Review of Live Free or Die Hard (2007) by Dan H — 11 Jun 2013

It's actually a lot better then I remember it being. Mcclane is actually Mcclane here and not some generic action hero like he is in the most recent Die Hard (you do believe he can be hurt here, although he does turn into a bit of a super hero at the end of the film), there is legit character development, a real plot that keeps you invested, and good chemistry between its leads.

Timothy Olyphant is a good villain here and it is fun to watch his intensity build over the course of the film. The action set pieces are also tons of fun, although there are 2 moments where we sample the kind of action that would become a staple of the universally hated 5th film.

Live Free is a bit silly, but it still manages to scare, build tension and it does have a decent deal of smarts to it. The only bad here is that it's painfully overlong (to the point where you feel like Mcclane does at the end of the film, worn out and exhausted), the film is a bit messy, the original cut was PG-13 (there is an unrated version on the DVD), and there is some obvious moments of dubbing over lines in the film.

Overall though, it's actually a pretty fun film that doesn't ask audiences to completely shut off their brains in order to enjoy it. It's a good Die Hard film that wasn't well received upon it's first release but now with the fifth installment out I'll bet that this one will get a lot of repeat views and a bit more love than it did originally.