Tis the season of drinking and movie watching. And with that in mind, its time to share some of my favourite Christmas movies of all time - starting with the all-time action movie classic Die Hard, starring Bruce Willis and Alan Rickman.
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What a classic, probably my favourite action film. Your new book arrived the other day. Looking forward to getting stuck into it with a drink or ten. ;)
I like to think he was being a bit ironical. Why on Earth of all people would JOHN MCLAIN pack heat on a plane!! OF COURSE JOHN MCLAIN IS GONNA PACK HEAT ON A PLANE!! He's JOHN FUCKING MCLAIN!
I'm sorry I thought this was AMERICA. Die Hard 1, you can argue that. 2 and followups... "John, why aren't you carrying a suitcase nuke instead of a pistol?"
@@jagar5580 That long haired blonde guy was Alexander Godunov, a famous Russian ballet dancer for the Bolshoi Ballet. He defected to the west in 1979. He was also in “Witness” and several other films.
I’m watching this wearing a T-shirt that says, “It’s not Christmas until Hans Gruber falls from Nakatomi Plaza”, with the image of Hans’ face looking up as he plummets. Well done Critical Drinker!
"I'm agent Johnson, this is special agent Johnson...no relation" One of the funniest one liners in the entire movie, or any movie given its visual obviousness. Pure and utter class from start to finish.
You are wrong. It's a movie about firearm safety. Need proof? Christmas is only in the first two movies, firearms are in every single one. Checkmate, mate.
@@SecretOfMonkeyIsland784 because I am. Don't ask me why, it's like asking why water is wet. Btw, love the series, I intend on playing The Course of Monkey Island this Christmas. This, and Discworld 2 will forever be my "Christmas games".
"It's Christmas time theo,it is a time for miracles " "You asked for miracles theo, I give you the F B I " -Hans Gruber Alan Rickman as Hans made this movie imo.
"Director John McTiernan asked Rickman to fall backwards onto an airbag from a height of 25 feet on the count of three. Sounds easy enough, until the stunt crew decided to drop him on “one” instead, to make his reaction more genuinely believable. So that explains why Hans Gruber’s expression is quite so priceless."
@@tarico4436 it is true. It’s talked about on the show “the movies that made us.” Die hard is one of those movies they have an episode on. I believe it may still be on Netflix.
American police officers usually do carry their guns everywhere even when off-duty. While they usually aren't allowed to carry on planes in the modern world, they were in the pre-9/11 era.
@@Kenfren cringe is being terrified of guns and not mentally ill criminals back on the street immediately after being arrested for violent crimes. Particularly on planes when it would have only taken four off duty officers on four planes to save the world a whole lotta trouble back in 2001.
The first 10 minutes of Die Hard is a directing masterclass in Show don’t Tell. From revealing McClane’s gun to Holly’s name on the touchscreen, it’s so slickly put together.
Agreed and anybody who's been a cop or related to a cop will know that the cop will justify having their side arm on them at all times...(Remember, this is pre 9-11-2001)
Even the Tell exposition is solid and doesn't feel too contrived in its delivery. The conversation between Argyle and John and the one between Holly and the daughter and housekeeper both feel very natural in the information they provide.
To me one of the few flaws of the movie does come in the finding of Holly using her maiden name on touchscreen. It's Christmas eve the receptionist is like just type in her name. Then says everyone that is left in the building is all on one floor for the party. As in there was literally no point to showing John the touchscreen at all. Everyone in the building is sitting one floor for the party where he is then directed to.
“If this movie had been made in 2020, he’d have taken her name!” No Drinker, if this movie had been made in 2020, she’d have taken his gun and killed all the terrorists herself, while John McClain wallowed in a corner, learning valuable life lessons about “Respecting Wahmen” and “Ending Patriarchy”.
You're assuming she would use a gun, a phallic extension of the patriarchy, and not just weakly Krav Maga her way through every armed man who would, in turn, sell it like they had been hit by a combination of Muhammad Ali and Bruce Lee to make her look strong.
