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    #26
    I'd put Trading Places more in the Die Hard category - set around Christmas, but not really about Christmas. But it's closer to being about Christmas than Die Hard is and I like it a lot more than Die Hard.

    I get the feeling that Paddington 2 is going to become a Xmas classic and annual rewatch, in my household at least. It doesn't actually feature Xmas at all but has that feel.
    It certainly deserves it.

    Since more and more of us are not in the habit of ever watching stuff on TV at the time the networks want to show it, we'll probably start our own holiday watch-lists.

    When I was a kid and even up until fairly recently, what was a "Christmas classic" or "in the Christmas rotation" was largely dictated by the TV programmers. My recollection is that It's a Wonderful Life in particular didn't really enter the canon until it was on TV a lot. And, as I recall, until some point in the 90s when NBC bought the exclusive rights, it was on all the time throughout December on lots of different channels. A Christmas Story was a bit of a cult hit, as I recall, that slowly built-up steam in the VHS market through word-of-mouth - there are a lot of films like that - but it really took off and became part of the collective consciousness (or pick a better phrase) when TBS started showing it repeatedly.

    Incidentally, I remember the first time I saw A Christmas Story and there aren't any other Christmas movies where I can distinctly recall the first time I saw it. It was early December and I was sick at home. My mom rented it from Mike's Video on the recommendation of the people who worked there. I'd not heard of it before even though it was about 10 years old at that time, but watched it a bunch of times during that rental period.

    Tell kids today that and they won't believe you.

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      #27
      Originally posted by Snake Plissken View Post
      Two types of people in the world. Those who say Die Hard is a Christmas movie and those who are wrong.
      Three. Those who've never watched it and have no interest in watching it...

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        #28
        Originally posted by Gangster Octopus View Post
        Three. Those who've never watched it and have no interest in watching it...
        It set the template for action movies after it for a long time. There have been so many films pitched as "Die Hard on a [fill in the blank]" in addition to the sequels. So if you like action movies, you may like it, but if not then don't bother.

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          #29
          Originally posted by Gangster Octopus View Post
          Three. Those who've never watched it and have no interest in watching it...
          High five, over the table of the Bridge Inn.

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            #30
            Alan Rickman and, er, that's it.

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              #31
              I have seen it. A couple of times. And while Alan Rickman is OK doing pretty much exactly what he did in the Costner version of Robin Hood, the love of Die Hard never fails to baffle me.

              And it's not a Christmas movie. It's a movie with Christmas in it

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                #32
                I'm with GO, Giggler and ad hoc on Die Hard.

                And I totally take HP's comment on trust that DH was the model for umpteen films since. It's just that in relation to "So if you like action movies, you may like it, but if not then don't bother" advice, I'm firmly in the "not" camp. Except for vintage Bond films. I don't hate action films like, say, I hate horror, I just have no interest.

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                  #33
                  Jesus Christ, my ban-hammer is going to be busy this evening.

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                    #34
                    I don't like action movies much, and I have no interest in James Bond whatsoever, but I do love Die Hard (the sequel is completely spoiled by the final scene).

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                      #35
                      That was Rickman’s first film.

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                        #36
                        Originally posted by Snake Plissken View Post
                        Jesus Christ, my ban-hammer is going to be busy this evening.
                        Let justice fall

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                          #37
                          Christ. I didn't know there were people out there who didn't like Die Hard. Even my Mum likes Die Hard.
                          Weird.

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                            #38
                            Originally posted by Snake Plissken View Post
                            Jesus Christ, my ban-hammer is going to be busy this evening.
                            Never has light touch moderation sounded so saucy.

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                              #39
                              Originally posted by adams house cat View Post
                              For years the BBC seemed to show "The Poseidon Adventure" every year over the Christmas period. I tend to associate that film with Christmas.
                              New Year, surely?

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                                #40
                                Originally posted by hobbes View Post
                                Christ. I didn't know there were people out there who didn't like Die Hard. Even my Mum likes Die Hard.
                                Weird.
                                I saw it on the cinema when it came out, thought it was enjoyable but I've never had any desire to see it again, I felt the same way about the original Star wars films

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                                  #41
                                  I think I've said before that I saw Die Hard 2 first and preferred it.

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                                    #42
                                    the Gene Wilder Willy Wonka film, and Chitty Chitty Bang bang were on every christmas when I was a kid. I loved the first, and never watched the second past the first few minutes, thinking it was shite.

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                                      #43
                                      Originally posted by hobbes View Post
                                      Christ. I didn't know there were people out there who didn't like Die Hard. Even my Mum likes Die Hard.
                                      Weird.
                                      I liked it when I saw it and maybe a few more times, but I don't need to see it again.

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                                        #44
                                        I don't hate it, I just think it's a bit same old same old meh. Action film, lots of killing, bad guys more fun than really annoying good guy, some jokes that people like quoting. Like I said, meh.

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                                          #45
                                          Originally posted by The Awesome Berbaslug!!! View Post
                                          the Gene Wilder Willy Wonka film, and Chitty Chitty Bang bang were on every christmas when I was a kid. I loved the first, and never watched the second past the first few minutes, thinking it was shite.
                                          I saw CCBB on TV as a kid but that was nearly 40 years ago. I don't remember much about it or ever seeing it on TV again.
                                          Willy Wonka is in heavy rotation. I think the Tim Burton version - which I liked more than most people - helped revive interest in the Gene Wilder one.

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                                            #46
                                            The thing about Die Hard being a slightly above average action movie with Alan Rickman doing an entertaining Alan Rickman is that makes it better than at least 90% of Christmas movies.

                                            Nobody in their right mind would put Die Hard in their Top 10 Films. But noting that it's better than Four Christmases, and The Holiday, and Christmas Vacation, is hardly the same thing.

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                                              #47
                                              CCBB was on tv the other night, so I watched the last half. The child catcher still gives me the heebie-jeebies.

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                                                #48
                                                Originally posted by hobbes View Post
                                                Christ. I didn't know there were people out there who didn't like Die Hard. Even my Mum likes Die Hard.
                                                Weird.
                                                My mum really likes Die Hard as well and she really hates action films.

                                                I think Die Hard is a bit more than an action film though. You've got the action hero bit. You've got Powell the cop outside, with his back story. You've got Hans Gruber. You've got the kid in the limo in the basement. You've got Holly Gennaro and her secret she's keeping from the bad guys. You've got the media reporting crew. You've got Ellis on coke trying to fix things. You've got the black tech dude in the gang. You've got the FBI guys in the helicopter. Plus it's a very smart script and it's Christmas!

                                                The reason it might feel hokey and cliché now is because every action movie since has aped it.

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                                                  #49
                                                  The Muppet Christmas Carol (I'm seconding SB)
                                                  Bad Santa

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                                                    #50
                                                    Originally posted by San Bernardhinault View Post
                                                    The thing about Die Hard being a slightly above average action movie with Alan Rickman doing an entertaining Alan Rickman is that makes it better than at least 90% of Christmas movies.

                                                    Nobody in their right mind would put Die Hard in their Top 10 Films. But noting that it's better than Four Christmases, and The Holiday, and Christmas Vacation, is hardly the same thing.
                                                    It’s not better than Christmas Vacation.

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