Is Die Hard a Christmas Movie?
Photo from Rotten Tomatos.
Now that it’s finally the holiday season, many people are spending their free time doing holiday activities: making gingerbread houses, decorating Christmas trees, and of course, watching Christmas movies. For some people, that means watching Die Hard.
Whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie or not has been a discussion since its release in the summer of 1988. It takes place on Christmas Eve in Nakatomi Plaza where John McClane, a cop from New York, has flown to Los Angeles to spend Christmas with his estranged wife, Holly, who works at the Nakatomi Plaza, and their two daughters. The Christmas party at Nakatomi Plaza was interrupted by a group of European terrorists led by Hans Gruber, who planned to steal over $600 million locked in the vault inside the Plaza. The movie follows McClane in action packed scenes as he battles the terrorists and saves civilians.
Many people consider Die Hard to be a Christmas movie because it’s set on Christmas Eve and takes place during a Christmas party. People argue that the movie wouldn’t happen if McClane wasn’t at the Christmas party at Nakatomi Plaza. Holiday songs are played in the background and hummed by characters. There are also holiday references, such as McClane’s wife’s name, Holly, and the iconic line that McClane writes on one of the terrorists he killed: “Now I have a machine gun. Ho ho ho”. It also follows similar themes of other Christmas movies such as family reunion and forgiveness.
Other viewers believe that despite its holiday motifs, Die Hard is solely an action film, not a Christmas film. They think it doesn’t quite capture the "Christmas Spirit” as it’s centered around a cop violently fighting terrorists. Even the creators didn’t intend for it to be a Christmas movie, releasing it in July. Bruce Willis, the star actor, famously said, “‘Die Hard is not a Christmas movie! It’s a g**damn Bruce Willis movie!” People don’t consider it a Christmas movie because it isn’t reliant on Christmas aspects like many other Christmas movies.
No matter your opinion on Die Hard, it doesn’t make it any less enjoyable, during any time of the year. The Christmas setting adds to the humor and entertainment, making it a perfect movie for those who want to watch an iconic action packed movie.
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