.28The sustained C fromthe orchestral a link betweenthe two: Da is quartet,but it also forms withthe pedal B6 in the string the flatseventhof E flat,and in the symphonythe theme is harmonized by a flat appears, but The 'right'harmony itsbeginning. in thisverybar, althoughfrom seventh thisscene anothersortofdissonance.Dramatically, out ofstepwiththetheme,creating contrastto McClane's earlier,hesitantentryfromthe same elevator. a striking forms and the classical music was one of and intimidated, He was obviouslyuncomfortable the thingsthat alienated him. Hans, however,enterswith amused self-satisfaction, the music thathad overpowered his own music with him and overpowering bringing McClane. of withTakagi, but the complicity while toying Hans jauntilysingsthe tune himself strikingly most is drive the 'Ode' with Hans's controlof the film'smajor narrative in the two ends of the centraldramaticarch. The set-upis Hans's first demonstrated a rare look at the vault. This is an intimatemomentbetween audience and terrorist, Hans's to voice 'Ode' gives the playing bass solo The face. vulnerableexpressionon his version dramaticassociation(the prevalenceofthe low-string not onlythrough feelings, by also but directed those and by him) activities his with of the theme in connection instrument the subtle: more and literal more both way of a semiotic association of Rickman's voice, and the musical dispositionofthe bass coincideswiththe register as well it state.This 'voice' is quiet, resoluteand solitary, own personal Hans's reflects mightbe, forat this point Hans is the only one who knows his plan. While Theo at thevaultas the outerdoors Hans gazes contemplatively system, outlinesthe security thatthe seventhlock cannot be cut rollback. Distractedby Theo's practicalreminder locally,Hans smiles calmly at his colleague and says: 'Trust me'. a The scene builds from plan reaches fruition. comes when his intricate The pay-off of the solo double-bass statementof the theme. The theme's connection reiteration is now made explicitas Powell commentsangrilyoverthe CB to withHans's strategy playbook, and they're McClane: 'That's the FBI. They's got the universalterrorist their plan, but we know that in runningit step by step.' The FBI may be following is cut in responseto the Hans's plan too. As the electricity doing so theyare following incident,the emergencysystemscome on line. Theo warns 'It's gonna go! 'terrorist' in the air and shouts 'Yes!' as the lock fails.The his first It's gonna go!', then thrusts speech build clankingsounds of the vault as it begins to open and Theo's rhythmic Beethoven familiar its in 'Ode' of the statement withthe music towardsa fullorchestral angle, a low, powerful from shot and, harmonies.A klaxonprovidesa dominantpedal, ofthe halo the in hair his breeze ruffling a little to his feet, awestruck, Hans risesslowly, from the as satisfaction lights with light(see P1. II).29Theo smiles emergency brilliant a between rest a in Christmas' 'Merry he and whispers inside the vault cross him, we as extended is briefly dominant This chord. a and dominant dominantpreparation breaks into outside,and then the orchestra proclaimingvictory see the FBI arrogantly while the 'Ode' the of variation march' 'Turkish of the version an instrumental gleefullygo through the vault's contents(which include Degas paintings terrorists Althoughthis as well as the bonds) under Hans's complacenteye.30 and Asian statuary
as it is clearly coincidental, is probably theme famous J7aws 28 The similarity toJohnWilliams's oftheD-ES motif theprevalence thesiegesequence. However, given shortened is gradually through which the'Ode' theme, from derived discussedbelow,it no doubt struck conventions to Hollywood scoring in the scoreand the reference of quotation Kamenas fortunate. 1995). thelaserdisc (Die Hard,FoxVideo8905-85, from 2 PlateII has been captured of and theorientalism ofthevault contents theexotic between todrawa connection be tempting itmight 30 Although but Kamenwouldbe awareoftheimplications, I wouldnotliketo presstheissue:as a musician, march, theTurkish
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PLATE II
theopenvault before Hans Gruber(Alan Rickman) it is not. The sequence sounds as though it is a directquotation fromthe symphony, the filmwhich of section bars accompanyingthe opening of the vault formthe only sensitive music, but it is actuallyan extremely seems to have been cut to pre-existing with Kamen arrangingBeethovento fitthe dramaticaction. example of post-scoring, of the vault has been recomposed, The 'Turkish march' accompanying the rifling eliminatingthe voices and dissolving subtly into the more tenuous underscore as dialogue returns. ofthe filmand-largely because of the musicThis is easily the musical highlight perhaps its singlemost memorable moment,and yetthe 'hero' McClane is stuckin a dark bathroom,completelyout of the action. Taken out of context,one would think swellswith the thatthis scene must belong to the hero of the film.The fullorchestra the lighting, the music, and through the film, in of body the loudestmusical sequence the audience Theo's faces, Hans's and on and even the expressions camera the angles is invitedto share in the exhilarationof their success. This scene clearlyconstructs heroic figureas aural and visual cinematiccues and Hans Gruber as a sympathetic, We, like