Flashback Friday: Die Hard (1988)

It’s a very festive Flashback Friday and what better way to celebrate than with the greatest Christmas film of all time: Die Hard (1988).

New York City cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) is in LA for the holidays, visiting his wife. They’re having marital issues, sure. But that’s exposition. It’s why he’s there. But an action packed adventure awaits us when it turns out there are a bunch of German asshole terrorists holding people hostage, led by the big bad guy Professor Snape Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman).

Die Hard is not just great because German bad guys are getting the asses handed to them one by one. It’s because literally one guy is doing ass handing. Ass handing? What? Ok, moving along. It’s an underdog story.And we love an underdog story.

One guy navigating a building he doesn’t know, full of terrorists he didn’t expect to encounter, with very little weaponry at his disposal and his pretty much barefoot the entire time. Deck stacked. But this is John “Yippee-ki-yay, motherf**ker” McClane. It’s almost too easy.

This is Bruce Willis at his most invincible. He is truly one of the biggest action stars in history, in a franchise that spanned over 20 years. Seriously, they made four more sequels. Not all of them good but it all stemmed from this.

Then there’s the verbal back and forth between Gruber and McClane. The smart ass comments and witty retorts. It makes the showdown even more exciting as they finally meet after there constant banter and cat and mouse games.

If you don’t think Die Hard is a Christmas film, sit down and eat some more trifle. Actually, no. Give that trifle back. You don’t deserve it! Foul language, bullets, and violence. Ah yes. Tis the season.

Rating 10/10

For more ideas on what to watch this holiday season, check out our list of top 6 holiday movies