Six Reasons ‘Die Hard’ is Absolutely a Christmas Movie

Summary

The article presents six compelling reasons why "Die Hard" qualifies as a Christmas movie.

Abstract

In response to a controversial article by Eric Pierce, the author provides six reasons to cement "Die Hard" as a quintessential Christmas film. The movie features Christmas music, is set during Christmas Eve, centers around an office Christmas party, includes an appearance by Santa, has a formidable villain, and emphasizes the theme of family. The piece humorously compares "Die Hard" to classic holiday films, highlighting the presence of Christmas elements within the action-packed narrative, and ultimately concludes that "Die Hard" is as much a Christmas movie as "It's a Wonderful Life" or "A Christmas Carol."

Opinions

The author believes that the presence of Christmas songs is a key element for a film to be considered a Christmas movie, and "Die Hard" meets this criterion with a mix of traditional and modern holiday tunes.
The setting of "Die Hard" on Christmas Eve is seen as essential, reinforcing its status as a Christmas movie.
The central event of the film, an office Christmas party, is argued to be a unique and time-specific setting that aligns "Die Hard" with other holiday classics like "Love Actually."
The appearance of a character dressed as Santa in "Die Hard," although a dead terrorist, is humorously counted as part of the Christmas theme that is common in holiday movies.
Alan Rickman's portrayal of the villain Hans Gruber is viewed as a formidable Christmas movie antagonist, on par with others in classic holiday films.
The author highlights the theme of family that is central to "Die Hard," with the main character's quest to reunite with his estranged wife Holly reinforcing the movie's Christmas spirit and ties to the holiday.
The article humorously suggests that the effort John McClane makes to save his wife, including running across broken glass, is an extreme representation of the lengths people go to be with family during the holidays.

Right up there with the classics

Image: 20th Century Fox

I originally had no intention of wading into this annual Christmas movie debate, convinced that the question had been definitively answered long ago, but then I read this article by the normally film-savvy Eric Pierce: “Sorry But Die Hard is NOT a Christmas Movie.” I have to wonder if maybe he got into some bad eggnog, since in the same piece he disparages Iron Man 3 (another fine Christmas film, by the way), when we all know that Iron Man was the greatest of all the Avengers.

Because Christmas is a time of giving, I decided it was my festive duty to give Eric six solid reasons why Die Hard is absolutely a Christmas movie. With any luck, he will see the error of his ways and jump off the naughty list in time to keep Santa from bringing him the box set of all of Adam Sandler’s films.

1. The Music. The first requirement for any Christmas film is that it contain Christmas songs; they can be traditional or modern, but they have to be there. In Die Hard we have both, from “Jingle Bells” to “Winter Wonderland” to Run-DMC’s “Christmas in Hollis.” In fact, Die Hard has four Christmas songs (five if you count “Ode to Joy”), while It’s a Wonderful Life contains only two, yet no one questions It’s a Wonderful Life’s place among the greatest Christmas films ever.

2. The Time Period. You can’t have a Christmas movie that doesn’t take place at Christmas, and the entirety of Die Hard takes place on Christmas Eve. Comparing it once again to an accepted Christmas classic, in White Christmas only the opening and final scenes are set during the holidays.

3. The Office Christmas Party. The main setting for the film is an office Christmas party, something that literally cannot happen any other time of year. The office Christmas party is also a key plot point in another Christmas film no one debates, Love Actually. While it is one tradition we’d all probably like to see fade into oblivion so we never have another drunken office hookup we’ll regret later, Die Hard deserves the same respect for this as Love Actually receives.

4. Santa’s Appearance. Santa tends to make some type of appearance in all the great holiday films, from Miracle on 34th Street to Elf. He shows up in Die Hard too, though it is true that their Kris Kringle is a dead terrorist dressed in Santa garb in an elevator. Still counts.

5. A Formidable Villain. You may not have ever considered it, but all great Christmas movies have a great villain. Mr. Potter in It’s a Wonderful Life, Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern in Home Alone, and Lucy Van Pelt in A Charlie Brown Christmas, to name just a few. In Die Hard we get Alan Rickman’s first film role as the German terrorist/robber Hans Gruber, a decade before he became Severus Snape. He even has a Christmas quote: “It’s Christmas, Theo, it’s the time of miracles.”

6. A Time for Family. The very best Christmas films are all about family, no matter how dysfunctional that family may be. Home Alone, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, and The Godfather all center around family. Same with Die Hard, where John McClane goes to extraordinary lengths to save his estranged wife (who in another nod to Christmas is named Holly). You might brave a crowded airport or snow-covered roads to get to your loved ones at Christmas, but until you’ve run barefoot across broken glass and smoked a gaggle of terrorists, you’re an amateur.

There you have it…case closed. Like A Christmas Carol and the Gospel of Luke, Die Hard is as Christmas as it gets.

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