An Underrated Denzel Washington Movie Is Technically A Die Hard Spin-Off

A "Cape Fear"-esque action crime thriller hit theaters in the autumn of 1991. This film, titled "Ricochet," started as a spec script that accidentally mirrored the plot of 1962's "Cape Fear" and was initially intended as a "Dirty Harry" installment featuring Clint Eastwood. After Eastwood rejected the script for being too grim, the script changed hands until "Die Hard" screenwriter Stephen de Souza rewrote chunks of it while still retaining the original premise. 

The premise in question is a violent revenge plot, where a righteous attorney is stalked by a psychopath who wants an eye or eye, ready to go to extremes to enact his nefarious plan. A month after "Ricochet" premiered, Martin Scorsese's "Cape Fear" — an official remake of the 1962 version — handled this premise with chilling brilliance, etching a visceral picture of hatred and disgust that also boasts nuance. Although "Richochet" was already lacking in meaningful thrills or stakes, the release of Scorsese's remake hurt its lackluster reputation further.

That said, "Ricochet" has its merits. In the film, Rookie LAPD officer Nick Styles (Denzel Washington) crosses paths with conniving hitman Earl Talbot Blake (John Lithgow) during a carnival, where things get really chaotic and bloody. Denzel's straight-laced Nick clashes with Lithgow's morally unpredictable Earl, and this mutual tension is perhaps one of the most enjoyable, riveting aspects of the film. But this dramatic seriousness is woven into a story that relies heavily on goofy, unserious dialogue and humor, making everything feel disjointed. I would argue that the goofiness in "Ricochet" is what makes it bearable, as a self-serious version of the film would have sapped all joy from the viewing experience.

The most surprising aspect of "Ricochet," however, is that it is a stealth "Die Hard" spin-off, or at least, it can be considered one. Let's explore this connection in greater detail, shall we?

In "Die Hard," the chaotic hostage situation that goes down in Nakatomi Plaza is frenetic enough to keep all your attention glued to it (along with Bruce Willis' atypical hero John McClane, of course). Amid this chaos, a reporter named Gail Wallens (Mary Ellen Trainor) reports the hostage takeover live, stating that the perpetrator might be Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman). This is a rather short news segment, and perhaps not super memorable. But this is what's more interesting: Trainor's character also features in "Ricochet" for a few minutes, as the actor reprised her role as Gail Wallens in the Denzel-led action thriller. Here, Gail reports Nick's public humiliation on live television, which is actually caused due to the terrifying things Earl does to Nick after kidnapping him.

Apart from Trainor's news reporter character hinting at a shared universe (much like "Collateral" and "Transporter," which might be connected), Stephen de Souza's involvement in "Ricochet" further strengthens this theory. After all, there are some similarities between the two films, as Rick wears a dirt-covered vest like McClane does during the climactic finale in "Ricochet" and uses a semi-automatic Beretta 92 gun, which also happens to be McClane's police-issued sidearm. Although Rickman's Hans Gruber and Lithgow's Earl Talbot Blake are extremely distinct villains, both of them fall to their deaths towards the end of the film. With de Souza having re-written "Ricochet," these similarities could have been intentional, like cheeky, fun Easter eggs that create a loose connection between two disparate films.

At this point, the mere existence of "Ricochet" is a curious thing, with its long journey from being a thwarted "Dirty Harry" sequel to an unintentional "Cape Fear" knockoff. Now, it seems that it is also technically a sequel to "Die Hard." Well, it is a shame that the film lacks a memorable identity of its own beyond two remarkable lead performances that barely compensate for its lack of sauce.