{"id":8481,"date":"2010-07-04T18:57:05","date_gmt":"2010-07-05T01:57:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.allouttabubblegum.com\/main\/?p=8481"},"modified":"2010-07-04T18:57:05","modified_gmt":"2010-07-05T01:57:05","slug":"amb-live-free-or-die-hard-2007","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/amb-live-free-or-die-hard-2007\/","title":{"rendered":"AMB: LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD (2007)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong> <\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8500 aligncenter\" title=\"Live Rated-R Or Die Like A Bitch\" src=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Live-Rated-R-Or-Die-Like-A-Bitch-1.jpg\" alt=\"Live Rated-R Or Die Like A Bitch\" width=\"348\" height=\"467\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Live-Rated-R-Or-Die-Like-A-Bitch-1.jpg 348w, https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Live-Rated-R-Or-Die-Like-A-Bitch-1-224x300.jpg 224w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 348px) 100vw, 348px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>[THE  CHALK-OUTLINE]<\/strong><\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"><strong>Live  Free Or Die Hard  (2007): Breakdown by RANTBO<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Bitter Old-Man McClane teams up with a computer nerd to kill mother  f-ers and get his daughter back. Or, get  his daughter back and kill mother f-ers.<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong><strong><strong><strong><span style=\"color:  #ff0000;\">[THE  GOOD, THE BAD AND THEIR BADASSITUDE]<\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">THE  HEROES:<\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8504   aligncenter\" title=\"Ride Hard\" src=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Ride-Hard-2.jpg\" alt=\"Ride Hard\" width=\"546\" height=\"232\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Ride-Hard-2.jpg 546w, https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Ride-Hard-2-300x127.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 546px) 100vw, 546px\" \/><\/span><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"><a title=\"Bruce  Willis\"><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"><a title=\"Bruce  Willis\"><\/a>Bruce Willis is Detective John McClane 4.0<br \/>\n<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">McClane:<\/span> I\u2019m nobody\u2019s hero, kid. Just doin\u2019 my job, that\u2019s all.  Fuck being a  hero. You know what you get for being a hero? Nothing. You get shot at.  You get a little pat on the back, blah-blah-blah. That-a-boy!\u2013You get  divorced. A wife that can\u2019t remember your last name. Kids don\u2019t want to  talk to ya. Ya get to eat a lot of meals by yourself. Trust me, kid.  Nobody wants to be that guy.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Matt:<\/span> Then why are you doing  this?\u201d<br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">McClane:<\/span> Because there\u2019s nobody else to do it right now,  that\u2019s why.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>His fourth outing as the reluctant action god, what  more can really be said about the man, the myth and the legend  that is John McClane? Facing a situation far larger than himself and way  out of  his league, for the first time McClane is inhibited by his working-class  persona in this modern age of high-tech terroism and as such, has  become a full fledged dinosaur. Yes sir, a real  knuckle-dragger.<\/p>\n<p>Closing in on his retirement, the once great cowboy is  making ready to put himself out to pasture. His wife, his kids, his  former allies\u2014his hair, are all long gone. Clearly having spent the past decade and change alone, bored and discontent with life, McClane seems all  too ready to mosey. Almost&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>As one would expect under such rating restrictions and being released in an age where pussy-fart Jason Bourne fans dictate cinematic action, McClane isn\u2019t quite McClane. In the 12 years since we&#8217;ve last seen our hero, he has somehow changed into an old man. Gone is the wife-beater, the swearing, the smoking, the drinking problem, the fear of flying and the relationship with Holly\u2014However, the balls are still intact. Withered and droopy\u2014but intact. McClane is still <em><strong>the<\/strong><\/em> take-no-shit, want-it-done-right&#8230;, original old-school, bitches-to-himself-out-loud, die-hard bad-ass  motherfucker and it is this characteristic that allows him  to TCB (at least) one more time. With <strong>DH4<\/strong>, John McClane has become  timeless. Even when stripped of most  of his\u00a0 defining characteristics, Willis still manages to keep it  real and  keep it McClane. I may not be the biggest fan of this entry, but I\u2019ll  always be a fan of this character and I&#8217;ll continue to support him as  long as he and I exist.