Return to Dylan Wickliffe's Blog December 02, 2022

Die Hard is NOT a Christmas Movie: 5 Reasons Why

die-hard-is-not-a-christmas-movie

It's that time of year again! The time when everyone pulls out their favorite Christmas movies to watch and get in the holiday spirit. However, there is always that one person who tries to ruin the fun by insisting that Die Hard is a Christmas movie. Here are 5 reasons why they are wrong.

Disclaimer #1: Die Hard is an awesome action movie! Peak 90's cinema. There's no reason to force it into a box.

Disclaimer #2: Die Hard is absolutely a movie set in Christmas time—but that does not inherently make it a Christmas movie.

Reason #1: Christmas is a minor detail of the movie.
Die Hard takes place in Los Angeles, California... on Christmas Eve. So what? With the exception of a couple lines in the script, this story remains unchanged if it takes place in July. It could be an annual company mid-year party or an IPO offer that brings the team to HQ. It just so happened to be a Christmas Party. Without Christmas, there is no "Elf" or "How the Grinch Stole Christmas". Without Christmas, there is absolutely still a Die Hard.

Reason #2: There's No Santa
One of the things that really makes a Christmas movie a Christmas movie is Santa Claus. And Die Hard has zero Santas. In fact, the closest thing to Santa in Die Hard is Hans Gruber (played by the late, great Alan Rickman), and he's more of a Grinch than a jolly old Saint Nick. No Santa = not a Christmas movie. Period. Okay, there may be exceptions but this is an egregious missing piece.

Reason #3: There's No Christmas Music
Uh DyLaN tHeRe iS a ToN oF ChRisTmAs MuSiC aCtuAlLy. Stop it. Another key ingredient in any self-respecting Christmas movie is a healthy dose of holiday music. And while Die Hard does have some festive scenes set to traditional Christmas carols, they're mostly diegetic (that is, coming from within the scene itself) rather than non-diegetic (coming from outside the scene), which is how most popular Christmas movies choose to do it. This lack of traditional holiday music makes Die Hard feel more like an action movie with a few holiday touches here and there, rather than an all-out Christmas extravaganza.

Reason #4: Bruce Willis Is Barely in It
Bruce Willis is the star of Die Hard... but he's not in it that much. In fact, for nearly half the movie, his character John McClane is not even on screen! And when he is on screen, he's not exactly spreading holiday cheer - he's busy being chased by terrorists, getting shot at, and blowing stuff up. Not exactly what we think of when we think "Christmas." This is an action movie, a very good one! one that, again, doesn't need to be crammed into the Christmas Movie box.

Reason #5: There's Too Much Death
Entirely too much death for a Christmas movie. Now to be fair, A Charlie Brown Christmas also has its fair share of death (remember when Snoopy nearly burned down Charlie Brown's tree?), but it's usually offset by uplifting scenes and messages about the true meaning of Christmas. Die Hard, on the other hand, seems to revel in death and destruction, with multiple explosions and shootouts resulting in dozens of casualties. Not exactly feel-good viewing for the holidays!


So there you have it - 5 reasons why Die Hard is NOT a Christmas movie. So please, next time someone tries to tell you otherwise, set them straight! After all, we don't want anyone ruining our favorite time of year with bogus arguments about festive films!

 

Now get your Hot Cocoa, watch some Christmas movies—or Die Hard. Still a dope movie.

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