John McClane is called back into action taking on a team of cyber terrorists hell-bent on shutting down the USA in the fourth chapter of the lucrative action franchise.

CRITIQUE

NYPD Detective John McClane (Bruce Willis reprising his iconic role with relish) is back in the best of the sequels to date. This time McClane is facing the gargantuan task of stopping a cybernetic team of terrorists led by Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant, duded up in Johnny Cash black), a disgruntled ex-government expert on homeland security, set on 'fire sale': wiping out the US of all methods of finance, communication and basic fundamentals during the 4th of July.

Aided by reluctant hacker Matthew Farrell (Justin Long, making as the damsel-in-distress and tweaking his Mac TV ad character to the hilt), McClane, using his trademark cool- under-pressure, quippy alpha male brio and street smarts, is at his best resorting to some sharp, smart improvised bits of business to stop the bad guys. As the "Timex watch in a digital world", he just keeps on ticking!

Kudos to the rapid-fire, adrenalized pumping action and witty dialogue by scribes Mark Bomback and David Marconi, and the shrewdly skillful direction by Len Wiseman, the team wisely lets Willis flex his over-the-board appeal and over-the-top sequences incorporating Parkour, the French derivative acrobatic leaping about, CGI splendor in some truly realistic, jaw-dripping set pieces including various methods of transportation hurtling at our hero.

McClane’s tango with a F-35 is a hybrid of the truck sequence in Raiders of the Lost Arc and the jet fighter climax in True Lies. While many may scoff at the movie’s at times cartoony-over-the-top “yeah right!” moments, I say “so what?! It’s Die Hard, people!”  Despite the good people at Fox dumbing down the audience to a PG-13 (really should've been an R people!) for the theatrical version, the violence doesn’t feel too-watered down. Presented on this DVD in an unrated cut, the movie is now essentially a bit more R-rated, adding blood squirts to bullet hits (aided by special effects) and re-instating all the "fucks" that should’ve been there in the first place and our hero’s favorite come-back: "Yippiee-Kay-Aye, Motherfucker!"

THE VIDEO

Live Free or Die Hard is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. The studio provides a screener copy (as they do for all of their movies) so the picture quality is not representative of final product. However, the transfer to DVD offers a fairly stark vibrancy and a clear-eyed view of the debauchery at hand that makes for some eye-popping crowd-pleasing fun all the more for its resiliency in scope.

THE AUDIO

Live Free or Die Hard is presented English 5.1 Dolby Digital, as well as French Dolby Surround and Spanish Dolby Surround. Subtitles are offered in all three languages as well. The soundtrack presentation reproduces all the crunching, smashing, and exploding chicanery across the speaker channels.

THE EXTRAS

Disc One:

Choose from the theatrical PG-13 version and an unrated version with joint audio commentaries by Bruce Willis, Len Wiseman and editor extraordinaire Nicolas De Toth, who all have their charms and smartly observed opines including the thought process to keep homage to the original Die Hard including a recurring of the music from the first film and Willis expounding on the necessity to keep McClane vulnerable, reluctant and the stunt work/action sequences exciting and for the most part practical (with blends of CGI too boot too).

Disc Two:

Analog Hero in a Digital World: Making of Live Free or Die Hard: Multi-part segmented depictions of every facet of filming the sequel best seen by letting it all play together as one set piece. Specifically, this documentary shows how certain sequences were created, shot and edited (especially the hair-raising cop cruiser as missile to villain’s chopper), that proves to be entertaining altogether.

Yippee Ki Yay Mother*****: Fun and engaging chat between Willis and co-star Kevin Smith discussing why Bruce decided to revive McClane and the comparisons of the other DH flicks.

Video of Die Hard by Guyz Nite: Very funny and cool music video by Guyz Nite saluting the DH films.

Behind the Scenes with Guyz Nite: A few moments with the band and how their song became a marketing sensation for the new DH entry.

Fox Movie Channel Featurette: Surprisingly brief look at the legacy of the DH series by FOX muckity muck Tom Rothman

Theatrical Trailer: Theatrical trailer of the film.

Previews: Theatrical trailers for some of Fox's other productions.

FINAL THOUGHT