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8494 aligncenter\" title=\"Caught With A PC, Oh The Shame\" src=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Caught-With-A-PC-Oh-The-Shame-1.jpg\" alt=\"Caught With A PC, Oh The Shame\" width=\"546\" height=\"231\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Caught-With-A-PC-Oh-The-Shame-1.jpg 546w, https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Caught-With-A-PC-Oh-The-Shame-1-300x127.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 546px) 100vw, 546px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">Justin Long is Matthew &#8216;Matt&#8217;  Farrell<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Sometimes in order to compete within the digital age  (read: kill cyber-terrorists), even the most stalwart badass needs  technological assistance. And comic relief: Enter Matt. Much like McClane&#8217;s  former allies, the two meet by happenstance when McClane is asked to  bring the kid in for questioning on his possible involvement in a villainous plot known as a &#8216;Fire-Sale&#8217;. Translation:  Matt&#8217;s a nerd that inadvertently fucked up our credit reports. And in being a nerd, differs himself from his side-kick  predecessors in that he&#8217;s pretty useless in times of physical strain and  heroism. Further Translation: Matt&#8217;s a pussy. BUT, despite myself, I actually  liked him. He compliments McClane&#8217;s bitterness and gruff demeanor with charming insecurity and awkwardness, which makes for a good dichotomy of heroism  as both have equal share in saving the country from an even bigger  pussy (see Olyphant). So, this becomes a clear case of bad-ass by association. Long&#8217;s  knack for comedic improvisation and general all-around likability play well into making  the befuddled dork not only surprisingly funny, but surprisingly  un-annoying as well. Though it could be I just feel a kinship in hating  Creedence&#8230;<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">THE VILLAIN:<\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8503 aligncenter\" title=\"Playin' It Like A Pussy\" src=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Playin-It-Like-A-Pussy-2.jpg\" alt=\"Playin' It Like A Pussy\" width=\"546\" height=\"231\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">Timothy Olyphant is Thomas Gabriel<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>While Olyphant could very well end up becoming the next Michael  Biehn, he&#8217;s not there yet and it could take awhile. Especially if he continues  playing pussified dweebs like Tommy Gabriel. To be fair, the backstory of Gabriel is that he was a  computer nerd who went haywire when his advice to the government wasn&#8217;t heeded, which isn&#8217;t too much to work with, but the  least they could have done was try  and make him likable. You know, like the character they ripped  him off of from <strong>Under  Siege 2: Dark Territory<\/strong>, Travis Dane, for instance. That guy was funny AND you couldn\u2019t wait to see him die. And Olyphant is capable of being a likable douche, I\u2019ve seen him do it before, so why he couldn\u2019t pull it off here I\u2019ll never understand. As far as any acts of badassness, those are all left up to his subordinates, as Gabriel spends nearly the entire film hiding out in a suped-up Winnebago issuing threats into a blue-tooth and the other handful of minutes picking on a girl and beating up the Mac Kid. That, my friends, is a  Pussy with a capital P.<\/p>\n<h2><strong><strong><strong><strong><span style=\"color:  #ff0000;\">[THE  SEX AND VIOLENCE]<\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">DUDESWEAT AND MACHISMO:<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Guess what? Nothing. There\u2019s no gay.  Not even a little bit. Even the weakling Matt gets the hots for a girl.  How disappointing. But, like all the other  <strong>Die Hard<\/strong>s, time is short and it\u2019s all about the task at hand.  Which is  killing terrorists and rescuing a McClane Family female, leaving no time for groping  other men. Maybe in part 5&#8230;<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">EXPLOITATION AND MISOGYNY:<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Two lovely ladies grace the screen this round, but neither of them  are a disgrace to their gender. Mary Elizabeth Winstead (<strong>Death Proof<\/strong>)  plays John&#8217;s daughter,  Lucy McClane (the only other returning character from part one), and  Maggie Q  is the Gabriel&#8217;s #2, Mai Lihn.<\/p>\n<p>Lucy is a thankfully well-written and acted combination of her parents\u2019  personalities. She&#8217;s  sensitive, smart and vulnerable like her mom; and she&#8217;s sarcastic,  strong and tough-as-nails, like her dad. Not to mention, one hot  piece-of-ace. And it&#8217;s not just the fact that she originated from John  McClane\u2019s ball  sack, either. No, she&#8217;s something special. Given a career in law  enforcement, I could see her being a bad-ass female cop I could root for  (read: not laugh at). Though she does get her self kidnapped and slapped for being sassy. So that has to count for something&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>As for Mai, she&#8217;s tough, but to quote Eastwood, &#8220;Girlie\u2014tough ain&#8217;t  enough.