Die Hard is a Christmas Movie?

[Dan Gould]

And if you do think Die Hard is a Christmas movie, please show your work.

[kinuta]

Both 1 & 2 are set at Xmas.

Maybe the producers thought using Let it Snow was a cute gimmick and thought they'd try their luck one more time.

I can't by any stretch of the imagination see how anyone could think they are Xmas movies.

[sonnymax]

You can even gift it!

[Dan Gould]

2 hours ago, sonnymax said:

You can even gift it!

Now that's funny but it still doesn't make it a Christmas movie. 

[xybert]

Setting movies that aren’t about Christmas during Christmas seems to have been particularly popular in the eighties/early nineties (off the top of my head: Trading Places, Rocky 4, Lethal Weapon... Home Alone to a certain extent).

I voted yes but personally i think it’s a bit of a stretch. 

Actually watched Die Hard a couple of days ago. Seriously, it’s nigh on perfect. Surely there are few films that are more satisfying and just flat out entertaining. Willis is perfect, everyone is brilliantly cast. Every single character is just brimming with charisma. Reminds me of Predator in that regard (also directed by John McTiernan). Is casting action movies a lost art? You just can’t make these movies with Jai Courtney and Sam Worthington.

[Bill Nelson]

The Xmas tie-in is a deliberate marketing decision to ensure seasonal replays in perpetuity.  In the same vein, studios finance movie projects which involve wacky, off-kilter weddings.  The above themes play on warm fuzzy feelings which audiences will reach for with their wallets.  

[Kevin Bresnahan]

11 hours ago, sonnymax said:

You can even gift it!

Let me guess - at the NRA gift shop?

[Dan Gould]

11 hours ago, xybert said:

Setting movies that aren’t about Christmas during Christmas seems to have been particularly popular in the eighties/early nineties (off the top of my head: Trading Places, Rocky 4, Lethal Weapon... Home Alone to a certain extent).

I voted yes but personally i think it’s a bit of a stretch. 

 

Interesting you mention these others. All I know about Home Alone is that the end has Costanza crying on Seinfeld, much to Jerry's dismay.  That tells me its a Christmas movie because there's actual heart-tugging go on.

Here's a rule:

Cartoonish movie violence - might be a Christmas movie.

Multiple brutal deaths by gunshot, C-4 explosives, surface-to-surface missiles and 80 story fall - does not qualify as a Christmas movie.

[B. Clugston]

Ha! My cousin and I used to watch Die Hard on Christmas Day.

[bluenoter]

I know that Die Hard is a Christmas movie because many years ago, a friend played it for me at Christmastime and told me so. Ditto for Die Hard 2. I'd never seen them before, and I haven't seen them since.

[Scott Dolan]

I only saw the first one once when I was a teenager. I don’t even recall it being set around Christmas time...

I’m not a fan of the blockbuster blow ‘em ups. 

[JSngry]

Best Christmas Movie ever, except maybe...what?

 

[catesta]

19 hours ago, JSngry said:

Best Christmas Movie ever, except maybe...what?

 

Hell yeah! Thanks for posting this dude. I was just telling my wife the other night that nobody does great Christmas commercials anymore and specifically referenced Norelco.

Coke did some good ones too.

Best Christmas movie for me though, is Christmas Vacation.

"Where do you think you're going? Nobody's leaving. Nobody's walking out on this fun, old-fashioned family Christmas. No, no. We're all in this together. This is a full-blown, four-alarm holiday emergency here. We're gonna press on, and we're gonna have the hap, hap, happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tap-danced with Danny fucking Kaye. And when Santa squeezes his fat white ass down that chimney tonight, he's gonna find the jolliest bunch of assholes this side of the nuthouse."

[Scott Dolan]

 

[mjazzg]

Looks like someone's been following this thread

https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2017/dec/21/die-hard-christmas-movie-bruce-willis

[xybert]

I think it helps that, apart from being an excellent movie, it's such a feel good, comfort food movie for i guess a lot if us. I feel like regardless of Christmas it's one of those perennial favourite movies that they used to play on TV a lot here during the summer/Christmas holidays. It just has that 'it's that time of year' feel to it for me.

It's schedule to play on Christmas night on one of the free-to-air channels here, but at this point i think it's become a bit of a too on the nose meme rather than an un-ironic organic thing.

[GregK]

it's not even that good of a movie. overrated and definitely not a Christmas movie

[Soulstation1]

 

[JSngry]

https://www.axios.com/americas-favorite-christmas-movies-2519380482.html?utm_medium=linkshare&utm_campaign=organic

[Dan Gould]

I think I should be grateful that at least on this site, the correct answer is at least neck-and-neck with the ridiculous one.

So to paraphrase John McClane, "Merry Christmas, motherfucker!"

[Dan Gould]

Up, because of this:

My own observations:

It's f-ing annoying the way this is shot.

It's way the f more annoying what this guy believes.  "How" it became a Christmas movie, according to him, is ludicrous. It's a "Christmas" movie to some people because of the setting, music, and that message scrawled on the sweatshirt.

Now this gets deep into politics so opinions will vary, but I know this:

I have no desire to watch Die Hart for the 250th time. I'm done.

This man has a net worth of $5 million dollars. He did quite well for himself in the unregulated capitalism of Hollywood, where they shamelessly kowtow to true authoritarians/evil MFers in China.  Maybe I missed it when he said something about the willingness of Hollywood to look the other way so they can do business with China?

Oh and did anyone know that he served time in Federal prison for perjury and lying to an FBI agent? I bet the thought they were authoritarians too. I didn't look for further details so if anyone wants to enlighten me about the circumstances, feel free.

Your thoughts?

[Kevin Bresnahan]

On 12/25/2017 at 4:49 AM, Dan Gould said:

I think I should be grateful that at least on this site, the correct answer is at least neck-and-neck with the ridiculous one.

So to paraphrase John McClane, "Merry Christmas, motherfucker!"

I prefer "Yip-ee ki-yay mudda fuccah" with a fake German accent. RIP Professor Snape.

[Dub Modal]

It's an xmas movie to me. Not wading into politics, geo or otherwise. If it was a marketing move, and it likely was, then it was very well done. As mentioned above from a post about 2 years ago other action movies and non-traditional holiday movies like Lethal Weapon have that xmas setting, but DH 1 & 2 weave it into the story (1 more so than 2) very well. Lethal Weapon, etc fall way short. Sometimes the marketing wizards get it right and they did with this one. 

[porcy62]

Over here Landis’ Trading Places got the job as Christmas Movie replacing the classic Capra’s It’a a wonderful life.