Before saying anything else about Live Free or Die Hard, I'll have to own up to being predisposed for this kind of stuff. As a kid, I saw Lethal Weapon II at the theater twice in one day, and relished catching a double feature of the Brat Pack in Young Guns and Bruce in the original Die Hard. I freely admit to having a couple Arnold posters on my wall (the cool first Terminator poster with the uber Austrian in shades and that crazy buzz cut, and the one with Ah-nuld in the camoflauge make-up in Commando). Heck, I even dug Bruce Willis as the wisecracking cat burglar in 1991's zany Hudson Hawk.

Which means I'm totally thrilled to report that even for non-movie geeks and/or those who weren't raised in the 1980s, the latest installment of Die Hard is the best pure popcorn flick of summer 2007 thus far. Len Wiseman, the director of the Kate Beckinsale-starring, vampires vs. werewolves action pics Underworld and Underworld: Evolution has done nearly the impossible. He's effectively updated the Die Hard series for the techno-digital generation, while remaining blessedly true to the old-fashioned, analog, everything-can-be-solved with a yippie kai yay and a half-loaded Uzi '80s aesthetic.





More importantly, he's done it with a sense of humor, a (thankfully) non-CGI, action-packed effects bonanza, and some key casting additions. This is a movie you will laugh at and with, and have a lot of fun looking at. Particularly outstanding is Maggie Q from M:I-III, cast here as an incredibly lethal, beautiful hacker / martial artist, who goes mano a mano with Willis in one of several gleefuly over-the-top action bits. And Cyril Raffaelli (of the great indie actioner District B13) is great, too, as another baddie specializing in the amazingly acrobatic building-to-building, flip, punch and all-around kickbutt discipline known as parkour.

Also well-cast are Justin Long as the Gen Y hacker whose contempo views of dinosaur Willis make for some nice, new generation buddy flick interplay; Mary Elizabeth Winstead as hero John McClane's believably feisty twentysomething daughter; and Timothy Olyphant as a smooth-as-silk, metrosexual, ultra-villain.

It all adds up to an easy-to-digest, none-too-serious, ridiculously entertaining good time at the movies. Unlike a lot of this summer's eagerly awaited and underwhelming franchise entries, this one's a legitimate surprise. It's a throwback to old school action that's smart enough to keep up with the times, and dumb enough to serve up its pleasures hot, popped and fully buttered. Sit back, enjoy, and have another Cherry Coke.

More action? Check out our list of the Top 10 Action Heroes. And let us know, who's your favorite action star?