&#8221; Ergo, McClane kicks the shit outta her.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8506 aligncenter\" title=\"Yank Hard\" src=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Yank-Hard-1.jpg\" alt=\"Yank Hard\" width=\"545\" height=\"231\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This fight sequence  alone almost makes up for all the previous films&#8217; lack  of female misogyny. However, at the same time, also makes for a truly  violent  example of equality, as Mai holds her own against a man twice her size  and  gives as good as she gets. So, this one is kind-of up in  the air. But with more details to follow later in the review, I\u2019ll  leave it for you the reader to decide whether or not this qualifies  as a slight against womankind.<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">MURDER BY NUMBERS: [ 36 ]<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Click <a href=\"http:\/\/www.allouttabubblegum.com\/main\/?p=4161\">HERE<\/a> for the Body Count Breakdown<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>This  entry ups the ante from <strong>DH:WAV<\/strong> for our hero,  but only by a smidgen. McClane racks up 12 bodies this go round, and  surprisingly (considering the original rating), a lot of them are  memorable. He blows a guy out of a window with a fire-extinguisher,  snaps a guy\u2019s neck, knocks a  guy out of a helicopter and later kills the pilot\u2013with a car, he shoots a  handful, blows one up with a truck, causes a guy to fall into a grinder  and even kills a guy by shooting himself. Again,  quite a step up from <strong>Vengeance<\/strong>, so kudos to the filmmakers for  not fucking that aspect up. Even Matt takes out a few. Something McClane&#8217;s last partner, Sam Jackson&#8217;s Zeus  couldn&#8217;t even manage, so that was pretty surprising.<\/p>\n<p>As for the  bad guys, they  rack up 21 bodies. Much like the villains from <strong>Vengeance<\/strong>, a bunch  of their kills are within their own ranks, but they also take out quite  a few innocent bystanders. The last kill worth singling out was a kinda  funny ode for action  fans, as one baddy is dispatched by a T-800 series terminator  collectible model  falling on a keyboard which causes a bomb to explode. However, since  there was no living tissue over the metal endoskeleton, I can&#8217;t credit  Arnie with the kill. No matter how much I&#8217;d like to&#8230;<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">MOST  SATISFYING ASS-KICKING AND\/OR DEATH:<\/span><\/h3>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Gabriel Meets God<\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8502 aligncenter\" title=\"Olyphantastic\" src=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Olyphantastic-1.jpg\" alt=\"Olyphantastic\" width=\"546\" height=\"231\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Olyphantastic-1.jpg 546w, https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Olyphantastic-1-300x127.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 546px) 100vw, 546px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Could it have been anyone other than  Olyphantastic? While not necessarily the best, or even my overall  personal favorite kill, this one satisfies like none other. The whiny  little shit Gabriel takes one in the ticker after it passes through the  body of McClane and thus is blessed by the blood of an action messiah.  And while Gabriel probably did not deserve such an honorable and  divinely blessed death, he received it. Our God is indeed an awesome and  merciful God.<\/p>\n<h2><strong><strong><strong><strong><span style=\"color:  #ff0000;\">[THE  BEST OF THE REST]<\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">EPIC MOMENT AND BEST LINE:<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>John  McClane: Equal Opportunity Killer<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p>I can&#8217;t seem to write  enough about this battle of the sexes. McClane hasn\u2019t had his ass kicked  like this  since his fight with Karl the Kraut in part one.<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">McClane:<\/span> That\u2019s enough of this kung fu shit. I\u2019ve know some bitches in my day, but you are the biggest!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The  retaliation: Mai gets; tackled, kicked in the face, punched in the  face, thrown into a glass-ridden shelf, has a chunk of her hair ripped  out, is hit with a car \u201c<em><strong>How ya doin\u2019! Hang on!<\/strong><\/em>\u201d, choked  with steel  cables, punched in the face\u2013again, dropped down an elevator shaft and  engulfed in a fiery explosion. \u201c<em><strong>Fuck You, Bitch!<\/strong><\/em>\u201d Even John  Hatcher would be surprised at this level of overkill.