Die Hard 4.0

Rating: 8/10 (17 February 2016)

When the FBI Cyber Crimes Division is hacked its director orders the arrest of a large number of hackers; New York detective John McClane is ordered to pick up one, Matt Farrell, and drive him to Washington DC. The action starts almost as soon as McClane gets to Farrell's flat somebody wants Farrell dead. They manage to get away and drive the Washington but that isn't the end of the problems; the people who hacked the FBI have now hacked the nation's transport systems and it is clear they have further plans. Farrell claims that these actions are part of a 'fire sale'; a scheme to attack all aspects of the country's infrastructure prior to deleting all financial records an action that would inevitably cause chaos. McClane and Farrell set off to hunt down the cyber-terrorists before they can fully execute their plan a plan that is complicated when the terrorists capture McClane's daughter.
I had heard this film referred to as 'Die Hard Four point Less' which is rather cruel as it is actually a solid action movie; I suspect it would have had a better reception if it hadn't been part of the 'Die Hard' franchise it works as a stand-alone film. The action starts early and is fairly relentless until a couple of minutes before end. There are numerous shootouts, car crashes, a helicopter crash, an F-35 attacking a lorry and destroying a highway bridge before crashing and even a fight in a car which is dangling in a lift shaft! Of course it isn't very believable but there isn't time to worry about such details as there is so much going on. Bruce Willis still has what it takes to be believable as McClane and Maggie Q impresses as one of the terrorists; it is just a pity she is killed of half way through leaving Timothy Olyphant as the main villain; he isn't bad but isn't memorable in the way Alan Rickman was in the first film. Overall I'd say this wasn't a classic but it was a good solid 'brain in neutral' action movie which I enjoyed more than I expected.