I turned and told my girlfriend "Drinker is definitely European" the moment he said that. I literally have a toilet gun; a gun I keep in my bathroom near the toilet in case someone breaks in when I'm using it. I've known 2 other Americans in my life who do this too.
I was in Phuket about 10 years ago just flying domestically to the mainland then after we boarded a few security guards come on the plane and ask a Chinese guy to get his bag down and open it, inside was like a mini hand held cross bow with bolts lol couldn't believe it they confiscate it and left him on the plane really bizarre like if they knew he had it why not take it before he got on the plane. I kept my eye on him the whole flight.
Also, there’s an allegory about the movie in the movie: When Argyle plays “Christmas in Hollis” and John asks him if he has any Christmas music, Argyle responds that it is Christmas music. Just like Die Hard as a whole; on the surface it may not seem like a Christmas movie, but it definitely is.
Go another year of this covid crap and we'll be talking about the good days when the average IQ was _double-digit_ (because you gotta get oxygen to your brain and facemasks ..."don't help" with that basic human need).
The 80s will always be the decade of the greatest Action Movies. The stars simply aligned for so many from First Blood to Terminator to Predator to Aliens to Terminator 2 to Die Hard...the list is absolutely crazy. I was aged 6 to 16 during that decade and got to watch nearly all of these as family affairs with my Dad and my older brother (who passed away last year at just 51. No, not from Covid. I was 46 when he died. My Dad still kicking it at 70.) It’s great to look back at these movies. You never forget the first time you saw them. They’re good reminders now for me Of better times and of my big bro...God, I miss him. Just the best decade of movies period, for my money.
Another thing that adds depth to Hans Gruber is although he quotes classical literature not only does he get the quote wrong he misses the point of said quote about Alexander The Great. He betrays his "classical education" which adds even more to his character.
Actually one of my favourite lines is when Hans is giving names of prisoners he wants released. Karl gives him a wtf look and Hans replies "i read about them in Time magazine" in the most dismissive way. It sums the character up perfectly and Rickman's delivery was brilliant.
yeah, his false demands and diversion games, I laughed at that scene. one low budget action flick in the 90s '' Skyscraper '' try to mimic the same stunt.
@@charmawow I love to see the critical drinker give his opinion on that film magnificent piece of work... Still extremely watchable and Rene Russo on the Dance Floor just brings back shivers
Probably aging myself a little bit. I had just turned 11. People lost their shit. I also snuck out of Snow White during a summer camp field trip and saw Robo Cop instead. I was yelling “I’d buy that for a dollar!” for a week afterwards.
RICKMAN was da bomb! Who can forget him in Prince of Thieves! He took roles he was born to play (in fact, J.K. Rowling wanted RICKMAN HIMSELF to play the character of Severus Snape in the Harry Potter series) . RIP
Exactly! I use this quote when someone has a realisation of something. Then they look at me funny and I have to say ‘Its from Die Hard’. Then they get the reference. Then I get to say it again
I agree with you there. Without Alan Rickman's take on Gruber, this movie would've been forgettable. I watched an old interview with Rickman some months back where he described the version of Gruber originally envisioned. He took a look at it, decided it was garbage, and got the director to let him do Gruber his way. I believe the original conception of Gruber was some form of cardboard cutout stereotypical Hollywood "terrorist". Just imagine the trope and that's what they wanted.
and the way Gruber reads it from the note is perfect, when he reads "Ho ho ho" it's like.. perfectly abbreviated, and I don't even know the right word to describe it. Man I miss Alan Rickman being alive :(.
I keep yelling at my kids when they take off their shoes, even inside the house! - " go ahead, take off your shoes, but when the terrorists come in and you have to walk barefoot on glass to save your life, don't come crying to me!! Idiots!"
McTiernan knew that geography was one of the most important factors in an action movie. It's the reason we know exactly where we are in every shot of this movie. Predator does the same thing. This improves the viewing experience 10-fold.