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8501 aligncenter\" title=\"Mai Go Bye-Bye\" src=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Mai-Go-Bye-Bye-1.jpg\" alt=\"Mai Go Bye-Bye\" width=\"546\" height=\"230\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Mai-Go-Bye-Bye-1.jpg 546w, https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Mai-Go-Bye-Bye-1-300x126.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 546px) 100vw, 546px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Then comes the icing on the cake that is McClane&#8217;s breaking of the news to her boyfriend&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Gabriel: <\/span>[speaking through her ear-piece] Mai. Talk to me.<br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">McClane:<\/span> [answering] Mai? Oh yeah, little Asian chick, likes to kick people? I don\u2019t think she\u2019s going to be talking to anybody for a really long time. Last time I saw her, she was at the bottom of an elevator shaft with an SUV rammed up her ass.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"> <\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong><strong><strong><strong><span style=\"color:  #ff0000;\">[THE  EXECUTION]<\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong><em>Finally we\u2019re back with John McClane, now we\u2019ve got a choice  and the  choice is plain, we can LIVE FREE or we can DIE HARD\u2013as hard as we  can!<\/em> ~Guyz Nite<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Few things could ever be as anticipated to an action fan more as the  return of a great character. Especially after an extended period of  time. When <strong>Die Hard 4<\/strong> was green-lit and it was announced that Bruce  Willis would once again return as working class hero, John McClane, I  was ecstatic. A feeling of action elation overwhelmed me for weeks, so  powerful only one thing short of the untimely death of Willis (or myself, obviously) could have  possibly poisoned my glee\u2014a patented FOX studio property pussification  job. And then, it happened&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>PG-13\u2014Mother Falcon-er&#8230; I was  angry for 6 months. Seriously, it almost killed my will to live (free). I  can&#8217;t begin to explain the level of contempt and out-right hatred I  harbored (and still do, in fact) toward the MPAA and FOX for shitting on of  one the greatest R-Rated franchises, ever. And to a lesser, though  equally vile extent, Steven Spielberg for pushing the creation of the  dreaded rating into existence. And for <strong>War Of The Worlds<\/strong>. What a piece of  shit that was, amirite? But, rather than go off on a tirade into this attack on  Bad-Ass Cinema, here is an excellent article written by Vern that he  wrote specifically to FOX on the matter that expresses my sentiments to a  T: Which you can read: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aintitcool.com\/node\/32511\" target=\"_blank\">HERE<\/a>. And if you don&#8217;t feel like reading that, here&#8217;s a picture to better visualize what happened&#8230;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8497 aligncenter\" title=\"Drive Hard\" src=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Drive-Hard-1.jpg\" alt=\"Drive Hard\" width=\"545\" height=\"231\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Drive-Hard-1.jpg 545w, https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Drive-Hard-1-300x127.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 545px) 100vw, 545px\" \/><\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">The Helicopter = The Die Hard Franchise, The Car = FOX, Raffaelli = The Fans<\/span><\/h4>\n<p>Any questions?<\/p>\n<p>However, I&#8217;m happy to report that things almost ended up working out. Almost. As the filmmakers had the foresight to shoot the film with an  R-rating in mind. So I&#8217;m reasonably happy that I didn&#8217;t strap myself  with explosives and take the FOX building hostage (only to really be there to steal (read: save) the  contracts to all their bad-ass film properties). As in typical corporate cash-grabbing  style, FOX released the &#8216;real&#8217; version of the film on an overpriced  collector&#8217;s edition DVD (still waiting for that Uncut Blu-Ray though,  you fuckers), which restored all those little things that made a <strong>Die Hard<\/strong> film a <strong>Die Hard<\/strong> film. Plus it came with a free ticket to see <strong>Hitman<\/strong>. Wow. Thanks  FOX&#8230; So in loo of the unique circumstances, I&#8217;ve decided to break this  Execution section into 3 parts: The PG-13 Version (The Shit That  Sucked), The Common Good (The Shit I Liked From Both Versions) and The  MotherFucking Unrated Version (The Shit That Got Fixed).