Kamen, may recognizethathe will eventually drivecome together. narrative have to go, but the filmmakes that as easy to negotiateas possible. Even the endofthe 'Ode to creditsallow him his positionas tragichero,witha fullchoral rendition music plays the audience out. Joy'. Hans Gruber may be dead, but his triumphant cadences of his theme, emphatically The film'stitleappears with the final,forceful weldingthe two together.31 Kamen may admitto having'grow[n]to love the bad guy',but he stillseems somewhat the good guy: '[Willis] unaware of,or at least disingenuousin, his partin undermining got a lot ofmusic, Rickman takes verylittle... I just put a drone under him, and he's it hintsthat on twocounts: first, This commentis intriguing as bad as he needs to be.'32 needed some shoringup, althoughclearlyhe did thatWillis's performance Kamen felt
and timbral The stirring rhythmic signal. to be an overt audiences enoughto modern notexotic thesoundis probably Kamen'schoicehere. to explain in themselves sufficient marchare probably oftheTurkish qualities usedthe'Ode theadvertisements in 1993, on American television was shown 31 Indeed, whenDie HardII: Die Harder it is notheardat all in thatfilm. toJoy'eventhough 1994,p. 18. New York, toMovies, Listening 32 Quoted in FredKarlin,
FORMAL CONVENTION AND DRAMATIC SUBVERSION
565
this with volume and business ratherthan with thematic material; and second, it suggeststhathe was unconscious of the extentto which he was in factrespondingto For the truth and not merelyon a large-scalethematiclevel.33 Rickman'sperformance, is thatHans is nevermerelygivena drone. Althoughthe filmis scored almost end-tomost speeches are underscored,the volume is oftensimplyturned end, and therefore down beneath the other characters.But Hans's speeches are scored as if theywere timewe hear Hans speak oftheseoccursthe first The most striking operaticrecitatives. Althoughthe musical accompanimentis tenuous and would (see AppendixI, below).34 on its own, when placed in the contextof the speech it is seem quite fragmentary almosthypnotic withtherhythmic, to and interacting responding sensitive, remarkably the actors' movements. and even mickey-mousing delivery, Hans addresses the assembled hostages with the cadences of an Anglican priest but effective a German terrorist, (somethingof a slip foran English actor portraying are the hostages where area nonetheless); the top of the steps above the sunken serves his contains plan, whichevidently assembled servesas his pulpit,and his Filofax, the notes changewitheach ofhis raised hands as his Bible. Withthe C-D; movement, to his first leading dramatically as if he were conductingthe non-diegeticorchestra, supports chord D; a As he speaks ('Ladies and gentlemen'), rich,surprising utterance. entire the in triadic real sonority first is the major This on a clearf% his legato delivery 'Ode the in submediant flat the to shift dramatic Beethoven's and it recalls underscore, pitch chanted The demeanour. Hans's priestly with to Joy' at 'vor Gott', resonating 35 a C minortriad, suggesting down to e6on the second 'Ladies and gentlemen', shifts ofthe 'Ode' motif interpolation by the string althoughthisimplicationis reinterpreted becomes a secco recitative the accompanied opening, arresting After this in A flat. to he threatens As his purpose. to explain for Hans aroundf) (predominantly recitative emphasis vocal 'real' word the special Hans gives of use power', 'real the demonstrate an emphasis (a stressaccent,a pitchflexdownwards,and a shortsilence afterwards), seems to be a pedal pointbut is which momentarily by the C in the strings, amplified of the 'Ode' motifin A flat.Therefore, note of a repetition as the first reinterpreted motifis repeated,both times it is introduceddeceptively. althoughthe string accompanimentnot only punctuatesthe spoken orchestral Much of the recitative's ofthe actors the movements or mickey-mouses, imitates, monologue; it also kinetically and even of the camera. The pulse on the downbeat ofbar 12 picks up Hans's twitch; in bar 13 echoes the camera's trackdown to show Holly's interjection the flute-string hand tighteningon Takagi's arm, and the downward tumble in the low strings of the otherterrorists depicts Hans's downward step and the convergence graphically in bar 14 and theirmonophonicecho in bar 15 The pseudo-hornfifths intothe frame. of the two spoken phrases and build tension structure underlinethe similarrhythmic the as Hans moves throughthe hostages.As he 'gets into the groove'of his recitation, flat, B in D phrase of the 'Ode' themebeginningon (i.e., basses play throughthe first at the beginning thoughwith syncopations one step higherthan the previousmotifs), and his eye Hans with stop camera's the and end: the opening syncopationpicks up the end, at extensive syncopation the more executive; contact with a Nakatomi charged more the highlights second, the augmented intensified by intervallically
" Another possibilityis that Kamen feltthat Rickman only needed a drone but that he enjoyed writingsomething much more complex forhim, although it is still not clear why he would not say so. vocal set piece in establishingHans's (and Rickman's) villainythatin 1996 it featured 3' This scene is such an effective in a BBC Radio 2 tributeto great filmvillains. pointed out the vocal shiftto e. I owe this detail of the reading to the sharp ears of Victoria Vaughan, who first 3
