Pop Culture Movies and More: Die Hard (1988)

New York cop, John McClane, flies to Los Angeles on Christmas Eve to spend the holidays with his family. He arrives at the Nakatomi Corp building in time for his wife's office party. However, little did any of them know that international terrorists had arrived to take over the building, holding everyone hostage with the intent to steal $600 million of bonds from the vaults. Now it's up to McClane to face the terrorists with nothing but a handgun and his wits. Can he save his wife as well as the other hostages? Well, if this isn't one of the most incredible action 80s movies ever conceived, set during one of the best times of the year! This film is famous for being quite divisive amongst viewers on whether or not it is considered a Christmas flick. It has been an argument that's frequently debated, but in my opinion, I would say it is a Christmas film. However, it is also one you could watch all year round, making it your unconventional festive flick. Although, I certainly think it's best witnessed during the holiday season. Personally, I adore Die Hard cause it's got it all! It has humour, tension, drama and some gritty action sequences that are extremely cool. One of the greatest highlights of this film is the actors. They are truly magnificent, giving some stunning performances, especially when it comes to Bruce Willis and Alan Rickman. Rickman's portrayal of Hans Gruber is just the best, creating one of the most sophisticated villains in movie history with his superb line deliveries. Each word carries such weight to it and makes for some hilarious moments. For example, when one man, killed by McClane, turns up in an elevator with the sentence, "Now I have a machine gun Ho-Ho-Ho" written on his clothing. Gruber reads it aloud slowly and his pronunciation of 'Ho-Ho-Ho' always cracks me up. Willis' performance was very surprising, considering he had never taken part in a serious movie like this up to that point and was a real gamble that was well paid off. Some of my favourite moments of this adventure are when McClane obtains one of the henchman's radios and starts talking with Hans. Their conversations are really interesting and extremely entertaining, especially with Hans' playful responses, asking McClane if he is just a guy who watched too many movies as a child who thinks he is John Wayne or Rambo. I also love how McClane is able to make a cop investigating the area aware of the situation getting the problem known to the force. The two grow a close bond on this mission after the two begin talking over the radio. They both work together despite being far apart and help one another out, which was simply awesome and I always looked forward to the two exchanging conversations. In actuality, John McClane isn't built up straight away to be the hero. He is just your typical everyday man, like anyone else. He's just there to see his family for the holidays and isn't shown off as your buff, muscular hero-like actor such as Stalone and Schwarzenegger (who were originally considered for the role). Only seen as a comedy actor at the time, Bruce Willis flipped the stereotypical and original depiction of your action hero. He spends most of the beginning of the take-over asking for help. Hoping the gunfire had been heard by his limo driver outside before taking matters into his own hands, becoming the badass with the iconic one-liners. Argyle, the limo driver, is pretty comical too just being blissfully unaware of the goings on. Had he been listening, he could've stopped the whole situation by calling the police, yet the entire time he is listening to music and talking on the phone. Even the henchmen are comedic, with plenty of jokes and scenes throughout that mostly involve them meeting an unexpected demise from McClane, which always gets a snicker from me. Overall, this is hands down up there with the best action movies ever made. With some beautiful cinematography, score, visuals, acting, action and twists, Die Hard doesn't skip a beat in any form. Incredible writing and performances all around. Do you consider this explosive flick a Christmas movie? I know I certainly do. If you enjoyed this classic, check out Die Hard 2: Die Harder (1990), also set during Christmas.