Live Free Or Die Hard

An advanced note to the die-hard Die Hard fans out there who haven’t seen it:

A lot of prejudice has been thrown at this movie, especially on the Internet. All because it’s PG-13, instead of the R ratings of the original three films. Well, now that it is here I truly say Die Hard, despite the new PG-13 rating slapped on, it is as hardcore and action-packed as quite possibly almost any R movie in recent memory. So what if the f-words are shaved off? John McClane’s trademark phrase ‘yippee-ki-yay’ is still here, in it’s most memorable appearance.

John McClane’s back in fine form in the super-hyped sequel, Live Free or Die Hard. And, in John McClane’s own words, there’s a lot to yippee-ki-yay about. Bruce Willis is reprising his role, and he still, (despite being 12 years older) has that New York-tough cop attitude. And yes, he’s still practically like Superman, with hundreds of sharpshooters shooting machine guns at him and not a bullet grazes him.

12 years after the events of Die Hard With A Vengeance, John McClane has been promoted to a lieutenant, divorced from his wife, and his daughter in contempt has changed her last name to Genarro. So, anyway, a large group of hackers begin to terrorize America, hacking into every computer in the United States and wreaking havoc.

Well, now the FBI wants to haul in every hacker in the U.S. for questioning, and our reliable protagonist John McClane is assigned to escort Matthew Farrell to D.C. It turns out several hackers were unknowingly employed to build code for the mega-hack the bad guys used…The bad guys want to take out Matt, and they’re gonna have to go through John McClane to kill him. But when they kidnap John’s daughter, it gets REALLY personal.

This film sports some of the most ludicrous and yet tantalizingly entertaining action scenes ever filmed, although some of them aren’t completely original. Still, it is a lot of fun to watch. Justin Long is surprisingly good in this, despite being cast against type. And watch for Kevin Smith in a hilarious cameo that had the whole theater rolling on the floor.

And that’s another factor. Live Free or Die Hard works not just as a hardcore action flick, but a cautionary tale, and a comedy. Yes, that’s right. Top that off with the great reviews this film is getting, and call it a true summer blockbuster.

This film has outbursts of huge laughs. It’s hilarious watching Bruce Willis square off with the bad guys, but they aren’t very menacing. Where Alan Rickman from the original Die Hard stole the show, Timothy Olyphant is here instead and sure, he has a good menacing grin occasionally, but he’s generally a wimp.

Lets say, he gets his comeuppance.

It’s not a flick to bring your brain to. Just grab a huge bucket of popcorn and walk in with your adrenaline pumped up and you’ll die hard trying not to love it. B+