566
Ellis, the staccato final note catchingEllis contact between Hans and the petrified shaking his head. The descending part of the theme coincides as well with Karl's hostage. The next two musical apparent motion along the shoulder of a foreground of the 'Ode' motif beginningon B to the high stringiteration phrasesbuild intensity The sustained dissonances in the last fewbars (i.e., in G) and Takagi's interruption. withHans's sudden smile,the second resolveddeceptively also build tension,the first accentuatedby Karl's and Takagi's motion throughthe frameand resolvedwith the the rest eye contactbetweenHans and Holly. The suspense builds through electrifying (a shortmusical attackemphasizingan on-screenaction) and the edit,and the stinger dismisaccentuatesthe subtlestof contemptuousgestures,the almost imperceptible, sive flickof Hans's eyelashes as he looks away fromHolly. By the most sparing of to the musical qualities of the actor's speech musical means, Kamen draws attention and respondsto small but tellingphysical gestures. also The camera movementand editing during this sequence, while unobtrusive, the than more one far throughrigid though help to generatea musical structure, to the A staticshot,a high angle shotand a more animatedreturn composed recitative. Then the and with an insert of high Takagi (Shots 1-4). Holly originalshot 'cadences' static comes to rest with a more and animated again movement, by angle shotreturns, by inexorable shot of Holly and Takagi (Shots 5-8). The next phrase is characterized motionto the right,punctuated by Karl's descent to the leftand Hans's pause near charged the whole sequence cadences witha staticbut dramatically Holly,and finally of all these characters together (Shots 9-15). This is basically a shot/reverse-shot/shot Bar form. This recitative is soon followedby what, to develop the operaticanalogy,mightbe (see Appendix II, below). termedan 'aria' in whichHans revealsmuch ofhis character jazzed-up versionof Hans entersthe Nakatomi boardroom humminga rhythmically caresses the tables bearing the ambitious the 'Ode' over a bass pedal; he possessively architectural models, and long, cantabile phrases of the 'Ode to Joy' in the basses chuckleas his self-satisfied yetcharmingspeech, even imitating underpinhis arrogant with the same augmented second thatdissolvedthe theme in the theme disintegrates the camera In contrastto the short,contained shots of the recitative, the recitative. followsHans in long, flowing shots analogous to the musical phrases. In the 'A' section,thethemeis in thebass as Hans da capo form. The aria is in a little expounds upon Alexanderthe Great,while the 'B' sectionis the more agitatedmove to the model on the table (at 'Oh! That's beautiful!'). The camera, which has been stillholdinghim centrebut movingleft intocountermotion, following Hans, now shifts focuseson McClane skulkingin the corridor, as he moves right.A briefinterruption ofthe themein thebass (and a return but the da capo (not transcribed) bringsa return to the camera's following shot) as Hans puts his hand on Joe Takagi's shoulder,says, 'Mr. Takagi-I could talk about industrialization and men's fashionsall engagingly, door. the office through day,but workmustintrude. . .' and thenpushes Takagi firmly ofthetraditional not onlythe technicalrequirements This aria, likethe recitative, fulfils form(ABA') and musical content(positive'A' section,more agitated 'B' section) but througha juxtapositionof also the dramaticconvention:it elaboratesHans's character and expansive,theatricalcharm (A) against his sense of superiority his overweening love of detail and meticulous planning (B), all strungtogetheron the thread of his aesthetic sense. While the recitative and aria are perhapsthe mostconspicuous musical these scenes are typical of the eloquent way in which Hans is scored, structures, in the fineinteraction between music and speech. particularly 567
ofballet and opera, also shares forms Kamen's score,while drawingon the high-art in the film's self-consciousawareness of Hollywood conventionand film history. Perhaps the most obvious musical model is that of cartoons. The technique of and even the themeofthe huntedwho outwits quotationcollage, the mickey-mousing thingsthat the hunterrecall in particularBugs Bunny;meanwhile,McClane survives clevertrapsfor should have killed him and, like Wile E. Coyote, he devisesfiendishly unperturbedHans Gruber to get away like the Road his prey,leaving the relatively As in the Road Runner Runner untilthe last confrontation. cartoons,then,we admire with the coyote's intricate the elusivenessof the Road Runner while sympathizing to elegant similarity Hans's physicaland temperamental plans. Beyond this,however, drawn fromfilmsof thatearlierera. 1940svillainsis emphasized by scoringstrategies His ownership of the 'Ode' and its deployment in the score recalls the use of 'Deutschland, Deutschland uiber alles' in films like Casablanca or Night Train to Munich,a noble anthem of classical provenance only partly transmutedinto an ominous march forthe villain. Hans's thematicprominenceallied with his Lucifer and sympathy. fascination fear, such as Dracula inspiring aspectalso recallsanti-heroes is cinematicconnection made through But another,more recentand more surprising the villains'music.
