Is Die Hard a Christmas Film?

Hello Reader, this is Chloe.

As the Christmas season is approaching fast, there is the inevitable question of what to get your friends and family for Christmas (there's only so many golf shirts you can by a Dad, and I surpassed that last year...) and the stress of decorating the tree (it is a stressful endeavour in a family of perfectionists). But one thing that is never a question, is how to relax- its obvious isn't it- fluffy socks, a warm fire and, of course, a Christmas film. I will happily sit and watch the same Christmas movies each year, mug of hot chocolate in my hand, without shame- The Grinch, A Christmas Carol, It's A Wonderful Life- you get the picture. Despite this, every year, the same debate appears on the internet, and I try to shake the nagging feeling that I watch the film and and make up an opinion, yet I never have...

So this year, I took action.  

It's a debate I'm sure you're all aware of and most likely want to see the end of- Is Die Hard a Christmas film?

-- SIDE NOTE-- If you haven't watched the film, I suggest you watch it before reading this because this post contains a lot of spoilers. 

I think to tackle this debate, we first have to define what a Christmas film actually is. What is the criteria? Of course, there isn't exactly an objective answer to this, so I had to make my own. To me, all Christmas films seem to have the same themes and ideas that allow them to fall into that genre: a title that has some link to Christmas; set at Christmas or around the vicinity of Christmas; themes of redemption, love and family; the main characters learn valuable life lessons (think A Christmas Carol); contains Christmas music, Christmas trees and an obnoxious amount of decorations; has something to do with Christmas itself; and finally, a happy ending. 

So let's go through and see what applies. I think it's very easy to take one look at the title of the film and say that it has no relation to Christmas at all. Nothing about dying hard screams Christmas to me, and I think it would be a pretty rough Christmas if that is what it involved. Simple answer to the first part of the criteria- no, not a link to Christmas at all. 

I think the fact that the events of the film take part on Christmas Eve is the biggest argument for this film counting as a Christmas film. It is clear from the start that this film takes part well within the Christmas season. Once again, a simple answer, but this one is a yes. 

The next point about the themes of the film is up for discussion however, as clearly there are themes of family and love, as John is coming home to his family and is in a building trying to save his wife from some German terrorists... Wow, what a sentence... So yes, clearly the film has the needed themes of family and love- but what about redemption? John McClane kills pretty much all of the terrorists so I don't think they really get the chance for redemption. But hey, I guess the film can miss one box if it ticked the other two. 

Now this is where it gets tricky as the film does not exactly follow a Christmas Carol style character arc. After a lot of thought, I decided that the only character who seemed to learn some sort of life lesson is Officer Powell who finds his ability to shoot again after his accident. That then begs the question of 'is the film saying that shooting people is good?' because I don't really think that is a very Christmassy message to be promoting...

The next one is easy as Christmas music and decorations are hard to miss in a film that involves shooting, bombs and hostages. There are multiple times in the film where Christmas decorations can be seen as John is stalking around the vacated floors of the Nakatomi Plaza. Along with this, Christmas music can be heard more than once in the film, including the first and last scenes, and also, the music playing in the car on the way to the Christmas party is actually Christmas music, albeit unconventional, it is still Christmas music nonetheless. There are also many nods towards the Christmas season within the film, one of them being that John's wife's name is Holly, a plant associated with the season, and. this is backed up. even further by the fact that (sorry big spoilers) they have divorced and she is long gone by the fourth film in the franchise which is no longer set at Christmas. Also, Hans Gruber mentions the fact that it is Christmas many times, along with miracles, and, if we really want to push it, I guess you could say. that the idea of them having to break into the safe is almost metaphorical unwrapping a present. But I think that's quite a push. The biggest reference within the action is when John sends the dead terrorist down the elevator with a Santa hat on and the message on his sweatshirt that reads "now I have a machine gun. Ho Ho Ho". The evidence here is undeniable. 

This part is really where I feel the film starts to fall off the genre slightly. One of the biggest things that points to this not being a Christmas film is the fact that the entire plot has nothing to do with Christmas. In fact, Christmas has no impact on the narrative at all. This isn't the case for other Christmas films, and you don't need to think about if they are a Christmas film or not ; The Grinch steals Christmas; Arthur has to save Christmas for a child; Scrooge has to welcome Christmas... It really isn't a question for all of these films as Christmas plays a massive part in the plot. That can't be said for Die Hard. If I were to play devil's advocate I would say that the only reason John is there is because it is Christmas, but who's to say it wouldn't just be a lucky chance that he ended up there at the same time as Hans Gruber- this is the film world, not the real world. In my opinion, if the events of the film happened on any other day, it wouldn't make a difference. Therefore, having it set at Christmas was a conscious choice, which may place it into the Christmas movie genre. 

Finally, the ending. There is no way to dispute that this film has a happy ending. The terrorists are gone, the hostages are free, and John gets to go home to his children with his wife, knowing the he single handedly saved an entire building of hostages like the badass he is, and enjoy a Christmas Day as a family. 

So the film seems to meet most of my criteria, which means that I do in fact class it as a Christmas film. However, I do believe that this opens Pandora's box... If we class Die Hard as a Christmas film because it's set on Christmas Eve, then what about Batman Returns (1992), The Life of Brian (1979), Rocky IV (1985) Lethal Weapon (1987)? These all take place on or around Christmas, and I don't know about you but I don't class a grown man in black spandex dressed as a bat very Christmassy. If we say that Die Hard is a Christmas movie, does that mean I need to put boxing gloves on the top of my tree? No, I agree, that's too far. But what is it about Die Hard that causes this debate? Why is it not a question for the other films? I don't think I'l ever have the answers to these questions, so maybe that has to be left blank- at least for this year. 

My overall opinion - believe what you want - I think that Die Hard is a Christmas film.