<\/p>\n<p>But first, allow me to set this disappointment up proper: Fourth Of  July weekend, 2007. Though it really feels like 1995, as even after a 12  year absence, NYPD detective John McClane is still looking good  (read: better than expected, just slightly less hairy and hungover), and he&#8217;s taking on  the understudies from <strong>Hackers<\/strong>. That is to say <strong>Live Free<\/strong> features Bruce Willis killing a bunch of silly cyber-terrorists that were all  the rage in the 90s. You know, for kids (I guess&#8230;). Using a bunch of  expensive looking hardware, the villainous Thomas Gabriel and his hot  Asian and French side-kicks unleash their coded fury on the FBI&#8217;s  Cyber-Security Division, and eventually, the entire Eastern coast of the United States. Naturally, this causes a shitstorm and the FEDS  issue a roundup of all the top known computer criminal punks. Enter  John McClane and his assignment, bring in The Mac Kid. Of course, this  seemingly simple assignment snowballs into <strong>Die Hard<\/strong>, in A Country. And thus <strong>Die Hard 4.0<\/strong> issues our hero into the modern age of terrorism as McClane  must now use his neanderthal tactics to kill motherfuckers, get his  daughter back (who ends up being kidnapped by the nerds) and save the  whole of America in time for fireworks, hot-dogs and the next Will Smith summer blockbuster. PLUS he gets to fight a giant CG  jet along the way! Wee!<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8498 aligncenter\" title=\"Fly Hard\" src=\"http:\/\/www.allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Fly-Hard.jpg\" alt=\"Fly Hard\" width=\"545\" height=\"232\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"><strong><strong>Live Timid and Die  Neutered:<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Alright, I think we all know that my major complaint with this film  is the watering-down of the notoriously R-Rated series, and subsequent  neutering of gunshots, violence, swear-words, tobacco use, gore,\u00a0 sound effects*, and basically everything else HARD about  the series. And thus, this version of the film did not, at all, feel  like a &#8220;<strong>Die Hard<\/strong>&#8221; film. And while that statement alone should be enough to  validate my rage toward the studio, here are a couple more things that  stuck in my ass like a shard of machine-gunned glass&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>The Tag-line: Yippee Ki Yay Mo \u2013 John 6:27. How  embarrassing.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u2018Yippee Kai Yay, Mother F[KABOkOMr]\u2019<\/strong>. Q. Are  films not allowed one usage of the fuck word per PG-13  movie? That is the rule, right? I listened and they didn\u2019t use it. Sooo  why did they have to falcon up  THE god damn catch phrase!? Was the -ER at the end too controversial to  have  attached?\u00a0 I don\u2019t understand and I can&#8217;t fucking believe that FOX actually forced this to happen. How fucking could\/dare they? For fucking shame. Those corporate fuckers can <span style=\"text-decoration: line-through;\">%#*&amp;@%#(*#&#8230;.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Kevin Smith. Kevin  hasn\u2019t been funny in a movie since <strong>Mallrats<\/strong>, and now that I&#8217;m no  longer a teenager, even that movie is stretching it. But this is besides  the point. The point, or rather question is, why does every movie made  this millennium need to have  an overweight, unfunny dork in it? The War10ck sucked, OK. And this is  coming from a guy who\u2019s favorite non-action movie is <strong>Clerks.<\/strong>.  Look, I understand that Len Wiseman and Smith are buddies, but sometimes  you have to think about for the good of the film and not how cute it&#8217;ll  be to interject your pals into an action movie that they have no  fucking business being a part of. Not to mention, as a self-proclaimed  fan of the series, Smith should have fucking known fucking better.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8495   aligncenter\" title=\"Clown Shoes\" src=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Clown-Shoes-1.jpg\" alt=\"Clown Shoes\" width=\"546\" height=\"233\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Clown-Shoes-1.jpg 546w, https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Clown-Shoes-1-300x128.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 546px) 100vw, 546px\" \/><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"><strong> <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">*Yes, oddly fucking enough, the MPAA actually made them quiet down the   violent  noises&#8230;<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"><strong>The Common Good:<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The Protagonists: Once again, John McClane, no matter how much they  fuck with his character, I still love him and I\u2019m just as surprised as you that I  actually  liked Justin Long as Matt. Rather than getting on my nerves as I all but guaranteed  myself he  would, I found him quite funny. Plus, the reasons they give  for him  being McClane\u2019s sidekick are valid and make sense within the  context of  the stupid story. And, unlike Smith, he wasn\u2019t just thrown  in for the  lulz. And then there&#8217;s Lucy McClane. Holly may be gone for good, but at least we get  another form of familiar female family bullshit. Like her mother before  her, Lucy can&#8217;t much stand John. But, unlike her mother, she\u2019s just like him despite her  disgust. Except arguably hotter. Arguably. Her hard-ass (in every sense of the term) exterior never came across as a fa\u00e7ade, even when it  became apparent that she was still a vulnerable young lady (read: when she got slapped and whimpered). Now, if we  can only get John Jr. in a police uniform for Part 5\u2026<\/p>\n<p>The Antagonists (Minus Gabriel): McClane has to take down a small  team of  mercenaries?