WHY BEETHOVEN?
Hans's and Theo's themes both come to Die Hard with a complex of associations Orange (1971), based on the novel throughStanleyKubrick's filmA Clockwork filtered Orangehas a liberal A Clockwork violent, terribly by Anthony Burgess. Although right-wing a violent, for raucously source a curious it making message ofanti-violence, through Gene from Kelly36 routed is rain' in the 'Singin' Theo's Hard. filmlike Die first The narrative. the of centre at the Burgess-Kubrick youth 'ultra-violent' the Alex, Nakatomi the of out the guts is he ripping the song, Theo singing we hear time computer,kickingin its panels and pulling out its wires as sparksshower mainframe recalls the scene in which Alex beats a man while imitating over him; this strongly Kelly. Theo often hums the song at the computer keyboard as he knocks down the computer,a dismembering barrier,stillfiguratively barrieraftersecurity security But of Orange. technologicalequivalent of the adolescent 'ultraviolence'in Clockwork is withBeethoven, Orange course the most famousmusical association ofA Clockwork whom Alex adores with the fervourwith which a Midwestern metalhead adores with Beethoven,a identified Megadeth, and in Die Hard Hans Gruber is intimately music which not only gives him voice in the underscorebut to which he also gives voice on screen. Orangeconnectionwas initiatedby the directorof Die Hard,John The Clockwork resistedMcTiernan's suggestionto use Beethoven McTiernan. Kamen had originally in the score: 'When he said he had a notionto use Beethoven's9th forthe bad guys,I I actually said to him, please, if you want me to fuckwith some was flabbergasted. you like German composer,I'm veryhappy to take Wagnerto pieces. I'll do anything
in therain'-maywell and 'Singin' inParis with Gene Kelly-AnAmerican associated oftwothemes 36The presence icon;he was also the Die Hard.Not onlyis Kellya Hollywood one for appropriate butit is a highly be a coincidence, In toHollywood. character the and on Pal of ambiguous brought Broadway title-character 'heel-hero' of the Joey creator 1943)Cheer, (Thousands (FormeandmyGal, 1941)and a deserter he playeda draft-dodger twomusicals, his first film in musicals-and in thedramatic War II era,particularly a leadingman in theWorld for characters surprising ofthe an early serial homosexual killer, appearance a charming, vaguely Robert, (1944)he portrayed Holiday Christmas heroand thelikeable likeBasicInstinct. Kellyembodiedboththeflawed films in muchmorerecent found stereotype in Die Hard. each other playedagainst twosideswhichare schematically villain,
568
to Wagner but can't we leave Beethoven alone?'37But in the end, Kamen feltthat McTiernan's vision of the bad guys as lineal descendants of the adolescent gang members in A Clockwork Orange was 'so cool that I had to go with it', and he then insistedon also using 'Singin' in the rain'.38 However,the use ofthesemusical materials in Die Hard is quite different fromthat in A Clockwork Orange. scores.Temp[orStanleyKubrick is famous,ifnot notorious,forusing 'temp-track' oftenso cuts ofa film, are compilationsofrecordings used to score working ary]-tracks as to give the composer an idea of what the directorwants. Kubrick frequently in the styleof eliminatesthe composer by scoringhis filmshimself, using recordings and he has been the target of a great deal of animosityfromfilm a temp-track, composers, and even film scholars, for this practice. The argumentsagainst temptracking have been numerous: it does violence to the originalmaterial; pre-existing familiar music music will neverbe appropriateto a purpose forwhichit is not written; to the music, which should be 'invisible'to the 'spectator' draws too much attention (note the visual bias of the classical filmterminology); using the culturalconnotations music is eitherimpossible, because music is supposed to be accrued to pre-existing or a cheap prefabricated it above suchworldly connections, effect; and, morepractically, eliminatesa job fora composer. With the possible exceptionof the last, realistically are clearlyrootedin modernist legitimate objection,thesearguments conceptionsofthe autonomouswork,both the originalpiece ofmusic composed foranotherpurpose,and world of its own. This modernist the film which should create a self-contained was emphaticallyarticulatedby Theodor W. Adorno and Hanns Eisler in perspective book on film Films(1947), for a longtimethemostinfluential their book Composing forthe both directors and composers,and filmscholars.However, music among film-makers, an obvious crackin Adorno and Eisler's logic appears withtheircomplaintabout film and music's relationship'which requires continual interruption of one element by anotherratherthan continuity'.39 The possibility of interaction, ratherthan interruption,betweenfilm(visuals and sound) and music does not seem to occur to them. Postmodernist conceptionswhich move fromthe autonomous work to the text-a nexus of culturalprocesses only loosely bracketedby the boundaries of the 'work'neutralize these objections to the use of pre-existing music. Even the distinctions betweenthe separate objections disintegrate. If the originalmaterialis a potentialfor interpretation, rather than a monolithic authorial statement,then its use in an unfamiliar and unexpected contextis merelyanotherinterpretation; thus, there can be no violenceto the originaland the questionof'appropriateness' does not reallyarise. Because music does interact with other cultural manifestations, including other elements of the cinematic apparatus, and because the accrual of meaning is a recognizedfunctionof this process, using a familiarpiece of music shoulddraw the attentionof the viewing/listening subject, for those accrued meanings are being referenced whetherintentionally or not and new meanings are generated fromthe juxtaposition.Relyingon these meanings foreffect is not a cheap stuntbut is the very reason why the textpresentsitselfforuse, because, in contrastto the concept of the autonomous art work, it is impossible forthe textnotto have accumulated cultural connotations, since the textis actuallya nexus of culturalprocesses.This argumentis not so much circularas a black hole in which the carefully constructed edificeof 'the work' collapses under its own weight.
