McClane remains the resolutely retro flatfoot warrior, but Mark Bomback's screenplay reflects our post-9/11, post-Katrina age where official response in a genuine crisis is assumed to be incompetent and paranoia is a reasonable emotion. Actually, it is not that FBI deputy director Bowman (Cliff Curtis) and his men are incapable of doing their jobs, but when an anthrax scare, a transportation meltdown, and stock market crisis occur simultaneously, they are overwhelmed. Luckily, McClane just happens to be on the way, escorting hacking suspect Matt Farrell (Justin Long) to Washington. He already knows something's up, because somebody's trying hard to kill the kid. Matt himself turns out to be useful when he is able to diagnose the crisis as a "fire sale," a kind of virtual Armageddon where cyber vandals attack transportation, financial systems, and utilities.

Olyphant as the spurned former fed turned terrorist who nurses an operatic dream of revenge lacks the panache of such memorable Die Hard bad boys as Alan Rickman and Jeremy Irons, while the amiable, boyish Long—who has had roles in such films as Dodgeball and Accepted, but who may be better known at the moment for his role as the Mac in a series of clever Apple Computer commercials—makes a sweetly nerdish counterpart to the more physical McClane. Willis' return to the character is certainly a welcome one. This is a role he was born to play, the acerbic working stiff who freely admits fear to Matt while never blinking once the guns start blazing or stuff starts blowing up around him. He is also a throwback to the classic lone hero, a Gary Cooper or John Wayne for the modern era, possessing the same sense of decency but with snappier banter.

As appealing as the characters—even McClane—are, it is action that propels the Die Hard movies and director Len Wiseman does not stint in that department. From the explosive opening minutes straight through to the climax, there is little pause between the gun battles, chase scenes, car crashes, and explosions. There are more pyrotechnics in this movie than in the average Fourth of July fireworks display and while there are impressive instances of CGI—including one setup involving a jet, a big rig, and an elevated roadway—many of the more arresting sequences involve old-fashioned stunt work. There is a welcome human element to this adventure that is missing from so many other action movies now where you are always aware that what we are watching is an actor in front of a green screen. Here, McClane takes a long fall to the pavement, the meeting between body and ground is so visceral that you wince. When he bleeds, you believe it.

Sequels can be such a crap shoot, as this summer's disasters Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End and Evan Almighty have only too horribly demonstrated. But Willis, in gambling that he could successfully revisit the character that made him a true action hero, rolls nothing but sevens. Live Free or Die Hard's plot may be built on a flimsy house of cards that will not bear close inspection, but that character, John McClane, provides the movie with a solid foundation. This is action at its most entertaining and proof that there is a lot of life left in this franchise.