&#8230; Wow. What an original idea! No. No, it isn\u2019t. And that\u2019s precisely  why it\u2019s so  great!!! This shit is classic <strong>Die Hard<\/strong>. <strong>Live Free<\/strong> arguably has  the most memorable henchmen since Al Leong stole that candy bar in part  one. First you have parkour master, Cyril Raffaelli (<strong>Banlieue 13,<\/strong> <strong>Kiss  Of The Dragon<\/strong>) as Rand. The guy is French and clearly doesn\u2019t speak  English, but he never needs to as his urban-gymnastic background and  martial arts skills speak for themselves. And then there&#8217;s Maggie Q (<strong>M:I3<\/strong>,  <strong>Dragon Squad<\/strong>) as Asian ass-kicker babe, Mai. She\u2019s gorgeous, formidable and, as already established, her  fight with McClane is my  favorite sequence in the film and for these reasons and more, she should have been the main villain.<\/p>\n<p>The Action and the Puppeteer: When you think <strong>Die Hard<\/strong> the term   \u2018action\u2019 becomes synonymous, and thankfully Mr. Kate Beckinsale didn\u2019t  fuck this up like he did that <strong>Underworld<\/strong> movie. The explosions,  fight-scenes and gunfire are done in glorious non-shaky fashion and  still contain enough grit as not  to stray too far from the Die-Hard mold. The one thing I made peace with  was that this, as like the other two sequels, was going to be made with  a bigger-is-better mentality, so I wasn&#8217;t much annoyed with all the  ridiculous super-man shit they had McClane do. So, for the restrictions  given him, Wiseman  did a pretty good job. He\u2019s still no McTiernan or Harlin though. Even after <strong>Rollerball<\/strong> and <strong>Driven<\/strong>. And <strong>Mindhunters<\/strong>&#8230; AND <strong>12 Rounds<\/strong>&#8230; Alright, fuck it. Wiseman is a better directer than Harlin. Sorry Renny, I tried but you did that shit to yourself, man.<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"><strong>The Mother Fucking  Unrated Edition:<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8496 aligncenter\" title=\"Could I Love Rantbo More...\" src=\"http:\/\/www.allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/Could-I-Love-Rantbo-More....jpg\" alt=\"Could I Love Rantbo More...\" width=\"546\" height=\"232\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Well, like the title above says, McClane actually gets to say THE  FUCKing line. And thankfully, a bunch more fuck-bombs accompany the  famous one and replace the three-or-so allowed uses of the word shit.  However, McClane still doesn\u2019t smoke though.<\/p>\n<p>Squibs, remember those? They were these small (or in the case of a  Verhoeven picture, LARGE) primed packets of blood and guts used in  action  movies back before 1996 (and <strong>ID4<\/strong>)* that when triggered,  exploded through clothing to emphasize the violent acts committed  against the actor or stunt-man wearing them in order to create the  illusion of wounds and\/or death. Well, it turns out that  Wiseman and Willis waxed nostalgic and actually filmed <strong>Live Free<\/strong>&#8216;s  shootouts  with alternate takes featuring these little bundles of explosive gory  joy. And thank fuck they did, because it brings back the balls to the  title of <strong>Die  Hard<\/strong>. Even the wall squibs got an upgrade and were featured in a more  destructive light. And they really do make all the difference, you guys. A \u2018Yippee Kai Yay, Mother Fucker\u2019 and some bang, bang\u2013blood. Is  that so much to ask for, for a theatrical <strong>Die Hard<\/strong> adventure?<\/p>\n<p>*Ironically enough, this  movie takes place on Independence Day, so fuck  Will Smith. Just thought  I\u2019d throw that out there.<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"> <\/span><\/h3>\n<p>In closing, before all the added viscera and cursing, I gave <strong>Live Free Or Die Hard<\/strong> a 4 outta 10. I  was\/still kinda am, pissed about the whole situation. But after  watching the DVD a couple times, I have a much more positive perspective  on the film. While I\u2019d still say it is my least favorite of the series,  it has since grown on me and the things that bothered me before, bother  me far less. No matter how much my inner-action purist heart tells me to, I just can&#8217;t not enjoy watching Bruce Willis as John McClane. Whether he&#8217;s running across broken-glass barefoot, getting blown out of a green-screen cockpit, swinging onto a freighter like Tarzan, or even sliding down a slab of concrete away from a CG F-35 Jet explosion, he&#8217;s far too bad-ass for me to question his coolness. So, if I were to re-rate the film after watching  the changes  made in the Unrated Cut, I\u2019d give it a 7 outta 10. Still put to shame when compared with it&#8217;s predecessors, but still far better than anything Michael Bay  or Paul Greengrass have, or ever will put out, and that&#8217;s good enough for me.