3 'Kamen Hard: Interviewby Will Shivers', p. 13. 3 Loc. cit. 3 Composing fortheFilms,London, 1947 (repr. 1994), 5.
569
One can easily anticipatethe objection thatBeethovendid not writehis symphony to apply such criteria. that it is inappropriate in a postmoderncontext,and therefore However, the Ninth Symphony has not existed in a vacuum over the past two society,it has become, in a in present-day and given that it still functions centuries, of the black sense, a postmoderntext.Or perhaps it is perched on the event-horizon ofthe canon hole, held in stasisbetweenitsexaltedpositionas perhapsthecorner-stone of terraces and itspopulistpositionon the football artmusic's 'masterworks' ofWestern the 1996 European Cup. As Nicholas Cook has demonstrated,' an internaltension betweenthe overtmeaning carriedin Schiller'swords and the musical processesofthe ofthe meaning in the interpretation has always caused a fairamount ofconflict setting words have tune and the incantatory of the 'Ode to Joy', but the simple, forthright by its exemplified tiltedreceptiontowardsthe celebrationof unityand brotherhood, about feltuneasy as the anthem ofthe European Union. Kamen himself consecration because of these connotations.He recalls using the theme in Die Hard specifically saying to McTiernan: 'This is one of the greatestpieces of music celebratingthe nobilityof the human spiritof all time and you want me to aim it at a bunch of in an American commercialfilm[?]'.4" gangsters connectionwithA Clockwork Accordingto Kamen himself,it was the intertextual thatconvincedhim to go along withMcTieman's idea. Yet the operationofthe Orange When Beethoven's Ninth was used in A music in the two filmsis quite different. Orange,it was bracketed in huge quotation marks. The music is clearly Clockwork or at least endangered,by as 'Beethoven',a symbol of high art perverted, identified is not so identification the it with (yet identification inexplicable Alex's apparently inexplicable if one recognizes the sheer kinetic power and drive of the music-a foundby Susan McClary in her interpretaof the rampantmasculinity manifestation tion of the symphony42-orthe possible Fascist implicationsof a piece so strongly Germanic in origin and style). More prosaically, the music is excerpted from its placement in the filmis literallya quotation. Another sort recordings;therefore of quotation occurs in the infamoustorturescene in which Alex is forcedto watch violentfilms:Alex's 'glorious Ninth' is subjected to the ignominyof a synthesized versionby Walter Carlos. Even 'Singin' in the rain' is an obvious parody of Gene Kelly's well-known performance,a connection the audience clearly is expected to make. It is always dangerous to underestimatethe knowledge of an audience-and stupidby Hollywood consideredinsultingly are often Americanaudiences in particular to discernhow much the and European filmcritics-but it is difficult studioexecutives audience was intended to comprehend musically in Die Hard. Kamen obviously recognized the cultural weight of the 'Ode to Joy), but McTiernan seemed mostly Yet that filmis not common Orange. concerned with the connectionto A Clockwork at least among the young male audience at which currencyin the United States,43 are primarily targeted;but thenagain, Die Hard Hard action filmslike Die blockbuster
a historical for "' See Nicholas MusicHandbooks'), 1993, Cambridge, No. 9 ('Cambridge Symphony Cook,Beethoven: overview. 41 'KamenHard: Interview loc. cit. byWill Shivers', Genesis Vandervelde's VoiceinJanika ofa Woman's thePresence theBeanstalk: Down off 'Getting 42 See McClary's & Oxford, esp. pp. 128Minnesota pp. 112-31, 1991, and Sexuality, Endings:Musi' Gender, in herFeminine IT, reprinted ForumNewsletter 1987),was (February of thisessay,whichappearedin MinnesotaComposers version 30. The earlier withrape,an oftheNinthSymphony movement ofthefirst therecapitulation equating moreemphatic, considerably sexuality. wouldhaveappealedto Alex'sbrutal thatcertainly interpretation in thismarket. evenmoretenuous theconnection making was bannedin theUnitedKingdom, 43 The film
570
