In 4th 'Die Hard,' Willis shows he still packs a punch

"Live Free or Die Hard: Unrated Two-Disc Edition" -- "Live Free or Die Hard," the fourth entry in the "Die Hard" franchise, is easily the second-best flick in the series, though it pales in comparison to the classic original. Here, an older, more grizzled police detective John McClane (Bruce Willis) is ordered to bring in a young computer hacker (Justin Long, the "Mac" guy in those annoying PC-Mac commercials) who's wanted for questioning by the FBI. It seems like a simple errand, until assassins show up with guns blazing, trying to kill the hacker. It's all part of a plan by cyberterrorist Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant) to bring the country to its knees while getting rich in the bargain. There are some fantastic action set pieces in "Live Free or Die Hard," including a police car's mid-air collision with a helicopter (done without the aid of computer effects) and a spectacular old-fashioned fistfight between McClane and Gabriel's kung-fu-master girlfriend. Willis, 19 years older than he was when the first "Die Hard" came out, brings his A-game to these scenes, but he seems a bit bored during the quieter moments. It doesn't help that the script gives him virtually nothing interesting to say (except for his trademark "yippe-ki-yay!" line). Olyphant does what he can with the surprisingly bland villain role, but it left me wishing for a bad guy as charismatic and evil as Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber from the original. The two-disc DVD set includes the theatrical PG-13 cut of the film and an unrated version with more cussing and slightly rougher violence. Also on board are a commentary with Willis and director Len Wiseman and a full-length making-of documentary. (Fox, $34.98)

"Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse" -- Available for the first time on DVD, "Hearts of Darkness" is a fascinating documentary about the making of Francis Ford Coppola's 1979 film about the Vietnam War, "Apocalypse Now." The documentary first aired on Showtime in the early 1990s. It quickly became a sensation, earning repeat airings, a theatrical run and a home-video release on VHS. The movie presents a raw and unvarnished picture of the difficult "Apocalypse Now" production, which took place in the Philippines. The shoot was supposed to last 16 weeks, but it ballooned to more than 200 weeks as Coppola struggled with extreme weather, the unstable political situation in the Philippines and his own crippling doubts about the film, which he believed would be a failure. The on-set footage, all of it shot by Coppola's wife, Eleanor, is often stunningly intimate. We hear Coppola telling Eleanor that the film will bankrupt them (he put up millions of his own money to finance it). We see Martin Sheen, who played the lead role, having a drunken breakdown while in the middle of a scene. (Sheen suffered a near-fatal heart attack soon after.) We see Marlon Brando arrive on set fat and unprepared. "Hearts of Darkness" offers a rare glimpse at the filmmaking process as it truly is, not how it's depicted on most glossy making-of documentaries. The DVD includes a commentary with the Coppolas (they were recorded separately), and a new documentary about the making of Coppola's upcoming film, "Youth Without Youth." (R; Paramount, $24.99)

Also out this week:

• "Nirvana: Unplugged in New York" is the long-awaited DVD release of Nirvana's intense 1993 concert performance on the old "MTV Unplugged" show. Filmed just four months before lead singer Kurt Cobain's suicide, the show includes a nice mix of Nirvana originals and a handful of covers that pay tribute to several of the band's influences (the Vaselines, the Meat Puppets). The DVD includes remixed sound and performances of several songs not included in the original broadcast. (Universal, $19.98)

• I'm not a Trekkie, but I'll be interested to hear what those fans think of the new "Star Trek: The Original Series, Season One" DVD release. This 10-disc set includes all 29 episodes in two formats: standard DVD and the higher-resolution HD-DVD. The episodes have been painstakingly restored, and to my less-than-expert eyes, they look great. (I watched the standard DVD versions.) The set offers a wealth of bonus features that Trekkies should love. But hold on -- the episodes also include some new digital effects (limited mostly to shots of the Enterprise in flight) and a completely re-recorded opening theme. Will fans embrace these changes? (Paramount, $217.99)