The Christmas season is fast approaching, bringing with it the classic question: is Die Hard a Christmas movie? Even though Bruce Willis says it is not, there are certain themes and characteristics of a Christmas film that are undeniably found in this film. It is more than just the setting of the film that make it a Christmas movie, and Iron Man 3 is proof that decorations aren't enough to make a holiday film. While the Marvel movie is set during Christmas, it is less of a Christmas movie than Die Hard is.
Die Hard Is a Christmas Movie
The primary reason why Die Hard is a Christmas movie is due to John McClane's journey, which is all about family and reconnecting with loved ones for the holidays. He is a New York City cop whose wife, Holly, gets a job in California. While he initially chooses not to go with her or their kids, he genuinely wants to repair his marriage and expresses so throughout the film. Families coming together is a major theme of many Christmas movies, and it's the core theme of Die Hard, especially for McClane.
The next reason Die Hard is a Christmas movie is its criticism of capitalism. This is a common theme in Christmas stories like A Christmas Carol and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. While the Christmas holiday has become more commercialized, movies about Christmas mostly focus on going back to the root of the holiday and moving past capitalism and greed, as seen in Die Hard.
The main antagonist of the film, Hans Gruber, takes over Nakatomi Plaza in order to steal bonds from the building's safe. While he is an exceptional thief, it's Gruber's greedy disposition that loses out to family man McClane, cementing Die Hard as a Christmas movie.
Finally Die Hard's story of redemption is part of what makes it a Christmas movie, similar to the aforementioned How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Netflix's The Christmas Inheritance. In these movies, a character learns humility, admits their wrongs and grows as a person, and this is the case for McClane, who admits to Sergeant Powell that he was wrong to let Holly and the kids go. It is a classic example of Christmas movie character development.
Iron Man 3 Isn't a Christmas Movie
While Iron Man 3 has the Christmas setting, its themes do not make it a Christmas movie. The movie focuses primarily on Tony Stark's battle with mental health, struggling with PTSD after the events of The Avengers. His journey over the course of the film follows him coming to terms with his trauma and learning coping mechanisms to deal with his struggles. While this is an important theme, it isn't one traditionally seen in a Christmas movie.
Tony is also rather introspective during the film, reflecting on his personal identity. This theme has the potential to be more related to Christmas than the other themes of the movie, but his introspection is an extension of his mental health. Meanwhile, most Christmas protagonists reflect on their relationship to consumerism and greed.
While Tony has turned to work to distract himself, his obsession is more about ignoring his trauma than it is about him reflecting on his relationship to consumerism. He does move beyond this harmful coping mechanism eventually, removing his arc reactor and learning to be Iron Man without it. By all accounts, this is a noble journey about self improvement, but it is not necessarily a Christmas journey.
Finally, Iron Man 3's complex exploration of modern patriotism is not a Christmas theme. Throughout the movie, there is a lot of patriotic imagery, best seen with James Rhodes' Iron Patriot suit. This imagery is actually more prevalent than the Christmas imagery seen in the film.
The film also pays a lot of mind to the American military, how the organization is perceived and how veterans are treated on a large scale and on a personal level. While these are compelling themes to explore in a superhero film, they aren't traditional Christmas themes.
What Makes a Christmas Movie
A movie being set during the holidays and including Christmas imagery does not necessarily make it a Christmas film. This is best demonstrated when comparing Die Hard and Iron Man 3. Both movies are set at Christmas time and feature heavy imagery; however, Die Hard is a Christmas movie, but Iron Man 3 is not. This distinction comes down to the themes found in the films, with Die Hard commiting to traditional themes seen in the best Christmas movies to date.