What the hell? I did not expect reviews for "Live Free or Die Hard," the fourth film in the "Die Hard" series starring Bruce Willis, to be any good. But Dana Stevens at Slate.com writes, "Though the movie's at least 20 minutes too long, it's deeply satisfying, full of old-school buddy banter and the kind of action sequences that make you burst out laughing at their sheer audacity." Kenneth Turan of The Los Angeles Times agrees, "Yet despite considerable odds, not only does McClane stay alive, his movie does too. Inevitable lapses in plausibility and an inflated two-hour, nine-minute running time aside, "Live Free or Die Hard" is a slick and efficient piece of action entertainment, fast moving with energetic stunt work and nice thriller moves." Lou Lemenick of The New York Post writes that the film is "energetically directed by Len Wiseman (“Underworld”), from being a lot of fun and one of the season’s better sequels." Manohla Dargis of The New York Times admits that while John McClane "has lost his hair, his foul mouth and apparently his nicotine itch, but he still has the same knack for trouble, the adrenaline-pumping, cheerfully anarchic kind that causes cars to ignite, bodies to fly, eardrums to pop and hearts to race and gladden."
