Scan and Pan
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Live Free or Die Hard
After the FBI's computer systems are breached by hackers, they ask local law enforcement around the country to help them bring in known master hackers. Enter NYPD Detective John McClane (Bruce Willis), who's assigned to locate hacker Matt Farrell (Justin Long) and deliver him to Washington DC. Things start to go awry when assassins are sent after Farrell, who unknowingly supplied cyber-terrorists Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant) and Mai Linh (Maggie Q) with code they're using to bring all of America's computer systems to a halt. Finding himself in the middle of another fine mess, McClane has to keep Farrell alive while trying to stop the cyber-terrorists.
Director Len Wiseman (Underworld, Underworld: Evolution) tackles his largest project to date but is unable to recreate the tight shooting style employed by director John McTiernan in the first and third films (or even the serviceable style of Renny Harlin in the second film). Instead of thrilling the audience, he bludgeons them with lifeless action scenes characterized by excess more than creativity. Only in the third act does Wiseman seem to realize he's making a Die Hard film and finally presents us with some action scenes befitting the franchise. Too little, too late.
The weakest element of the film is the screenplay by Mark Bomback (Godsend), from a screen story by Bomback and David Marconi (Enemy of the State), with its incomprehensible plot, lack of suspense, tired quips, and worst of all for a Die Hard film, a dull villain. John McClane is at his best when he knows he's fighting to save a loved one, but Bomback doesn't bring that into play until very late in the film, making it feel like a meaningless addition. There are numerous elements that seem to be borrowed from television's 24, only the writers of that show know how to create suspense and keep the audience guessing.
Willis steps into the shoes of McClane once again like he never left them, trading punches, bullets, and one liners (as tired as some of them are, he still knows how to deliver them with gusto) with his opponents and being a thorn in the side of a terrorist mastermind. He has one great scene after Farrell tells him he's a hero where he bitterly enumerates all the bad things that have happened to him (a divorce, estranged kids, etc.). For one moment the filmmakers get it right and we see what the film as a whole could be but isn't. Long, best known as the personification of a Mac computer in numerous Apple commercials, is a fresh face as the hacker who finds himself right in the middle of the action. Willis and Long make a surprisingly good partnership.
The original Die Hard had Alan Rickman as the terrorist Hans Gruber, a memorable villain portrayed by a great actor. This film has a wooden Olyphant as the villain du jour, but he's about as intimidating and charismatic as a frat boy throwing a tantrum. Maggie Q is wasted as his partner/lover, seemingly here only to be the stereotypical Asian who happens to be skilled in martial arts.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead is good as Lucy McClane and it's very easy to believe she's the daughter of John McClane. Cliff Curtis gives a solid turn as the FBI agent in charge of the investigation. Best of all, Clerks director Kevin Smith is spot on as a hacker and Star Wars fan who still lives in his mother's basement.
I wanted director Len Wiseman to recreate the magic of the first film, a justifiable classic of the action genre, or at least the entertainment value of the second and third films. Instead, Live Free or Die Hard (aka Die Hard 4.0 in some markets) is overblown and even dull, failing to muster much excitement until it's almost over. Stay home and watch the first film on DVD.
[2 out of 5 stars]
Nineteen years after the first Die Hard, the fourth installment arrives in cinemas uninspired and predictable. If you've seen the promotional trailer set to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, you've seen something much better than the actual product.
After the FBI's computer systems are breached by hackers, they ask local law enforcement around the country to help them bring in known master hackers. Enter NYPD Detective John McClane (Bruce Willis), who's assigned to locate hacker Matt Farrell (Justin Long) and deliver him to Washington DC. Things start to go awry when assassins are sent after Farrell, who unknowingly supplied cyber-terrorists Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant) and Mai Linh (Maggie Q) with code they're using to bring all of America's computer systems to a halt. Finding himself in the middle of another fine mess, McClane has to keep Farrell alive while trying to stop the cyber-terrorists.
Director Len Wiseman (Underworld, Underworld: Evolution) tackles his largest project to date but is unable to recreate the tight shooting style employed by director John McTiernan in the first and third films (or even the serviceable style of Renny Harlin in the second film). Instead of thrilling the audience, he bludgeons them with lifeless action scenes characterized by excess more than creativity. Only in the third act does Wiseman seem to realize he's making a Die Hard film and finally presents us with some action scenes befitting the franchise. Too little, too late.
The weakest element of the film is the screenplay by Mark Bomback (Godsend), from a screen story by Bomback and David Marconi (Enemy of the State), with its incomprehensible plot, lack of suspense, tired quips, and worst of all for a Die Hard film, a dull villain. John McClane is at his best when he knows he's fighting to save a loved one, but Bomback doesn't bring that into play until very late in the film, making it feel like a meaningless addition. There are numerous elements that seem to be borrowed from television's 24, only the writers of that show know how to create suspense and keep the audience guessing.
Willis steps into the shoes of McClane once again like he never left them, trading punches, bullets, and one liners (as tired as some of them are, he still knows how to deliver them with gusto) with his opponents and being a thorn in the side of a terrorist mastermind. He has one great scene after Farrell tells him he's a hero where he bitterly enumerates all the bad things that have happened to him (a divorce, estranged kids, etc.). For one moment the filmmakers get it right and we see what the film as a whole could be but isn't. Long, best known as the personification of a Mac computer in numerous Apple commercials, is a fresh face as the hacker who finds himself right in the middle of the action. Willis and Long make a surprisingly good partnership.
The original Die Hard had Alan Rickman as the terrorist Hans Gruber, a memorable villain portrayed by a great actor. This film has a wooden Olyphant as the villain du jour, but he's about as intimidating and charismatic as a frat boy throwing a tantrum. Maggie Q is wasted as his partner/lover, seemingly here only to be the stereotypical Asian who happens to be skilled in martial arts.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead is good as Lucy McClane and it's very easy to believe she's the daughter of John McClane. Cliff Curtis gives a solid turn as the FBI agent in charge of the investigation. Best of all, Clerks director Kevin Smith is spot on as a hacker and Star Wars fan who still lives in his mother's basement.
I wanted director Len Wiseman to recreate the magic of the first film, a justifiable classic of the action genre, or at least the entertainment value of the second and third films. Instead, Live Free or Die Hard (aka Die Hard 4.0 in some markets) is overblown and even dull, failing to muster much excitement until it's almost over. Stay home and watch the first film on DVD.
[2 out of 5 stars]
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