Now, that Thanksgiving has come and gone, the holiday season is in full swing. We’re only a few weeks away from Christmas day, and you’re starting to see gingerbread and peppermint everywhere. We’re all ready for ABC Family or whatever it’s called to start firing up the Christmas movies on rotation all day err day. But, one film you’re guaranteed not to see on any family channel is Die Hard. Nonetheless, it’s a film that has caused debate every December for as long as I can remember.
I don’t really understand the appeal….just…like…in general, as a movie (Christmas or not). I’ve never been that big of a fan. But, then again, you’re talking to a guy who didn’t really grow up as a movie kid. I’ve missed out on a lot of the so called “classics.” But, if you ask me for my list, regardless of whether I enjoy the film, I certainly would not consider Die Hard a Christmas movie.
Part of me wonders how much of this debate is spurred on by people who actually find Die Hard to be a Christmas movie vs. people who just think it’s cool/funny to suggest Die Hard as a Christmas movie.
I have no problem with either argument, to be honest. If you say it is, fine. That’s your opinion – I won’t argue with you. If you say it isn’t, I’ll say, “yeah, I agree.” That’s another way of saying, I don’t really care about this debate, but I see people talking about it all the time and think this would be good #content.
Let’s see the official synopsis from IMDB:
John McClane, officer of the NYPD, tries to save his wife Holly Gennaro and several others that were taken hostage by German terrorist Hans Gruber during a Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles.
If you can sum an entire movie up into a single sentence, and still have the word ‘Christmas’ show up, I think it’s a key indicator of a Christmas movie. People have a rigidly defined idea of what a Christmas movie is and should be. But, like most things, I don’t believe that means everything has to fit into this single box.
For instance, does anyone not consider Krampus a Christmas movie? It is arguably much more disturbing than Die Hard. Another point – why would they re-run all of the Harry Potter movies during December? Those aren’t explicitly stated Christmas movies. But, people watch them during the Christmas season. So, if Harry Potter can be loosely associated with Christmas, why can’t Die Hard?
In short, I think this is one of those questions that doesn’t have an answer. The answer is what you make it. You want to call Die Hard a Christmas movie, by all means, be my guest. There’s a valid argument for it. Personally, I don’t, and I doubt I will ever watch it throughout this season. But, everyone has their own traditions, their own memories, and their own perspective on the holidays. If it makes you happy, then don’t let me stand in the way of that. Merry Christmas. Yippee ki yay, motherfuckers.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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