enough filmto draw a wideraudience, even ifthatwas notimmediately is an intelligent the publicityon its initialrelease. If the audience missed the extra-filmic obvious from connections,then at least they are cued to the music's high-artstatus by its first by the stringquartetat the party. presentation intelligible The variationin the methods of quotation between the two filmsis not merelya driveand technical,musical choice but is also a dramaticone, servingboth narrative In A Clockwork Orangethe quotations are, in a sense, islands of characterization. an withthe originalmusic makes it familiar, the relativelack of interference stability; emblem.When we hear a portionofthe music,we-at least,those ofus who know itwe do not expect,nor and because the quotationis so direct, are aware ofwhat follows, acts on to the disturbing our attention This shifts do we receive,any musical surprises. screen,emphasizingthe ironyof the juxtapositionof Beethoven's'sublime' creation The quotation technique in Die Hard is more subtle and and Alex's vile destruction. thememanipulatedto acts morelike a classical Hollywood filmscore-as a character's of the 'Ode' is its most arrangement fitthe dramaticaction. Thus the string-quartet co-opted and immediately adaptationin Die Hard,but it is interrupted straightforward For the rest,Kamen uses only the melodies of the 'Ode to Joy' and by the terrorists. altered.The climactic 'Singin' in the rain'; even theiroriginalharmoniesare frequently could be a directquotation, it as though sounds it pastiche: a clever is vault sequence the but it is not. The only appearance of Beethovenas Beethovenis in the end-credits, itswords (but in German). Kamen has used one timewe hear his chorusand therefore the themeas his basic materialforthe score, subjectingit to Beethovenianfragmentamotifs recurin fragmentary the familiar tionand motivic development.' Furthermore, in the vault the score, coalescing towardsthe 'full' presentation variantsthroughout three much as Beethoventreatsthemes fromthe first sequence (and the end-credits), movements of the Ninth Symphony in the orchestralintroductionto the finalparody. level than stylistic 'Ode'. It is pastiche,but at a more sophisticated movement in the quotationtechniquebetweenthe two films the difference One could interpret in the characterswithwhich the music is or sophistication as a measure of maturity state of repetition, associated. Alex revelsin pure Beethoven,but he is in an infantile the music controlshim: in his normalstate,it is catharsisand and one way or another, it has been turnedon him and provokes his conditioning, to violence; after incitement only revulsion. Hans, however, has so completely absorbed the music that he is it to his own will. recomposingit to suit his actions,subordinating capable of fluently Dramatically,however,the conceit of allying Hans with Alex does not quite work. depthand disciplineto have been Alex or one ofhis Hans has fartoo much intellectual and killingforpleasureilk. Whereas Alex was a pure sensualist-raping, torturing Hans's and wastes no more than the count of threeon torture. Hans kills efficiently pleasure comes, one mightsay, fromhis superiorsense of style;when Holly accuses he loses his composureforthe onlytime in him ofbeing nothingbut a common thief, Mrs. McClane'. He assertshis class in all thief, the filmand snarls'I am an exceptional things-if he is going to be a thief,he is going to be an exceptional one-and the
the composer Alf Clausen extended this technique cartoon series The Critic, 4 In the finalepisode of the short-lived of the three-noteopening motifof the horn orchestration In Die Hard, Kamen had created a distinctive even further. parody ofDie Hard, 'I Can't Believe it's a Clip Show', Clausen shortenedthe motif 'Ode to Joy',and to score The Critic's The subtletyof the musical parody is not out of two notes with the same distinctivehorn orchestration. to the first keeping with the clever episode, which includes a villain (clearly drawn to resemble Alan Rickman) whose German accent occasionally slips into an English one, and which featuresa scene in which the villain literallysteals the show, controlofthe microphone fromthe 'hero' and wringingtears and a standingovation fromhis hostages through wresting his moving performance.
