Now, I can tell what is immediately running through the minds of the readers as they look at this articles title.  “Die Hard?  A Christmas movie?  How preposterous!  It has lots of murder in it, and not even any Santa Claus.”  Though I can’t deny that there is a ton of murder in it, and a lacking of any form of Saint Nick, I still think that it counts as a Christmas film, for two reasons.

1.  The plot revolves around the fact that it is Christmas.  Officer John McClane (Bruce Willis) is visiting his estranged wife and young kids in L.A., and has to stop to meet his wife at a Christmas party in her office at Nakatomi Plaza.  While there, the building is attacked by some very high-tech thieves, who are bent on stealing the German bearer bonds that are contained in the Nakatomi safe.  So, the only reason why this film exists is because it occurs during Christmas, as John wouldn’t be around if it were not at the holidays.  Plus, the thieves plan revolves around the use of hostages, making the low-security Christmas party in an almost empty building a perfect target.

2.  The general atmosphere of the movie feels very Christmas like.  The music, both in soundtrack and small musical cues, are all composed of Christmas music and jingles that we all recognize from the Christmas season.  The building that the entirety of the film takes place in, which has been set up for a Christmas party, gives off that Christmas spirit as well.

It dispenses the usual action film mentality of the “immortal hero” and makes its lead protagonist vulnerable.  John McClane is alone, with barely any assistance from the police force outside, and is forced to use his own wit to survive.  The creative ways in which he uses his few resources are intuitive and interesting, and the performance given by Bruce Willis creates a charismatic and funny action star.  The main villain, a man named Hans Gruber,  is played by Alan Rickman, who delivers a sinister, but also very charismatic performance.  He wants the people around him to think that he’s an extremely intellectual individual, though he turns out to be just an average crook.  The special effects and action are great too, using the perfected conventional blood and gore effects of the late 1980’s.

So, is it a Christmas movie.  Sure, why not.  I watch it every year around the holidays, and if you haven’t seen it yet, it is one of the best action movies ever made.  I highly recommend it.