<\/p>\n<h2><strong><strong><strong><strong><span style=\"color:  #ff0000;\">[THE  MORAL OF THE STORY]<\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>#1. I&#8217;ll watch anything with Bruce Willis in it, despite any and all reservations.<br \/>\n#2. The PG-13 rating can suck my scrote in Hell.<br \/>\n#Vengeance. Kevin Smith needs to stick to Q&amp;A&#8217;s and outta films.<br \/>\n#4.0. I&#8217;d like to watch Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Maggie Q commit a 587 together.<\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><strong><span style=\"color:  #ff0000;\">[THE  AOBG ACTION CHECKLIST]<\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/h1>\n<h3><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong>[X]  Athlete(s) Turned \u201cActor\u201d <\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>[<span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">Cyril  Raffaelli<\/span>]<br \/>\n<strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong> [X]  Clinging To The Outside Of A Moving  Vehicle<br \/>\n[\u00a0 ] Crotch Attack<br \/>\n[X] Dialogue Telling Us How Bad-Ass The Main Character(s) Is\/Are<br \/>\n[X] Ending Featuring An Ambulance, A Blanket or A Towel<br \/>\n[X] Factory\/Warehouse\/Castle<br \/>\n[X] Giant Explosion(s)<br \/>\n[X] Heavy Artillery<br \/>\n[X] Improvised Weapon(s)<br \/>\n[X] Macho Mode(s) Of Transportation<br \/>\n[X] Main Character Sports Facial Accessory(s)<br \/>\n[\u00a0 ] Manly Embrace(s)<br \/>\n[X] Notorious Stunt-Man Sighting<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><strong> [<span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">Cyril Raffaelli<\/span>]<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong> [\u00a0 ]  Passage(s) Of Time Via Montage<br \/>\n[X] Politically Fueled Plot Point(s)<br \/>\n[X] Senseless Destruction Of Property<br \/>\n[X] Shoot Out(s) and\/or Sword Fight(s)<br \/>\n[X] Slow-Motion Finishing Move(s)\/Death(s)<br \/>\n[\u00a0 ] Stupid Authoritative Figure(s)<br \/>\n[\u00a0 ] Substance Usage and\/or Abuse<br \/>\n[X] Tis The Season<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><strong> [<span style=\"color: #ffff00;\">Independence Day<\/span>]<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong> [\u00a0 ]  Torture Sequence(s)<br \/>\n[\u00a0 ] Unnecessary Sequel<br \/>\n[X] Vehicle Chase(s)<br \/>\n[X] Vigilante Justice<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><strong><span style=\"color:  #ff0000;\">[TOTAL: 18 outta 25]<\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/h1>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8505 aligncenter\" title=\"What Do You Mean You &quot;Didn't Like&quot; Hitman?...\" src=\"http:\/\/www.allouttabubblegum.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/07\/So-Mary-Wanna-Go-See-HITMAN-With-Me-Ive-Got-A-Free-Ticket....jpg\" alt=\"So Mary, Wanna Go See HITMAN With Me, I've Got A Free Ticket...\" width=\"546\" height=\"338\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ffff00;\"><strong>Live Free Or Die Hard (2007) \u00a9 Twentieth Century Fox  Film Corporation and Dune Entertainment LLC \/ Review \u00a9  AllOuttaBubbleGum.com and Ty &#8216;RANTBO&#8217; Hanson<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[THE CHALK-OUTLINE] Live Free Or Die Hard (2007): Breakdown by RANTBO Bitter Old-Man McClane teams up with a computer nerd to kill mother f-ers and get his daughter back. Or, get his daughter back and kill mother f-ers. [THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THEIR BADASSITUDE] THE HEROES: Bruce Willis is Detective John McClane 4.0 McClane: &#8230; <a title=\"AMB: LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD (2007)\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/amb-live-free-or-die-hard-2007\/\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">AMB: LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD (2007)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8481","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8481","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8481"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8481\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8481"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8481"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allouttabubblegum.com\/new-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8481"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}