571
ofthe film. his point ofview in the structure reinforce Orange to A Clockwork references withvillains,by allyingthem While givingus yetanotherroute into the identification withGene Kelly),itis also a (and by extension, Orange ofA Clockwork withtheanti-hero fora blockbusteraction film,and it once more emphasizes the very'classy' reference aestheticbent we are led to admire in Hans. But how we reactto thisdepiction-and of 'class'. how much we recognizeits construction-is in turna function in America and Europe. To couch it in termsof a differently Class is constituted of money,styleand one mightsay thatin America class is a result grossgeneralization, money,styleand education. In contrastto education,while in Europe class generates rule establishesupper-classtastesas the of aristocratic countriesin whichthe tradition norm,in America the egalitarianideal has ensured a veryambivalentfeelingtowards 'high class' pursuits. ConservativeAmerican society has always had a mistrustof an association reinforced classical music in particular,associatingit with effeminacy, by the images of the male charactersin Die Hard. (It is also noticeable thatthe film's Holly, is not allowed to have her own theme but is one substantialfemalecharacter, of 'class' is forcedto share her husband's, such as it is.) This ambiguityand mistrust of the about importance the arts to in the currentdebates in Congress exemplified elite' in the 1992 'cultural so-called of the 'average'Americansand the demonization election. presidential at is introducedat theverybeginningofthe film.On arriving The musical class-split black a driver young limousine Argyle, first-time the met by the airport,McClane is with the luxuryof the man who used to be a cabbie. They are both uncomfortable in the work-spaceof the with driver, front up sit to chooses McClane limousine,and McDonald's his meal, joking of the remains away clears Argyle to speak. the car, so but that car the that implies affluence an to referring off', day the [maid's] that 'It's requests McClane When financial limitations-deny. tastes-or culinary Argyle's Although Run-DMC. a by rap in Hollis', 'Christmas plays Argyle music, Christmas to Christmas,he does not complain about the McClane questions its appropriateness however-where McClane can findno At the Nakatomi Christmasparty, music itself. quartetis playingBach's place wherehe doesn't feellike a fishout ofwater-the string Third BrandenburgConcerto. Classical music is inextricablyassociated with wealth in the United States, for the wealthywho patronizeconcert subsidies it is predominantly withoutgovernment associated with Classical music is also explicitly and figuratively. halls, both literally whichmight moneyin Die Hard,both withHans and withthe Nakatomi Corporation, by While Nakatomiis represented be viewedas the onlyunequivocal villainin the film. terrorists stale and suffocating-the polite chamber music-depicted as pretentious, from singing.Even themselves eruptwithmusic: theyare unable to restrain practically of the sullen Karl hums, if tunelessly;and Hans may be associated with the loftiest Beethoven classical music icons, Beethoven,but he has no compunctionabout 'jiving' Orange,Hans does not regard in the liftwith Takagi. Like Alex in A Clockwork a joyfulthing. is living, it artefact; museum Beethoven'smusic as a stuffy
THE COMPOSER
remarkedofAlan Rickman in the role of Hans Gruber Nick Hansted in the Guardian Conflating spectacular, and empty'.45 that 'Like Die Hard itself,he was intelligent, of Rickman with Gruber-an understandableconsequence of Rickman's redefinition
4 'The Crazy Gang'.
AS LENS
572
the role of villain-Hansted also conflatedthe actor and his role with the film.An ofthe implicit equals sign stands betweenthe 'Die Hard' and the 'he'. The intelligence of Hans Gruber,his plan, filmdoes indeed reside to a large degree in the intelligence in fact, the filmis most stupidwhen it has to ofhis personality; his wit,the complexity is spectacularin its extravagantly get rid ofhim forgenericreasons. The filmcertainly explosive set pieces, but it is no less so in Hans Gruber's plan and its execution. However, Hansted's notion of emptiness is questionable. Perhaps Hans is indeed to conceive of him outside the role of megalomaniacal masterempty; it is difficult mind. Only his charged encounterswith Holly give any hint of a personal existence, although the sparks are generated by her challenge to his powers. Yet however proscribedthe character,there is great depth withinthat narrowscope. And a film that speaks so stronglyof a cultural moment as Die Hard does, no matter how can nevertruly be considered unpleasantor vacuous one mightfindthatmomentitself, empty. of possible readings,all withenough coherence a multiplicity Rather,the filmoffers and this must be at least part of the reason forits success. Of to providesatisfaction, targeted, course, most of the audience, especiallythose to whom the filmis primarily Yet, and despite good- versusbad-guy story. are likelyto read it as a straightforward The the dangers of sounding elitist,there are other,more complex interpretations. politicalstrainsmay be obvious enough, but the notion of reading Hans as the hero requires subversion, conscious or unconscious. This may be a response to his but it could just as well stem from aristocratic aestheticsor even his easy amorality, Eitherway,such a subversive reading resistance to politicaland culturalconservatism. places one solidly in the ranks of the liberal 'cultural elite' (the same cultural elite Orange?)demonized by Reaganite Republicans. But no attractedto A Clockwork coup positionexists'outside' the text,in fact,forthe undeniablybrilliantconservative de gradce of Die Hard is that the Reaganite