Wainy316 Posted December 24, 2021 Share Posted December 24, 2021 Usually a Christmas movie would be released around Christmas, Die Hard was released in July. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Follyfoot Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 7 hours ago, Designer1 said: It isn't a Xmas movie. It's a movie set at Xmas. Fwiw, I think it's pretty much a flawless action movie. I first saw it at the cinema on release (yep I'm that old) and it was pretty groundbreaking at the time, but admittedly there have been better action movies since which may be why you felt it was run of the mill? For me it's still iconic, and it never quite feels like Xmas until Alan Rickman has fallen off Nakatomi Plaza. I distinctly remember being able to smoke in the cinema when I went to see it 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rds1983 Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 30 minutes ago, Wainy316 said: Usually a Christmas movie would be released around Christmas, Die Hard was released in July. Not sure release date is the defining factor, quick Google says Miracle on 34th Street was released June 11th and Titanic released December 19th. There doesn't seem to be a single Christmas movie in the Top 100 box office releases for December. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomav84 Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 for me it's the plot. if the plot is centered around christmas then it's a christmas film (i.e. home alone was all based on the mcallisters going away for the holidays, and they reunite on christmas day.) christmas barely gets a mention in die hard and if it wasn't mentioned at all or was set in a different time of the year, it would still be the same film. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Follyfoot Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 40 minutes ago, tomav84 said: for me it's the plot. if the plot is centered around christmas then it's a christmas film (i.e. home alone was all based on the mcallisters going away for the holidays, and they reunite on christmas day.) christmas barely gets a mention in die hard and if it wasn't mentioned at all or was set in a different time of the year, it would still be the same film. Maybe, but you get a Christmas song at the end of die hard so it is a Christmas movie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post fightoffyour Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Popular Post Share Posted December 24, 2021 (edited) Take away the Germans with mullets and MP5s, then Die Hard is a simple story about a man overcoming adversity to spend Christmas with his loved ones. Edited December 24, 2021 by fightoffyour Weapons-grade accuracy 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Follyfoot Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 Just now, fightoffyour said: Take away the Germans with mullets and AK-47s, then Die Hard is a simple story about a man overcoming adversity to spend Christmas with his loved ones. Nailed it 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holteendhero Posted December 24, 2021 Share Posted December 24, 2021 Both Die Hard and Home Alone have the same plot. Robbers use the Christmas period to rob places that will be empty and are stopped by one person. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tegis Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 3 hours ago, Rds1983 said: What makes a movie a Christmas movie? Argyle, the limo driver 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fightoffyour Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 4 minutes ago, Tegis said: Argyle, the limo driver 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theboyangel Posted December 24, 2021 Share Posted December 24, 2021 41 minutes ago, Tegis said: Argyle, the limo driver Definitely a Christmas song! it samples the ridiculously brilliant Back Door Santa by Clarence Carter - a bonafide Yuletide classic 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rds1983 Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 2 hours ago, tomav84 said: for me it's the plot. if the plot is centered around christmas then it's a christmas film (i.e. home alone was all based on the mcallisters going away for the holidays, and they reunite on christmas day.) christmas barely gets a mention in die hard and if it wasn't mentioned at all or was set in a different time of the year, it would still be the same film. Die Hard mention Christmas a lot. There's a Christmas party going on, they say it's Christmas Eve, Argyle plays Christmas music, he writes Ho Ho Ho on a dead body. If the McAllisters went on a summer holiday it would be the same film. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eidolon Posted December 24, 2021 Share Posted December 24, 2021 5 hours ago, Rds1983 said: What makes a movie a Christmas movie? Being specifically a situation ABOUT Christmas IMO, it’s all very subjective but for me Die Hard is a movie set at Christmas whereas something like IDK A Christmas Carol is a Christmas movie. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rds1983 Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 11 minutes ago, Eidolon said: Being specifically a situation ABOUT Christmas IMO, it’s all very subjective but for me Die Hard is a movie set at Christmas whereas something like IDK A Christmas Carol is a Christmas movie. Fair enough but using that metric there's potentially an argument to say films such as Love Actually, It's A Wonderful Life etc aren't Christmas movies, they just happen to be set at Christmas. You could also argue and say Christmas Carol isn't about Christmas, it's about a man realising the error of his ways and becoming a better person through seeing his past, present and future. Swap Christmas Day for his birthday, New Year's or Easter and you've got the same effect. Christmas is just a convenient setting. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomav84 Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 21 minutes ago, Rds1983 said: Die Hard mention Christmas a lot. There's a Christmas party going on, they say it's Christmas Eve, Argyle plays Christmas music, he writes Ho Ho Ho on a dead body. If the McAllisters went on a summer holiday it would be the same film. must have missed all those references then! home alone would so not be the same film at all...christmas is featured heavily in the film, plus harry and marv use the automatic christmas lights to identify which houses are empty. the whole plot around home alone 2 was centred around harry and marv robbing the toy shop on christmas eve cause it's when it'll have the most money Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rodders Posted December 24, 2021 Share Posted December 24, 2021 My criteria for an Xmas film changes year on year. Sometimes it's as vague as 'stars Bill Murray' or as broad as 'originally released in the 1980s' 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rds1983 Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 6 minutes ago, tomav84 said: must have missed all those references then! home alone would so not be the same film at all...christmas is featured heavily in the film, plus harry and marv use the automatic christmas lights to identify which houses are empty. the whole plot around home alone 2 was centred around harry and marv robbing the toy shop on christmas eve cause it's when it'll have the most money They could tell the empty houses by seeing which ones curtains don't change, more realistic then automatic lights which most people use. Change it to Thanksgiving and shops being flush after Black Friday. Christmas is a convenient plot device and could easily be swapped out in Home Alone, as they do in Home Alone 3. For what it's worth, I'm on the fence about Die Hard being a Christmas film and can see arguments both ways. I just wonder why it gets singled out so much when so many other films (with similar issues) don't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Albrighton Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 On the subject of Die Hard/Home Alone etc being Christmas films I share a similar view to Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart did about pornography which was basically “I can’t define it, but I know it when I see it”. So “It’s a Wonderful Life”, the majority of that doesn’t take place at Christmas. But it is clearly a Christmas film. Despite it’s setting, “Die Hard” isn’t really a Christmas film (ditto “Home Alone”). But if you want to think of it as such, then that’s fine with me. It’s the season of goodwill and I suspect it’s what Hans Gruber would have wanted. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fightoffyour Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 There isn’t seriously a discussion about whether or not Home Alone is a Christmas film? I thought that was being used to make a point about Die Hard being one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Albrighton Posted December 24, 2021 VT Supporter Share Posted December 24, 2021 19 minutes ago, fightoffyour said: There isn’t seriously a discussion about whether or not Home Alone is a Christmas film? I thought that was being used to make a point about Die Hard being one. Home Alone isn’t a Christmas film, I agree. Home Alone 2 : Lost in New York obviously is though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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