I told a friend that I was going to attempt to find some correlation between Die Hard and It’s A wonderful Life and he said it would practically be impossible. Challenge accepted.
John McClain A New York cop visiting Los Angeles for the holidays stumbles upon a band of would-be terrorist who took over the building of his wife’s employer. Only true fans consider Die Hard a Christmas movie. Headshots and maniacal Germans. It’s not exactly the true definition of a holiday movie. It’s rated R but so is love actually and we love that raunch infested holiday film. Try to sell this violence-ridden film to a family undecided on what to watch after dinner and unwrapping present and you’re sure to be out voted and stuck with watching the same ol’ classics from the early age of black and white film.
Classics such as A Christmas Carol (1938), Scrooge (1935), and A Miracle on 34th Street (1947) are instant go to films for the genre neutral family dynamics. These are grade A movies with great wholesome stories that really bring forth the true meaning of Christmas and good will to all humans.
Not to be left off this list of ol timely classics is It’s A Wonderful Life (1946). A film about a man, George Bailey played by James Stewart who had his lifelong dreams and ambitions derailed by his duty to family, friends, and an unpromising future. But besides the obvious differences of technicolor, guns, and Paul Gleason. Die Hard is no less a holiday movie than It’s a Wonderful Life and should be on the must watch list of every family who celebrates Christmas. So, if you’re the only hope standing between a boring evening of watching feel good movies that are way too sappy, I urge you to stick to your guns and put your foot on grandma’s neck. Then give that old lady a sip of whiskey, put her down in her favorite recliner, and have her enjoy some holiday action with Bruce Willis as the Cowboy Who Saved Christmas.
The Loft showing of Die Hard
Die Hard played for two nights at the Loft, a local indie picture theater house. I wanted to attend at least one of the showings and had one foot out the door but couldn’t really commit to driving the eight miles away from the house on a rainy night. So, I stayed at home with the family and watched the movie in my “office/laundry room.”
After ten minutes, I thought to myself “damn, I should’ve have driven to the Loft.”
Old Lady Fowler
Normally I don’t enjoy talking during the “talkies” but on Christmas night, I watched It’s a Wonderful Life with my mother-in-law, 72, who hadn’t seen this movie since she was a child because she didn’t really like it.
It was cool (and a little bit annoying) to have her commentary during the movie because as she saw the hairstyles, clothing, and cars on screen she reflected back to memories of her childhood and growing up in Ithaca, New York.
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John McClain and George Bailey
McClain as a New York Cop living the cops life catching bad guys while hopped up on adrenaline and adventure. George Bailey wants nothing more than a life of adventure and settling down in the city town he grew up in was never his plan. living the cop life was the only life for him and when his wife proposed not staying at home like some 1950’s housewife, McClain was compliant knowing damn well he didn’t believe it would last. He thought just showing her support would rid him of the guilt of feeling that she wouldn’t be successful.
The Wiser and Han Gruber
It’s all about the money. The Wiser, Mr. Potter, was driven by the almighty dollar. He’d successfully bought out all the town’s businesses except for the loan bank owned by the Bailey family. Just as Han Gruber needed to crack that last lock of the safe, The Wiser worked needlessly to find the chink in George Bailey’s armor that would weaken his morale and commitment to the people of his town. And when George’s Uncle lost eight thousand dollars, it was like that scene in the movie when the feds cut the power to the building enabling Hans Gruber and his crew to crack through the last obstacle impeding the completion of their master plan.
Mary Hatch and Holly Gennaro
Oh man, Oh man, Oh woman. These two women were exactly the opposite of one another in the stereotypical roles women play in movies; however, they both present the strength necessary to not only keep the foundations of their families strong but also to allow the men in their lives to come to realization themselves that what matters isn’t careers and where you thought you would be in life; life is what is now, what you’ve accomplished and what you will accomplish with your family there to support you.
The Guardian Angel and Carl Winslow
Just when John McClain realized that the chips were up; that time wasn’t on his side and he just may not make it home for Christmas, Carl Winslow or Reginald VelJohnsom gives him that little bit of hope to keep his spirit alive. On the rooftop, after finally showing signs of weakness, McClain asked The Guardian Police Officer to relay a message — what is to be his final words— to his wife and children. ” No John, You tell them yourself.” This is the dire straights moment of the movie when George Bailey, after being denied help from The Wiser for the misplaced 8K. He was truly at his lowest point and George Bailey was going to end all of his trouble by jumping off the bridge. Suicide, however, isn’t in John McClain’s repertoire; John McClain was a badass who planned to end Hans Gruber even if he died hard trying.
Seeing The Truth about what really matters
So the real moral of both tales is to appreciate those around you. Your friends and family will always be there to support you., and although life might not progress as planned, you make adjustments. You comprise and find what you sought after for so long in those who love you the most. Both McClain and Bailey had to lose what was most important for them to realize they, all along, have been selfish in their ways. They ignored what was really important because they were always looking ahead for what the future has in store for them, the individual and not he as a father, husband, and friend. For George Bailey, it was the help he and father gave out to the people of Bedford Falls. He never blinked an eye when needing to help his fellow townspeople, but he always committed his best efforts to ensure their stability. When he lost the town — when he was shown how life would be if he were never born, he came to the stark realization his life was perfect the way it was with him alive. McClain realized early upon seeing his wife for the first time in months that he missed her and his children, and when those would be terrorist threatened to take that away from him, well they didn’t plan on a cop from New York crashing the party.
All that you take with you is all that you’ve given away.