message is inescapable. Those whose intellectual, aestheticor liberal leaningstend towardstheirinclusionin a culturalelite a termthe evidentmeaning of which has been subverted)may enjoy the illicit (itself delightof rootingforthe elegant villain(himselfa memberof thatelite),but theywill in the positionofcheeringthe 'real' Reaganite hero. The paradox also findthemselves at play may be pleasurable or painful,but recognizing thatparadox is likelyto require the sortof culturalcapital that would lead one to the subversive reading in the first working-class hero,but the as the archetypal place. The cowboymay be foregrounded aristocratic corporatepirate is celebrated with glee, and with a great deal of music. Part of that celebration is purely kinetic. In the vault sequence, for example, practicallyany simple anthem-liketune building to a rousing 6/8 march variation but the 'Ode to Joy', of against those images would create an exhilaratingeffect, course, is not just any tune. As with all the major musical themes in Die Hard, it comes with considerable cultural baggage which ratheruntidilycontains-or failsto contain-American anxieties about the economy,class and gender roles, and about how those have been constructedand constricted by the movies. concepLike all filmcomposers,Michael Kamen stands betweenthe film-makers' Stevende Souza, tion of the filmand the audience. ProducerJoel Silver,screen-writer director a John McTiernan and composer Michael Kamen all admit to perpetrating of the film,but it is perhaps Kamen's contribution wilfulsubversionin the structure that most affects our perceptionof the charactersand events.This argumentis, in an extensionofthe auteur director to composer,but theory, shifting the role from effect, I want to emphasize thatthe assignmentofthatrole is onlya practicalone. In fact, this 573
projectthanI everexpected,but only analysishas turnedout to be a moreauteur-based to the filmwas that I derivedfromwatchingand listening because the interpretation themselves.' Kamen happens to fromthe film-makers by statements laterreinforced have admittedto fallingin love withthe bad guy; but ifhe had neveradmittedit, or nevereven realized it,the evidence is stilltherein the score,and it is the music which and focusing the audience. Kamen's readingofthe filmacts as a lens, refracting affects he drawsheavilyon the cultural whatwe see on the screen.To make his desiredeffect, of film of the music that servesas his raw materialand on conventions connotations the McClanes' who constructs scoringthatwe have absorbed in the mannerofArgyle, reunionin termsof the classical Hollywood filmscore. The hero always has a theme; who controlthe music are the heroes.Are theynot? But Hans the characters therefore which seems a music like a conductor, has the power even to controlthe non-diegetic That 'misassigned' how charming. verydangerouspowerto giveto a villain,no matter powercan lead us to question the verybasis ofthe action film-who is the villain,and who is the hero? multiplepointsof popular textas one whichoffers JohnFiske has describedthe truly one thatis 'in a to its audience, one which containsinternalcontradictions, reference Die dominant its In narrative, Hard is clearly veryreal sense, beyond its own control'.47 tremendous scope for a offers also which document, but it is one a conservative the activerole and villain the film of the by giving reading: in the structure subversive drawn and a appealingly in complex hero; the nominal role to assigningthe reactive by score a in not least, and, performance; charismatic by a particularly villainamplified would who those Like Kamen, a composer who was seduced by that performance. resistthe overtmessage and the obvious physicalhero may escape by cheeringon the The ofthe script. who, in the end, is onlybested by a strainedcontrivance intellectual conventional or by reorientating, shifting, those elements reinforces in turn, score, textis one that popular,and hugelyinfluential, scoringtechniques.This demonstrably is 'beyond its own control'by design.
very statement is another byKamenthat'In fact to thecomposer-as-auteur counter hand,running On theother John scene. the in wound right up a written for actually was given sequence that and 3, 2 1, Hard Die in music little and he'lltakeit,and chopit, and he'llsaythat's great, whoyouwillmakea cue for is one ofthosedirectors McTiernan a MichaelKamenwith leastofall me . . .' (Jason Needs,'Interview: And nobody's complaining, and moveitaround. italmost to assess.I wouldfind is a difficult little' quantity 7). 'Very Movies (Summer1995), the from Music Vengeance', the that another for written was ever given sequence, Hans's speeches themusicunderscoring that tobelieve impossible actionloud other are there scenes-particularly however, is so intricate; music and voice between interaction the original Die Hardrepeated cues are repeated(and thereare a numberof cues from sequences-whenearlier the whether itdoes notmatter on theaudience, however, oftheeffect In terms a Vengeance). in Die Hardwith wholesale sequences, other for written were ofHans's 'recitatives' a particular sequenceor not.Ifstretches for musicwas written them. ear in transferring remarkable at JohnMcTiernan's thenone can onlymarvel 1989,p. 104. Boston, Culture, Popular Fiske,Understanding 4 John
46
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58

'I Just Put A Drone Under Him... ': Collage and Subversion in The Score of 'Die Hard'

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'I Just Put A Drone Under Him... ': Collage and Subversion in The Score of 'Die Hard'

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'I Just Put a Drone under Him...

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