I thoroughly enjoyed “Live free or die hard”. Almost as much or more than I have enjoyed the past 3 “Die Hard” films. It’s a bonafide entertainer, and these kind of bombastic entertainers have been slow to come this year. John McClane is back , older, wiser, we presume, but still the same dry wit, the sarcasm, the humor, those snappy one-liners, his never-say-die attitude, and that slopy, half-smile. McClane’s personality is what makes the whole thing tick. The attitude, the yippe-ki-yay. He’s got quirks, but you know he’s a good guy. After about 20 years since he first started (playing at McClane-land that it) Bruce Willis still has what it takes to turn a fairly entertaining film into a super block-buster. The film wouldn’t be what it is without him.

There isn’t much of a story. There’s the bad guys. And there’s McClane. What’s he going to do ? Especially when they kidnap his feisty daughter, who although thoroughly pissed at her Dad for spying on her, is sure Daddy’s going to come for his little girl.

So, the goons who are very hi-tech – bringing down basic infrastructure networks in the US with the help of hackers and such – wish to avail themselves of electronic information about large sums of money. McClane will oppose them because as he says “There’s no-one to do the job” as in “I don’t want to do it, but if no one else will, I will”. You can’t blame him, can ya ? He hasn’t gotten much for being on the right side of the law he tells us – a pat on the back, a divorce, a a kid who doesn’t want to be yours. So, he’ll groan in little asides, slump when he thinks no one’s looking, but he’s not down and he’s never out. Especially in this film. His older body takes bumps, bone-rattling falls, miscellaneous hard knocks, dodges bullets and snipers, and rebounds back, a tad slower but back nevertheless. That’s what makes him such a nice hero – he’s human, until he’s fighting – then he’s superhuman.

So, then he proceeds to blow up helicopters with cars – he’s run out of bullets, and aiming cars at helicopter is easy-peasy for someone like him; you just aim and let fly (don’t try this at home). He also dodges an F35 bomber with an 18 wheeler, and when the plane blows up the freeway the 18 wheeler is on, jumps from the truck to the plane instead. There is no intelligence in jumping on a plane which is going down (the pilot, brainy guy this one, has ejected). Yes, yes – this film has stunts and stunts galore. And though they defeat logic, they aren’t un-entertaining to watch. In fact I enjoyed them !

The villains in this film have their super-human nuances too. The head honcho, Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant), a hi-tech security consultant, who miffed at having been ignored when he alerted the government to threats to the country’s infrastructure, decides to nurse his ego and retrieve billions with one super-smart maneuver. Aiding and abetting him is Mai Lihn, a svelte and fighting-fit Maggie Q. While Olyphant’s character is cold and ruthless, Maggie’s character is un-killable. She’s hit and kicked and blown away by a truck at high speed, but she still jumps back on her feet, and manages a lethal kick or two, afterwards. A never-say-die attitude to match McClane’s.

On the good guy tally is Matt Farrell (Justin Long better known for the MAC-PC ads), who’s a hacker who’s un-knowingly written self-mutating code for Gabriel’s terroristic program. Eager to make amends he latches onto McClane, and while McClane handles the physical threats, this guy handles the mental.

If you’re a fan of the “Die Hard” films or of Bruce Willis, you’ll love this one. This isn’t subtle mind machination, and there isn’t too much talking. It’s non-stop action, all the way. And while it may not be brainy, and it is over-done, it makes for a very enjoyable pot-boiler. That said, I must also add, that this past weekend, Ratatouille – a cartoon film about a mouse who wants to cook beat “Live free or die hard” to the No.1 slot in the US.