Pure action

Rating: 5/10 (30 July 2009)

I was expecting a lot more out of this. Yes, it's got action, sometimes even great chase and fight scenes and stunts ("You've just killed an helicopter with a car"...), but there are no characters and no story (and lacking a good story, a movie really can't build up any suspense and tension) - nothing that would make this a "real movie", Die Hard 4 seems more like a video game. Nothing that happens doesn't actually has to happen, nothing is motivated - just a bunch of guys trying to kill others and get rich, and one superhero eventually saving the day. I have nothing against the actors: they do a great job as far as the script lets them, but there's no actual dialogue or conversation or even emotion - most lines are attempts at making a joke or trying to frighten someone. When Justin Long asks Bruce Willis why is he doing this, why he plays the part of the hero, Willis answers: "Because no one else does it, i'm here, so I do it." The movie seems a lot like this: Why? Because there wasn't yet a fourth one.