Thursday, December 1, 2011

Die Hard

Die Hard is one of the best movies ever and if you don't agree, you shouldn't be allowed to live in this country.  I'll admit, though, that growing up, I never really thought of it as a Christmas movie.  Sure, it takes place on Christmas Eve, during a Christmas party, the limo driver is listening to "Christmas in Hollis", and there's that whole "now I have a machine gun, ho ho ho" thing, but mostly it's just two straight hours of John McClane and Alan Rickman being totally badass.  There's no Santa Claus, no Christmas-that-almost-wasn't, and no snow.  It takes place in 1980's Los Angeles, a "cultural abyss" (as my boss puts it) in which something like Christmas cannot thrive.

Nonetheless, it has become part of my regular rotation this time of year, and its association with Christmas only got stronger when I attended the annual midnight Christmas Eve screening of it in Manhattan last year wearing a Santa hat and drinking a thermos full of egg nog.  It may not be Miracle on 34th Street, but it's got a happy ending.  And watching William Atherton get punched in the face is enough to get anyone in the Christmas spirit!

1 comment:

  1. Having never seen this movie I had no idea it would be considered a seasonal favorite. I suppose I should watch it now.

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