MOVIE REVIEW: Live Free or Die Hard

Some people don't know how to do a sequel. Men in Black II stank. Spiderman III dragged and stank.

Whoever is in charge of the Die Hard series knows how to make a sequel.

There are the usual too-good-to-be-true stunts. There is Bruce Willis, who starts the movie off looking healthy and ends up looking like hell. There is the intelligent, psychopathic mastermind as his nemesis. There is the fish-out-of-water sidekick who ends up being an unlikely hero. Those are standard and what you expect to see in a Die Hard movie.

But now the franchise has gone high-tech. The spies and international intrigue have given way to a local boy with a grudge and an ax to grind. The sidekick is a lanky fellow who looks like he'd be more comfortable fighting over Star Trek memorabilia than bad guys. It's enough of a departure to make the series interesting.

All in all, I really liked this movie. If you like chills and thrills, I expect that you will enjoy it, too.