Die Hard 4
by Uncanny Antman What is it about? This mixes the best elements of the theatrical version with the ones from the unrated edition for what could have been the best Die Hard movie ever.
member ratings: 
(21 votes, average: 8.67 out of 10, rated)
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Original film name: Live Free Or Die Hard
New film name : Die Hard 4
Film studio name : 20th Century Fox
Edit crew name : Uncanny Antman
Date Original Film Was Released : August, 2007.
Date Edit Was Released : May, 2008.
Original Runtime : 2 hours, 8 minutes.
New Runtime : 2 hours, 1 minute.
Your intention for this fan edit: To mix together my preferred elements from each of the released versions.
Hardware and software information: Premiere, DVDLabPro
Time needed for the edition: 1 week.
Additional download links: Color comparison clip — http://rapidshare.com/files/104392011/DH4.avi
Cuts removed/added/extended :
Note: Unrated Version used as a base for the edit.
- Color corrected entire film. Took out as much of the green tint as possible, and moved skin tones closer to red than yellow. The result isn’t perfect, but it was the best I could manage. My advice would be to download the color correction comparison AVI first…if that’s not to your liking, don’t download the DVD.
- New title card.
- Reversed shot of guy choking McClane, hanging out of car. The original shot made it look as though McClane was backing up, not driving forwards.
- Re-instated Gabriel’s “…Timex watch in a digital age” line from PG13 version.
- When McClane is about to leap from the speeding car, swapped out “…bad fucking idea” for the PG13 version of the line. The Unrated one is an obvious loop that does not match.
- Re-instated “I was out of bullets” line from PG13. The alternate line seems very cumbersome and not particularly “McClane-esque”.
- Re-instated PG13 version of guard being shot. The blood that spatters onto the car is an obvious add-in, not to mention it is not on the car in any other shots.
- Removed scene of McClane and Matt stealing the BMW.
- When driving to West Virginia, removed reference to the car theft.
- Removed McClane’s line, “Fuck being a hero” and re-instated longer shot of McClane not speaking. The line is looped, and badly slotted in where there’s no real ‘space’ for an extra line.
- After Mai kills the plant guard, swapped out bloody consoles for clean ones. (Later shots feature clean monitors, so this edit was purely for continuity.)
- Removed badly looped “Motherfucker!” when McClane is being shot at in elevator shaft. He doesn’t mouth any words at all, let alone yell profanities.
- Removed badly looped “Fuck you, bitch!” line. It doesn’t fit, and detracts from McClane’s triumphant yelling a moment later.
- Removed entire scene of Matt’s badly looped, badly edited whining, (after the plant explodes) and slightly rearranged the sequence of power going out across the country. Now, McClane hasn’t just been standing in the one spot for minutes on end for no reason.
- Removed flight to WAR10CK’s house. Not only is it completely unnecessary, it helps to make it look like McClane and Matt don’t just steal the Kaludis’ car when they leave the house. Now it’s just the car that they arrived in. (I’m pretending that the BMW was destroyed when the power plant went boom.)
- Switched out McClane’s insult of “Hey, Jenny Craig…” for “Hey, Dump Truck…”
- When McClane is being “very impressed with himself” on the net, re-instated reaction shot of Gabriel that was removed from the Unrated for reasons I can’t fathom.
- Used theatrical version of Gabriel’s IT-guy executions to remove crummy CG blood.
- Removed McClane’s line “Gotta get a gun. Keep your eyes open.”
- Removed McClane picking up the wrench that soon disappears. Even Len Wiseman himself jokes about this on the commentary. Why they left it in is anyone’s guess.
- Removed “Did I get a ‘Thank you’, no I got a ‘Fuck you’” I did not use the PG13 version either, (“…Crucified.”) as both are as badly looped as each other.
- Replaced McClane’s “Fuck you” with “Bullshit”.
- Replaced “I’m on my way to bring you a big fuckin’ cheque” with “Sit tight, I got a cheque for you.” (Felt more natural to me, the alternate seems too self-consciously ‘R rated’)
- When McClane enters the refrigerated area, mirror-imaged the shot of Rand below to be right way ’round. They clearly did it to preserve visual continuity, but I actually feel it works better having him directly under McClane, otherwise, McClane should see him too. (Plus, there’s writing on the pipes which draws the eye when they are flipped.)
- Removed “Might wanna think about what to put on your headstone, asshole” — Badly looped, and a crap line. Now, McClane raises the radio to his mouth, but is shot at before he gets a chance to speak.
- When McClane commandeers the semi, removed him looking around the cab and seeing the CB radio. Because…
- Removed McClane using WAR10CK to patch through to FBI. No need for it at all. The next line we hear, “This is Central. We have a patch for Director Bowman.” Tells us all we need to know. Taking the scene out also removes some terrible continuity with the damage to the truck.
- Removed F35 firing the first missile at truck, and freeway collapsing. It just seems too sudden, out of nowhere. The first attack is now as it swoops in front of the truck. This way, the attack escalates…bullets, then missiles.
- Replaced McClane being shot by Gabriel with the PG13 version. The blood in the Unrated is very poorly added.
- Several other extremely minor edits which don’t really bear listing.
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cover art by Uncanny Antman (download here ):
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First things first, I absolutely LOVED the new coloring on this edit. The original pukey looking color scheme was awful. This is how the film should’ve looked in the first place.
