 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Live Free or Die Hard
- Review Date: November 19, 2007
- PG-13
- Genre: Action/Adventure
- 2007
Common Sense Media says
First non-R Die Hard still a big blow-out.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that although this fourth Die Hard movie is the first in the franchise not to get an R rating (which may be more about the culture than the movie itself), it's still full of frequent, noisy, painful-looking violence that yields plenty of injuries and dead bodies. Expect bloody shootings, falls, body smashes, strangulations, punches, slaps, kicks, spectacular car crashes and flips, huge explosions, and ferocious hand-to-hand fights. A boy puts his hand on Lucy's bra during a make-out session; there are also brief cleavage shots and an extended kiss. Language includes an unfinished exclamation of "Yippee-ki-yay, motherf---er," as well as multiple uses of "s--t," "hell," and "ass."
What's the story?
John McClane (Bruce Willis) is back in LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD, full of the retro rightness and righteousness that he's embodied throughout the action-packed series. This installment pits John against a digital world. Nemesis Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant) is a former Department of Defense superstar upset that his warnings about a vulnerable security system and imminent "information war" were ignored. Now he's seeking vengeance by shutting down all computers, aided by some very athletic associates, his girlfriend Mai (Maggie Q), and the Parkour-inspired Rand (Cyril Raffaelli). So he can keep up, John is supplied with a hacker sidekick, Matt (Justin Long), whom Gabriel wants dead. Assigned to deliver Matt to Washington, D.C., John is soon communicating with FBI agent Bowman (Cliff Curtis). When the feds (along with NSA and Homeland Security) can't solve the crisis, John and Matt take up the slack. And John's answers tend to be violent: explosions, collapsing highways, "killing" a helicopter with a car. Throughout the movie, John displays his trademark crudeness (calling Mai nasty names), unflappable tough guy image, as well as his compassion and determination. Though he's committed, as always, to his "job" (still NYPD) as a means to individual identity, John doesn't claim a national or even an ideological affiliation.
Is it any good?
More than the second and third movies, Live Free grapples with John's cowboy machismo. Reviving an action-movie style that's quite opposed to recent technological acrobatics, comic book antics, or wire-work martial arts, Live Free or Die Hard presents John as a manly man who spends most of the movie filthy and bloodied, less desperate and sentimental than 24's Jack Bauer, but equally adept at handling "terrorists," fake or real. He's also great fun to watch, going all scrunchy-faced during amazing stunts.
Live Free gestures toward a flag-waving U.S. patriotism, set as it is around Independence Day. But it's focused on John's particular renegade-ness. Even if he shares Gabriel's irritation at slow-thinking government officials, John is absolutely heroic -- and always right.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about why we love action movies. What is it about filmgoers that we like to see things blow up? Talk with your kids about the difference between real life and fantasy -- even teens (especially if they're driving). Point out that consequences exist -- even if it makes you feel humorless. The fact that violent movies stimulate parts of the brain bears some commentary from the parental units.
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- Teens & kids
Kid, 10 years old
January 5, 2011
AGE
LOVE THE MOVIE WATCH IT
cool!!!!!!!!
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AGE
It is really an action-packed thriller! Might be to violent for younger kids, but is still awsome!
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AGE
Fine for adults / older teens; would not recommend for kids/tweens
Well done movie. But lots of language. Very violent. One inappropriate make-out scene (guy keeps grabbing girl's breast as the kiss)
Overall, I would not recommend for kids or tweens.
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Kid, 12 years old
July 8, 2010
AGE
so cool
loods of blood and every bad word yet cool and booming but shood have ben R
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AGE
Thank God this movie was PG-13 when it came out a couple years ago because it was awesome. The action was great. The unrated version has a lot more cussing. PG-13 version: 8+ unrated version: 12+ because of the cussing.
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AGE
Watch die hard 2
Not as good as the original die hard. But the best in the die hard series is die hard 2.
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Kid, 5 years old
December 4, 2009
AGE
Good movie
Its an amazing movie!
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AGE
not as good as the original 3
In some bits it is boring, it os not anything like the original die hard, much more mild and much less interesting. No concerns for kids.
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| Studio: | Twentieth Century Fox |
| Director: | Len Wiseman |
| Cast: | Bruce Willis, Justin Long, Timothy Olyphant |
| Genre: | Action/Adventure |
| Run time: | 129 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | June 27, 2007 |
| DVD release date: | November 20, 2007 |
| MPAA rating: | PG-13 |
| MPAA explanation: | intense sequences of violence and acintense sequences of violence and action, language and a brief sexual situation. |
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