Review of Krepkiy Oreshek (1968) by Allen G — 31 May 2013

I'm sure there's nothing I could say about this one that hasn't already been said- it's the definitive action flick. It's original, still unique to this day, brilliantly fun- thrilling, funny, tense, action-packed all at once.

In my view only the 3rd in the Die Hard series has came close to being as great as this is and very few action films overall have been able to tick all of the boxes that this one ticks so smoothly and confidently.

This one will always be supremely fresh- it could have been released this year (Die Hard 5 was but let's not talk about that...) and it'd still be the best action film in years. Today, the action genre is viewed as a very limited space for originality- it's mostly a sequence of clichés that are one-up'd for each film- bigger scenes, more violence, etc. but Die Hard made all of that look so easy and flawless that it was able to add so much more. Newer action films should do the same- you don't have to be radically different in the genre to be great- if you know how to make an action film then you take it further and make a great one- simply pushing the boundaries of each element of the movie instead of just the standard action areas- that's what Die Hard does and it's what all other action films should aim to do too.