Secondly, this edit works a lot better, just from a technical standpoint, than either of the two official cuts. The theatrical version was chock full of poorly done, obvious loops. There were many scenes where characters’ mouths continued to move without any actual dialogue. The unrated cut attempted to fix most of these mistakes but, in the process, managed to create whole new ones. UA was kind enough to go back and fix these errors. He was also kind enough to re-instate the “I was out of bullets” line.
Now, the negatives, through no fault of UA. Live Free or Die Hard is a decent action movie but it’s a TERRIBLE Die Hard movie. The Die Hard franchise used to be about hard-hitting, gritty, realistic action. Each film was allowed ONE ridiculous, over-the-top scene: McClane jumping off the exploding Nakatomi Building tied to nothing but a firehose in Die Hard; McClane ejecting out of an exploding aircraft in Die Hard 2; McClane riding atop a dump truck in fast flowing floods and then shooting out in a geyser in Die Hard with a Vengeance. Unfortunately, director Len Wiseman seems to have only remembered these scenes, as he fills his Die Hard film with more ridiculous, over-the-top moments than the previous Die Hard films. It all starts with that annoying spider-like henchman that leaps all around like Jet Li on crack. It gets real bad with TWO awful CG-infused shots in the tunnel crash: McClane and Matt ducking between two cars while a barrel rolling car smashes down on top of them, followed by a bad looking CG truck hitting the pillar they’re hiding behind. This, of course, all culminates in McClane “killing” a helicopter with a car. Then, we get a fight inside an SUV, held up by elevator cables. Of course, none of that compares to the WORST scene in Die Hard history: McClane vs. the F-35. I HATE this scene with all my passion. Where am I going with this? I would’ve loved to see UA cut out the two awful CG-infused tunnel crash scenes and the F-35 scene. The former are not only ridiculous but amateurish in their effects and the latter would’ve been out of place in a Mission: Impossible movie, and it’s downright insulting in a Die Hard movie. I’d leave in the helicopter gag, as I love the “I was out of bullets” line and it would be hard to edit out and still hold continuity. Plus, like I said, each Die Hard movie is allowed one such scene. Also, cutting out the elevator scene would leave gaping plot holes.
All, a better cut than the two official cuts and the one that probably should’ve shown up as the unrated cut. I would kill for a version 2.0 with the two tunnel crash scenes edited out and the F-35 scene (and all indications of said scene) excised. Check out Spence’s Old Habits Die Hard edit to see a great version of this film without that terrible scene. Another great job, UA, but I feel that your Terminator 3 cut greatly improved over it’s source more than this one did. I wouldn’t expect you to make a cut just for me (and maybe you like those scenes) but that would bring this edit up to the standards of your T3 edit.
Review by Kolpitz — June 9, 2008 @ 8:54 am
Great job once again.
I already loved your T3 edit, and this one is also very good.
First, the color is way better than the original : it feels more “real” and accurate (on the comparison, the DVD seemed blurry)
The film is flawless. I almost didn’t notice any cut (except with Kevin Smith). There was just one moment when it got slow at the middle of the movie (a FBI scene, when they get out of a building i guess)
I just wish you had cut some more scenes with the daughter (too cheesy), and also removed some useless scenes with the geek at the end in the plant.
The FBI is also useless in this movie. You could have removed all the helicopter scenes at the end, and almost every scene with the FBI chief babbling.
Some car scenes with Willis are also quite boring and could have been removed…
But hey, it’s a good job !
I really hope you’ll do an Indiana Jones 4 edit in a few months, cause this movie needs it badly !
Cheers !!!
PS : I really liked the way you incldued your name at the beginning of the movie
Review by bud — June 9, 2008 @ 12:17 pm
The “out of bullets” line to me was a little too James Bond. The unrated line is way more cold-blooded, and “more McClane” in my eyes.
I agree with removing the CG blood – I wish they wouldnt do that to films
Review by GavSalkeld — August 29, 2008 @ 10:23 pm
Great Job UA, I have only seen the Unrated Cut of the film on DVD once because I couldnt bare paying to see a PG-13 DH film in the theatre.
Being a bigger fan of DH2 than most people, I didnt hate the versionof LFoDH I saw on DVD but I did still have a few problems with it.
You however have fixed almost all of these issues and (no negative criticism intended) the only things I had a problem with that still remain on your edit are the “damn hampster” (i just hate his acrobatics) and the “F-35″ as they are both so ‘over-the-top’ and ‘un-die hard’ but the film is easily 80% better than I remember it and I thoroughly enjoyed your version.
If I hadn’t seen the original DVD before I never would have noticed anything missing.
great job!
4.5 out of 5
Review by elbarto1 — September 10, 2008 @ 12:02 am
A good take on the worst of the series. I don’t think it saves the movie from being bad, but it’s a lot less bad than the original.
Review by r8s8fr8 — November 27, 2009 @ 8:17 pm
I for one always enjoyed Live Free or Die Hard, but definitely agree that it was not a “true” Die Hard film. Your edit fixes almost all the problems with the film and makes it even better. I was truly glued to the screen on this edit!
9/10
Review by Neglify — October 1, 2011 @ 7:19 pm
Watched this with my wife. She likes the earlier Die Hard movies, the third one more than the second. I didn’t tell her that we were about to see an edit, and I don’t think she noticed it being re-cut at all.
Now this movie sure wasn’t much to be happy about, but this version makes it bearable and even entertaining. We were both pleased at the end. I just love when the editing can bring out something good in a movie. Very nice work, have to rate it at 9/10.
Review by spelledaren — December 13, 2011 @ 2:28 pm