Something that has gone missing from most movies since first the advent of MTV quick-cut musicals, then shaky-cam obscuring everything, then fighting in the dark, then the rise of the cryptic fight scene like in the first Christian Bale Batman, where the fighting was awesome because ... it was quick-cut shaky cam in the dark, then the Transformers where you just gave up completely on trying to understand what was going on onscreen because, "Ooooh, shiny!".
One thing that always made Die Hard special was the main character was just a guy. He wasn't some kind of super cop, special forces soldier. He was just a normal cop and he got the crap kicked out of him through out the movie. Sure his pain tolerance might of been a bit high, but he wasn't nearly to the insane levels most 80's and 90's action films went to. Which is probably why follow up Die Hard movies were decreasingly worse. McClain turned into almost a god by the later sequels.
the second one had a few good moments, but was a bit over the top overall. but I really liked the third just as much as the first one, because Willis had great chemistry with Samuel L. Jackson and Jeremy Irons was a great villain.
yeah by the 4th Die Hard movie McClane was riding the wing of a fighter jet like a surfboard... Really Hollywood??? But I don't have a problem with the hero being special forces highly trained badass as it can also be done effectively like in The Bourne movies BUT I feel personally prefer a CONSISTENCY in the character, plot, action etc... so if you tell me that IRON MAN can withstand a punch from Thor's hammer but later he gets hit by a missile that knocks him down OR our here is in a car without a seatbelt on which overturns 8 times downhill and he walks away without a scratch it is beyond suspension of disbelief. They should establish rules, stick to them and then have charcters do amazing stuff within those rules.
@@ArmyWolves When McClane got hurt, he stayed hurt. He hobbled the entire film after cutting up his feet. His arm stayed disabled. Everything that happened to him didn't get plotted away.
@@justtime6736 yes that's my point... the first Die Hard was great because it had that consistency, his bleeding foot, his aching body even by the end when he limps his was to save his wife and kill Hans Gruber you even wonder how the hell he will take them out with just two bullets left... AND THEN HE DOES making him more awesome, remarkable and a true hero in the eyes of the viewer. they didn't giving him some last minute supernatural energy boost. Now by DIe Hard 4 Hollywood missed this and he was superhuman and even surfing on a fighter jet and not understanding what made McClane a true hero in the first place.
Agreed. The character appealed because he WASN'T an action hero although I admit I still love 2 and 3. Part 3 would have been a good send off. It put him back where he started, in NY estranged from his wife - and of course, there's Jeremy Irons as Peter Gruber.
The story behind it is that they were going to release him after a count of three, but when they actually did it they released him early, so his expression is actually him being surprised
There is nothing wrong with CGI, but this movie proves that CGI isn't what makes a movie successful for great. But this is (was) also a contemporary movie. Kinda hard to imagine a space sci-fi movie without CGI.
@@benc3475 Aliens yes, Alien no. Alien wasn't really an action movie, it was a suspense/horror movie. The fact that Cameron was able to create a great action movie based on it was amazing.
Little things like his lines and the shooters snacking on candy while waiting for the SWAT team to raid them really made them out to be the scary professionals. You really believed these guys were badass bank robbers
"Dear God..please don't let me die!" as he leaps from the roof with the fire hose may be my favorite line! That, or "Hi, Honey" at the climax scene! Love this movie! 😉😸
I love how the attention to little details end up impacting the story. The amorous couple distracts the bad guys long enough for McClane to escape, Holly slamming the photo face down keeps Hans from connecting McClane to her until the last moment, and the plane passenger’s advice to McClane to take off his shoes makes things very painful for him to say the least.
He gets into an argument with his wife, then when she storms of, chides himself for doing it. Things like that make a character real, little details that don't have anything to do with the film, just give you the impression the characters exist outside the frame of the camera. His wife's gasp of dismay when she sees him at the end, bloodied but unbowed.
