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"Live Free or Die Hard" is the viscerally adrenaline-charged action-fueled new installment of the "Die Hard Saga". "A Timex Watch in a Digital Age," sneers Villain Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant) of NYPD Cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) in 'Live Free or Die Hard', the exhilarating fourth installment in the "Die Hard" Series. The first since 1995's 'Die Hard: With a Vengeance'. Willis was 40yrs old then; past 50yrs old now, the only thing he has lost is the rest of his hair. And Gabriel is right, McClane is a relic from an Analog World; yet he also forgets the Timex slogan: "It takes a licking but keeps on ticking", and so—gloriously—does McClane. McClane remains the resolutely retro flatfoot Warrior, but Mark Bomback's screenplay reflects our Post 9/11, Post-Katrina Age where official response in a genuine crisis is assumed to be incompetent and paranoia is a reasonable emotion. It is not that FBI Deputy Director Bowman (Cliff Curtis) and his men are incapable of doing their jobs, but when an anthrax scare, a transportation meltdown, and stock market crisis occur simultaneously, they are overwhelmed. Luckily, McClane just happens to be on the way, escorting hacking suspect Matt Farrell (Justin Long) to Washington. He already knows something's up, because somebody's trying hard to kill the kid. Matt himself turns out to be useful when he is able to diagnose the crisis as a "Fire Sale," a kind of virtual Armageddon where cyber vandals attack transportation, financial systems, and utilities. Olyphant as the spurned Former Fed turned Terrorist who nurses an operatic dream of revenge holds the panache of such memorable 'Die Hard' bad boys as Alan Rickman and Jeremy Irons. Willis' return to the character is certainly a welcome one. This is a role he was born to play, the acerbic working stiff who freely admits fear to Matt while never blinking once the guns start blazing or stuff starts blowing up around him. He is also a throwback to the "Classic Lone Hero"; a Gary Cooper or John Wayne for the Modern Era, possessing the same sense of decency but with snappier banter. As appealing as the characters are, it's 'Action' that propels the 'Die Hard' Movies and Director Len Wiseman does not skimp at all in that department. From the explosive opening minutes straight through to the climax, there is little pause between the gun battles, chase scenes, car crashes, and explosions. There are more pyrotechnics in this movie than in the average Fourth of July fireworks display and while there are impressive instances of CGI—including one setup involving a jet, a big rig, and an elevated roadway — many of the more arresting sequences involve old-fashioned stunt work. There is a welcome human element to this adventure that is missing from so many other action movies now where you are always aware that what we are watching is an actor in front of a green screen. Here, McClane takes a long fall to the pavement, the meeting between body and ground is so visceral that you wince. When he bleeds, you believe it. Sequels can be such a crap shoot. This summer's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" was a demonstrated success, while "Evan Almighty" was a massive flop. But Willis, in gambling that he could successfully revisit the character that made him a True Hero rolls "All Sevens". This is action at its most entertaining and proof that there is a lot of life left in this franchise. "Live Free Die Hard" is a 150% SUCCESS !!!! Long Live McClane !Read full review
Live Free or Die Hard', number IV in the 'Die Hard' series revisits the basic outline of the first film only in a much more grandiose stlye expanding beyond the confines of one high rise building to encompass the entire eastern seaboard. Bruce Willis reprises his signature role as police detective John McClane and does a fantastic job breathing new life into this now iconic character. Following in the footsteps of another iconic prototype established in the first film, Timothy Olyphant does a superior job as the Alan Rickman-ish, highly intelligent villian as does Justin Long as computer hacker/sidekick to Detective McClane.. Then of course lets not forget the enchanting Maggie Q, sigh... The action is fast and furious, the cast excellent and the dialogue witty especially Justin Longs lines). The only thing keeping this film from a five star rating is the sequence with the jet fighter which was a little too unbelievable for me.Read full review
Matt Farrell: “Do you have a plan?” John McClane: “I'm gonna kill all these guys and rescue Lucy.” Die Hard 4.0 (Live Free or Die Hard) Computers and cyber-terrorism. Minority Report type of screens. And a 50 year-old Detective John McClane. Certainly a recipe for disaster. Set twelve years after Die Hard: With a Vengeance, the fourth film in the Die Hard franchise brings the anti-hero John McClane (Bruce Willis) back to Washington, D.C. (Dulles Airport (serving Washington D.C.) was the site of Die Hard 2) after stops in Los Angeles (The Nakatomi Plaza in Die Hard) and New York (Die Hard: With a Vengeance). Strangely enough, I was not planning on watching the current Die Hard installment until the scene where Matt Farrell’s (Justin Long) apartment is obliterated following a failed assassination attempt. Farrell (Long) had a ton of expensive collectibles that were incinerated when the decapitated head of a large Terminator Endoskeleton fell from an overhead shelf onto the delete key of Farrell’s keyboard (which was connected to several explosives). (IMDB.com reports that this is a “nod to executive producer William Wisher Jr. and composer Marco Beltrami. Wisher co-wrote and appeared in The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), and Beltrami composed the score for Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003).”) That got me going. I was rooted to my seat till the final credits rolled. The film revisited and featured a number of Die Hard series trademarks: John McClane getting injured or thrown around like a rag doll, the element of broken glass and the use of a facilities “air-ducts, elevator shafts, and maintenance areas,” McClane’s catchphrase, “Yippie Ki Yay Mother……” and that the movie’s plot “usually unfolds” after a period of 24 hours. Die Hard 4.0 also brought back other trademarks, specifically that of McClane having a personal stake in the situation (McClane had to rescue his ex-wife in Die Hard and Die Hard 2, while his daughter was the damsel in distress in Die Hard 4.0)—which was noticeably absent during Die Hard: With a Vengeance. In a related tidbit, Die Hard: With a Vengeance screenwriter Jonathan Hensleigh mentions in the fim’s DVD commentary that he and “the production were questioned by the FBI due to the accuracy of the robbery details found in the Die Hard: With a Vengence script. Since the production had used actual blue prints in formulating the robbery to ensure its accuracy, apparently it was too accurate as such a plan could actually work.” Cyber-Terrorism at work I believe that the Die Hard 4.0. storyline may have come up with a similar, plausible scenario wherein the concept of a post 9-11 Woodlawn facility could actually exist. The idea of saving financial, government, and general information seems like the most logical recourse to take in the event of a terrorist attack—but as portrayed in the movie, it is also a move that is not devoid of vulnerability. Wikipedia.org defined what cyber-terrorism—specifically Farrell’s (Long) “fire sale” as: “The term “fire sale” is used in the 2007 movie Live Free or Die Hard (Die Hard 4.0 in EU) to describe a hypothetical attack by computer hackers on vital networks of the United States government, infrastructure, and economy. Use of the term is explained with a reference to a typical fire sale: “everything must go.” Any computer-operated system will be a target for such an attack, although the movie focused on four primary objectives: disruptRead full review
An excellent movie. Bruce Willis brings his A-game as usual, and the supporting cast was right there with him. Has all of the feeling and content that Die Hard 1 had in its formula. While I enjoyed Die Hard 2 and 3, they did not live up to the first film. Die Hard 4 does not disappoint. It lives up to the original, and even surpasses it in some ways. A must see, must own movie. Even better on Blu-Ray!!! Would love to see another movie in this series....
I watched it the day I gotit; I am a Bruce Willis fan anyway, but this series is the best of his work! It worked great, no problems of any sort! Thank you!
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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