Director
Len Wiseman
Cast
Bruce Willis John McClane
Justin Long Matthew Farrell
Timothy Olyphant Thomas Gabriel
Mary Elizabeth Winstead Lucy McClane
Maggie Q Mai Lihn
Kevin Smith Warlock
DVD Release Date: November 20, 2007
Rating: PG-13 or Unrated
Running Time: 129 Minutes
The Movie
Detective John McClane of the NYPD is back again but this time he is dealing with the biggest case of his life, and that’s keeping his daughter safe. Lucy McClane…err, Gennero is all grown up and in college now at Rutgers so McClane of course keeps an eye on her in his own brash way. Lucy isn’t too happy about that so she continues not speaking to him as it seems most in McClane’s family do. This leads him to simply take on something a little less stressful then raising a teenage girl and that’s his job.
Sent to pick up a young hacker named Matthew Farrell, McClane is not happy about being a senior detective and having to play taxi driver but things soon heat up. It isn’t long after arriving at Farrell’s apartment that things get hairy and a few bad guys try to mow both of them down with guns and explosives. McClane, being resourceful as he is, manages to take most of them down and get away with only a few bumps and bruises, but that still doesn’t answer why the men were there in the first place.
Upon arriving at FBI headquarters in Washington D.C., McClane soon learns why he was sent on the retrieval mission. Farrell is the last remaining hacker alive that helped a super criminal by the name of Thomas Gabriel get a lot of classified information he needed. Gabriel is out not only to kill Farrell, but to take over the entire country. Through the world of technology, Gabriel aims to conduct a “firesale” which would take away the country’s communication, transportation, and utilities sending it virtually back to the stone age. McClane is determined to not let that happen and as always, things are going to get a bit personal.
Well what can be said about John McClane back again for a fourth installment of Die Hard, except that you must watch the unrated version of the film. Fans of the franchise know what to expect when they see the character of McClane so watching the theatrical version was a complete disappointment. Sure a few curse words don’t a good movie make, but taking them away does change a well known character completely around. Hearing the vulgarity, the brashness, and the clever little quirks from Willis are what make John McClane so damn awesome. So for those that have never seen the film or were not pleased when in theatres; check out the unrated version. You’ll thank me.
The film itself is very enjoyable and now sits tied for my second favorite Die Hard flick ever. The first is of course the best and the second is in last place while parts three and four come in at number two. The twelve year lapse between the third and the fourth is completely obvious as Live Free Or Die Hard just doesn’t have the same feeling that the others did. It seems so brand new and not raw whatsoever, but that doesn’t stop it from being an enjoyable film. Surely it lacks something that seems to make it scream Die Hard, but I think that is simply the fact that Willis is getting older (right) and looks totally different from when we first (left) saw him as McClane.
Willis’ age certainly doesn’t hurt the action included in the Die Hard films though as it is presented here in full force. Let people say that technology isn’t a dangerous field to go into, and they can be proved wrong simply by watching this film. Planes exploding, mack trucks slamming into parked cars, bullets flying, and even a major highway collapsing are just a few of the fantastic action sequences you’ll be blown away by. And to soften things up in between, Justin Long does great work and blends comedically perfect with Willis in their exchanges.
Thomas Gabriel quickly became one of my top characters in Die Hard history just by the way he was portrayed by Timothy Olyphant. Olyphant jumped up as one of my favorite actors when I first saw him in Scream 2, showing a sadistic side that seemed so very believable. The same holds true for Gabriel as he seems so evil and domineering while showcasing his brilliance and intelligence. Olyphant can play a part so perfectly that he honestly seems like someone that will sweet talk you one minute and rip your heart out the next minute without even blinking.
True fans of Die Hard may find a lot of things to complain about with this film, but for everything that was changed, something was given back. Seeing McClane talk to himself, argue about what he is doing, and how stupid it all is had me cracking up. Past references to the other films of the franchise made it feel like all was right with the world. As soon as I heard the FBI agent’s name was “Johnson;” a grin just plastered on my face. McClane talked to his enemy on the phone like he does in the other films. And it’s even explained how McClane’s one time fear of flying suddenly became OK in Die Hard With A Vengeance. It’s still Die Hard folks and Bruce Willis is still John McClane; he’ simply catching up with the times and there’s nothing wrong with that.
The Video
The film is shown in 2.40:1 Anamorphic Widescreen and looks good for the most part. The discs I viewed were screener copies from Fox, and while the picture was beautiful, there were a few problems. Besides the annoying 20th Century Fox logo appearing from time to time, there were a few glitches and freezes. Once again though, the actual DVD will probably be fine.
The Audio
The film is heard in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and it was one hundred percent awesome. Sirens could be heard coming from everywhere. Tires screeched all around the room. The floor literally shook the loveseat I was sitting on as the fighter jet shot bullets through the air. Fantastic sound and made for intense viewing.
Special Features
Audio Commentary – Director Len Wiseman, star Bruce Willis, and editor Nicholas de Toth sit down for commentary to discuss the fourth film in the franchise. It is a rather enjoyable listen as all three talks a good deal each and gives their thoughts on different aspects of the film. As was one of my biggest complaints, they actually delve into the subject of making the film PG-13 for the theatrical release. The trio actually says the film was shot with an R-rated script, but then had to be toned down. It is rather obvious when watching both the unrated cut and then the theatrical version that they were originally going for the same old John McClane everyone has come to know.
Analog Hero In A Digital World – This is your basic “making of” featurette and runs a staggering ninety-seven minutes. It goes incredibly in depth on how the stunts were done and what music was chosen and how everyone was kept safe. It even goes into the history of the franchise and how this film fit right in with the rest of them. It’s a fantastic featurette and well worth sitting down for another feature film length and enjoying the ride.
Yippee Ki Yay Mother-F*****! – Kevin Smith sits down with Bruce Willis for right around twenty-three minutes and they do an interview. It isn’t really an interview so much as just two guys talking about Willis’ career. To be honest, this featurette was extremely enjoyable because of how casual and humorous they are. It’s almost as if being a fly on the wall.
“Die Hard” Music Video by Guyz Nite
Behind The Scenes With Guyz Nite – The making of the video.
Fox Movie Channel Presents: Fox Legacy – This is a brief six minute promotional thing for the Die Hard franchise. Not really sure what it is other then a long newsreel.
Original Theatrical Trailer
Trailers – Hitman, The Simpsons Movie, Mr. Brooks, 24: Season Six, Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer, and The Last Of The Mohicans
The Inside Pulse
You’re going to buy it so I don’t see why you are trying to convince yourself that you’re not. It is a Die Hard flick for God sakes and the only way it could be totally ruined is if they replaced Willis as McClane. They tried to make it PG-13 and it still didn’t destroy the franchise although thank goodness the unrated version was released because it is much better. It’s going to go right into the pot of those films you watch every single time it comes on television because you just think it is cool. Not to mention that Live Free Or Die Hard seems like a weird mixture of Die Hard and True Lies. You’ll know what I mean when you get to that part in the film. The special features aren’t there in great numbers, but they are very long and very good. Since you’re going to pick up a copy anyway, make sure you get the unrated version because it’s the one you want to see. Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother-shhhhhhhh!
Live Free Or Die Hard: 2-Disc Unrated Edition |
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