Attention to detail is something most writers can't seem to manage sadly. What elevates a movie to true greatness is getting all the little details correct, not the big effects and explosions.
agree 100%. And even I see this movie the 100th time, you can find sooo many details in it I love the scene after they execute Takagi and you can see, that the bad guys made a bet, if they get the password from him :D
Galaxy Quest parodied everything about Star Trek: the show, the characters, the plots, the behind the scenes drama, and the fandom and managed to do it in such a way that the more you love TOS, the more you love Galaxy Quest. The best part is that everything they made fun of got flipped into a truly heroic moment.
Watched it again after many years and my favourite bit in it is the guy telling him on the plane that the best way to beat jet lag is to walk barefoot on carpet which leads to him being shoeless for most of the movie. Great price of exposition that made the action all the more compelling. It is one of the truly great action movies and also my all time favourite Christmas movie lol
See this is what happens when writers have talent and aren't hired for diversity or representation. I have zero problem with diverse people nor identity, but when hiring decisions are first and foremost based on race & identity instead of talent and experience things go badly. And then those writers go on to base their stories on race & identity...
I like the way John MaClain is written. He's a regular cop; not an special elite, or top militar officer, or super agent, who wants to reconciliate with his family and cope with the fact his wife is growing her career faster than he is. The concept of him being barefoot in the movie is carefully stablished in the opening when he is talking with the guy on the plane and later, having him walk through broken glass with no shoes to protect his feet makes him feel more human and relatable.
@@luismarioguerrerosanchez4747 Yeah, its brilliant writing, directing and acting. There are places for stories about the elite (007 is pretty cool) but many/most stories work best when they are about average people placed in unusual circumstances.
Most definitely the best Christmas movie next to the classic "It's a wonderful life" and the stunningly original "A Nightmare before Christmas" that I could watch each and every year without it getting old.
Recently watched this movie with my niece (her first time) she finally understood what me and my sister have been referencing all these years. One time years ago we were at the back wing of a theatre complex and they had an empty concession kiosk, I hopped on the other side and tossed my candy in then rein acted the scene. Sister peed herself laughing my niece just thought I was weird.
a cristmas classic! fun fact: John McTiernan also directed first Predator, Die Hard 1 and 3, 13th Warrior, Last Action Hero and the Hunt for the Red October. thats why they are so good!
I love everything Alan Rickman is in. And this was my intro to him. The scene where he suddenly can do an (excellent) American accent blew my mind the 1st time I saw it, and was a tribute to his acting talent. But my fav Rickman role was as Col Brandon in Sense & Sensibility, a very different role from Hans Gruber, but equally well acted. I still love Die Hard, one of the best action movies ever.
A movie with the best, most amazing hero's journey is meaningless without a villain who is a very credible threat, as this movie proves. Alan Rickman's role as Hans Gruber really makes this whole film come alive. His cunning and ruthlessness push McClane to exceed any efforts he's made in the past, and show him and us the kind of man that he is.
Good to have this come back on the recommended list a year later. Now I can add watching the Drinker talk about Die Hard as well as watch the movie every Christmas. Gruber gets bored and drops out of the movie.😆
@@stevenscott2136 yes, up until prior to 9/11 many officers would be allowed to carry their weapon on the plane as a passenger with the permission of the Captain of the flight. After 9/11, the only officers allowed to fly armed are either Federal Agents or officers on an actual on-duty assignment. Otherwise, you can bring your gun with you on vacation so long as it is in checked through luggage screened / inspected by TSA with appropriate paperwork filled out.
There are so many little details in this movie that help elevate it above your average action movie. For example, right after Hans kills Takagi, Karl hands Theo some money. Not only were they unbothered by the murder, but they also bet on whether or not Takagi would cooperate. Later, as the SWAT team is preparing to storm the building Uli eats a candy bar, illustrating just how calm he is.
Even the seeds of origin of the "why would he be running barefoot through broken glass?" are sewn from the first scene in the airplane. The attention to detail is master class.
