Analogue Fists in a Digital World
Live Free or Die Hard
Review by Ross Anthony

Pow, Bang, Crash -- this action film delivers.

Sure there are holes, perhaps as many as those made by the bullets narrowly-missing Bruce Willis. Still, Willis works it. Besides making for a charismatic, albeit aging, action hero -- he’s quite a good actor. Though the utterances are nary longer than a sentence and often only guttural expressions -- they concisely communicate volumes. His humor, plight, and all-in-a-day’s-work attitude win us over. We can’t help but squarely root for him and Justin Long, whose believability also helps us swallow a film that’s not always so believable.

And then there’s the action -- from acrobatics to aeronautics meeting automobility and a whole lot of shots fired and punches swung -- the film will keep your eyes wide open and your butt on the edge of the seat. Still the efforts of Bruce, Justin, and the screenwriter’s well-worked banter between the two, make all that action add up to a cohesive production that commandingly entertains.

“Anything that could go wrong for McClane did go wrong. We were always thinking of new ways to complicate McClane’s life by putting him in seemingly impossible situations. Of course, then we had to figure out how to get him out of it.” says screenwriter Mark Bomback.

“McClane’s older and so am I,” says Willis, “and that was part of the fun of returning to the character. But I also realized there is a benefit to getting older. You pay attention, and you acquire some wisdom.”

Live Free or Die Hard

-- Book Contest --


  • Live Free or Die Hard. Copyright © 2007.
  • Starring Bruce Willis, Timothy Olyphant, Justin Long, Cliff Curtis, Maggie Q, Mary Elizabeth Winstead.
  • Directed by Len Wiseman.
  • Screenplay by Mark Bomback.
  • Produced by Michael Fottrell at 20th Cent. Fox.

Grade..........................A (3.5/4)


chili4 special olympians
power5 ra hforh radiop
Copyright © 1998-2023 Ross Anthony, Author - Speaker - Solo World Circumnavigator In addition to reviewing films and interviewing celebs at HollywoodReportCard.com, traveling the world, composing great music, motivational speaking, Mr. Anthony also runs his own publishing company in the Los Angeles area. While traversing the circumference of the planet writing books and shooting documentaries, Mr. Anthony has taught, presented for, worked &/or played with locals in over 30 countries & 100 cities (Nairobi to Nagasaki). He's bungee-jumped from a bridge near Victoria Falls, wrestled with lions in Zimbabwe, crashed a Vespa off a high mountain road in Taiwan, and ridden a dirt bike across the States (Washington State to Washington DC). To get signed books ("Rodney Appleseed" to "Jinshirou") or schedule Ross to speak check out: www.RossAnthony.com or call 1-800-767-7186. Go into the world and inspire the people you meet with your love, kindness, and whatever it is you're really good at. Check out books by Ross Anthony. Rand() functions, Pho chicken soup, rollerblading, and frozen yogurt (w/ blueberries) also rock! (Btw, rand is short for random. It can also stand for "Really Awkward Nutty Dinosaurs" -- which is quite rand, isn't it?) Being alive is the miracle. Special thanks to Ken Kocanda, HAL, Jodie Keszek, Don Haderlein, Mom and Pops, my family, R. Foss, and many others by Ross Anthony. Galati-FE also deserves a shout out. And thanks to all of you for your interest and optimism. Enjoy great films, read stirring novels, grow.


Last Modified: Tuesday, 26-Jun-2007 12:42:47 PDT