Die Hard 4.0 (2007)

Preceded by: Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)

	Directed by: Len Wiseman	AKA Live Free or Die Hard COUNTRY USA GENRE Action NORWEGIAN TITLE Die Hard 4.0 RUNNING TIME 130 minutes
	Produced by: Michael Fottrell John McTiernan Arnold Rifkin Bruce Willis
	Written by (based on an article by John Carlin): Mark Bomback

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
John McClane	Bruce Willis	½
Thomas Gabriel	Timothy Olyphant	½
Matt Farrell	Justin Long
Mai Lihn	Maggie Q	½
Bowman	Cliff Curtis	½
Trey	Jonathan Sadowski
Warlock	Kevin Smith
Lucy McClane	Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Review

The problem isn't that we've seen it all before (even though that certainly also is the case), but rather that the people behind this film seem to have thought that if they just increase the scope and the running time a little, they might end up with something that isn't just a forgettable, uncredible carbon copy. To a certain degree they were right: Die Hard 4.0 isn't a carbon copy of its three predecessors – it's a painful caricature. It's Bruce Willis mocking both John McClane and himself, which makes Die Hard 4.0 both unimpressive and a little sad, but nevertheless quite fun for an hour or so.

As usual, McClane is up against terrorists slash thieves – this time of bigger proportions than ever before. The story, which is based on an article by John Carlin, has an interesting enough premise, with the film exploring the idea of a "fire sale" – a terrorist attack by means of hacking all aspects of infrastructure, communication, and the economy that are controlled digitally, thus creating mayhem in society. Enter John McClane along with his computer-whiz sidekick Matt Farrell (Justin Long), and the stage is set for a familiar McClane-vs-terrorist clash. Only this time, we get less logic, more deus ex machina explanations, and – ultimately – more over-the-top, physically impossible action than ever. Die Hard 4.0 makes some of James Bond's more excessive work look bleak, as McClane takes down helicopters using cars as rockets, outfights a fighter jet with a semi-trailer (!), and gets himself out of every impossible death trap. For a while, you might enjoy it on a carefree, non-intellectual level, but in the end, the film becomes just annoying and silly.