LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD

Maybe I'm just stuck in a time warp, but I was really excited last year when "Rocky Balboa" came out! And to find out that the fourth "Die Hard" movie was being released this year was too good to be true!! So perhaps my review won't be all that objective, since I knew I would love it before I even saw it!

I went to Sam's Club the week the movie was released, since I knew that I had recently seen the "Die Hard Trilogy" for sale there. My plan was to watch all three movies and then top it off with "Live Free or Die Hard" on the weekend. No such luck. Sam's didn't have it. (and yes, I did the same thing last year with "Rocky Balboa"!). So, off to the theater I went, without refreshing my memories of John McClane's previous adventures. No problem, I got it all...up...here (mental picture: Me tapping my temple...).

"Live Free or Die Hard" was just what "Die Hard" is - suspense, action, witty one-liners, and stunts that you know could've never happened. John McClane is older now, with a troubled relationship with his teenage daughter. He comes across Matt Farrell, a young hacker, played by Justin Long (of "Hi, I'm a Mac" fame) The two get caught up in a terrorist plot that attacks our country's technology, taking down our economic structure. And so McClane and Farrell go on the run to stop the bad guy. Or is that to get away from the bad guy? Bruce Willis is, as always, awesome in his role as John McClane. He's the perfect blend of tough guy, funny guy and not-so perfect guy. Long does a great job with his role - he is really funny. A very cook geek. Kevin Smith also adds some humor to the story - living in the basement at his mothers house, he is referred to as the "Internet Jedi".

With action and suspense from begining to end, "Live Free or Die Hard" was the perfect updated story for all "Die Hard" lovers. In the end, our beloved characters all walk away bruised, bloodied, but safe and victorious. So the only complaint I have is, what happens now with all the chaos in the country from this "virtual" attack? Traffic lights are out, utilities are out, stock market's crashed..and the credits are rolling. I guess...they all lived happily ever after anyway.