Die Hard 4.0

Die Hard 4.0 (2007)
(U.S. title - Live Free Or Die Hard)

Starring Bruce Willis, Justin Long, Timothy Olyphant, Maggie Q, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kevin Smith


Directed by Len Wiseman



As an avid fan of action movies nothing gets me going like the sight of Bruce Willis in a vest. New York cop John McClane is simply the greatest action hero of all time. Riggs and Murtaugh, the Bad Boys and even Keanu Reeves on a bus are nothing but also-rans.
But the old saying goes 'Once bitten, twice shy' and after the crushing disappointment of 1995's Die Hard With A Vengeance, I was anticipating John McClane's long awaited return with guarded optimism. After 12 years us fans desperately wanted Die Hard 4.0 to kick ass!
However, early signs didn't exactly fill me with hope. The movie was stuck in development hell for nearly ten years with all sorts of rumours flying around. It was to be set in the jungle ..... McClane would be partnered by Ben Affleck (Oh god no!!!!!) ..... Britney Spears would star as McClane's daughter.....
These sorts of things don't bode well with a Die Hard fanatic like myself.
And major Hollywood franchises had only just begun stretching to fourth installments with poor results. Lethal Weapon 4 anyone? Alien Resurrection? Give us a break!
Then came the underwhelming news that Len Wiseman (Underworlds 1 and 2) had been given the director's chair AND Brucey would once again be given a sidekick (one of Die Hard 3's fatal flaws).
But then the trailers came out and they weren't half bad. Ok so they did look like something from the Jerry Bruckheimer school of movie-making (style over substance) but they had a solid, focused feel about them that was so missing from Die Hard 3.



So imagine my delight this 4th of July when I was treated to what may prove to be this summer's finest blockbuster.
First of all, unlike 'Vengeance', this feels like a Die Hard movie. It doesn't tinker with the winning formula. It slowly sets its stall up in the way the first two movies did. We catch up with McClane after 12 long years. Time has not been kind to our reluctant hero. He is divorced from his wife, his daughter doesn't talk to him and all his hair has fallen out presumably from the stress. As if that wasn't enough he gets sent on this shitty job to escort some geeky hacker into FBI custody. As you can guess things don't run smoothly and John McClane is about to have a killer 4th of July holiday.
The film has a dark and gritty feel to it. McClane is obviously remorseful about his family problems and we glimpse his humanity in a way not seen since the first film. He's obviously getting too old for this terrorism lark too. When he gets hurt in this film we feel his pain. He ain't as fast as he used to be and those knocks are getting harder to shake off. Welcome to your 50's, John.


"Die Hard 4.0 may prove to be this summer's finest blockbuster."


The opening bout of action lets us know that Die Hard 4.0 means business. These terrorists are slick and ruthless. Justin Long's young hacker knows too much and must die! But McClane stands in their way and a vicious gun battle ensues. But instead of wisecracking his way through it on autopilot, we can feel McClane's fear and we sense the duo are in real danger. McClane even admits to feeling scared and we are reminded of what made him such an originally human action hero in that LA skyscraper back in 1988. This is refreshing because he had almost slipped into 'Superman mode' in the previous two movies.
We also get a real atmosphere of dread, paranoia and panic as the terrorists tighten their grip on America's computer based infra-structure. No-one knows what the hell is going on, the possibility of an anthrax attack is mentioned and even Capitol Hill suffers an attack of sorts. This feels kinda real after the horrors of 9/11. One very nice touch is a speech broadcast by the villainous hackers compiled of clips of George W. Bush and an array of ex-Presidents.
Die Hard 4.0's villians also cut the mustard which is an essential requirement of a Die Hard film. The memory of a dreadfully miscast Jeremy Irons and his equally rubbish terrorist rabble is completely wiped out with a great turn by Deadwood's Timothy Olyphant with ample support from Maggie Q and an army of gun-toting bad guys.


But best of all Die Hard 4.0 is just so much fucking FUN!!!! It's the kind of white-knuckle, adrenaline-fuelled, rollercoaster ride that cinema was invented for! Well paced and full of excellent set-pieces, it's up there with the best of action cinema. It does sag a little in the second half but it regains its mojo for a cracking finale. The climatic set-piece (lovingly pilfered from True Lies) involving a jet fighter is so expertly staged and brilliantly far-fetched it's orgasmic!!!


"The kind of white-knuckle, adrenaline-fuelled, rollercoaster ride that cinema was invented for!"


I apologise for doubting you, John McClane. You truly are the king of action cinema.


Verdict:
Amidst a summer of bloated disappointing sequels Die Hard 4.0 not only delivers the goods but bucks the law of diminishing returns. Watch in awe as old boy McClane shows Spider-Man, Shrek, Jack Sparrow et al how it's done. So much fun it should be illegal, this is absolutely superlative entertainment! Yippee-ki-ya muthafucka indeed!!

Rating
****


Die Hard 4.0 at the IMDB