Christmas Movies That Aren’t Technically Christmas Movies

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Christmas Movies That Aren't Technically Christmas Movies

Move over, Home Alone! There's no shortage of films to watch over the Christmas season, but there are more movies to add to the queue beyond It's a Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street or A Christmas Story. Die Hard is the quintessential film that wasn't considered a Christmas classic at first. However, some fans count the 1988 thriller among their favorite holiday flicks. In the film, New York City cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) reunites with his estranged wife (Bonnie Bedelia) in Los Angeles at her office's Christmas Eve party. John must rescue the employees after a gang of terrorists take them hostage. Despite the setting, Willis declared that Die Hard "is not a Christmas movie,” during his Comedy Central roast in July 2018. Die Hard director John McTiernan might not have intended for the action film to become a Christmas classic. Author Larry Taylor detailed McTiernan's initial intentions for the movie in his book John McTiernan: Rise and Fall of An Action Movie Icon. “He didn’t consciously make it a Christmas movie, but he made sure to weave certain elements of it into the tapestry of the film,” Taylor explained. “It would keep the holiday season right behind the action, and it would help alleviate some of the stress of the intense action.” Die Hard producer Joel Silver also made Lethal Weapon, which is another thriller set during the holiday season, one year earlier. Steven de Souza, who penned Die Hard's original script, revealed in December 2017 that the Christmas backdrops were intentionally used in both films. [jwplayer WvdC8OmJ-zhNYySv2] "The Christmas setting is in the source novel, Nothing Lasts Forever, by Roderick Thorpe,” De Souza told Dazed at the time. “One of our producers, Joel Silver, had made Lethal Weapon the previous year, which was also set during the holiday, and he had decided he liked all his movies to take place at Christmas, as they would then very likely be played on television every December, and we would all get residual checks. Obviously, he was right!” Lethal Weapon follows two cops — played by Mel Gibson and Danny Glover — at odds with each other over the holidays. In November 2017, Gibson joked with E! News “how big it was in the '80s to set films with a Christmas backdrop.” The actor added that directors at the time would quip, "Set it at Christmas! Lots of snow, funny little songs, music to kill by, you know?" Scroll down to see more Christmas movies that aren't technically Christmas movies.

Credit: Shutterstock (4)

Christmas Movies That Aren't Technically Christmas Movies

Move over, Home Alone! There's no shortage of films to watch over the Christmas season, but there are more movies to add to the queue beyond It's a Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street or A Christmas Story. Die Hard is the quintessential film that wasn't considered a Christmas classic at first. However, some fans count the 1988 thriller among their favorite holiday flicks. In the film, New York City cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) reunites with his estranged wife (Bonnie Bedelia) in Los Angeles at her office's Christmas Eve party. John must rescue the employees after a gang of terrorists take them hostage. Despite the setting, Willis declared that Die Hard "is not a Christmas movie,” during his Comedy Central roast in July 2018. Die Hard director John McTiernan might not have intended for the action film to become a Christmas classic. Author Larry Taylor detailed McTiernan's initial intentions for the movie in his book John McTiernan: Rise and Fall of An Action Movie Icon. “He didn’t consciously make it a Christmas movie, but he made sure to weave certain elements of it into the tapestry of the film,” Taylor explained. “It would keep the holiday season right behind the action, and it would help alleviate some of the stress of the intense action.” Die Hard producer Joel Silver also made Lethal Weapon, which is another thriller set during the holiday season, one year earlier. Steven de Souza, who penned Die Hard's original script, revealed in December 2017 that the Christmas backdrops were intentionally used in both films. [jwplayer WvdC8OmJ-zhNYySv2] "The Christmas setting is in the source novel, Nothing Lasts Forever, by Roderick Thorpe,” De Souza told Dazed at the time. “One of our producers, Joel Silver, had made Lethal Weapon the previous year, which was also set during the holiday, and he had decided he liked all his movies to take place at Christmas, as they would then very likely be played on television every December, and we would all get residual checks. Obviously, he was right!” Lethal Weapon follows two cops — played by Mel Gibson and Danny Glover — at odds with each other over the holidays. In November 2017, Gibson joked with E! News “how big it was in the '80s to set films with a Christmas backdrop.” The actor added that directors at the time would quip, "Set it at Christmas! Lots of snow, funny little songs, music to kill by, you know?" Scroll down to see more Christmas movies that aren't technically Christmas movies.

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'Die Hard'

New York City cop John McClane (Willis) travels to Los Angeles to visit his estranged wife at her company's holiday office party on Christmas Eve. However, hijinks ensue when a group of criminals take the guests hostage, and John is forced to save the day.

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'Rent'

A group of struggling artists in New York City battle love, capitalism and the AIDS epidemic in the early '90s. The film — which is based on the Tony-Award winning musical — starts on Christmas Eve and wraps on the holiday one year later.

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'Batman Returns'

Tim Burton reimagines Gotham City in the Batman sequel, which follows Bruce Wayne (Michael Keaton) as he tries to prevent Oswald Cobblepot (Danny DeVito) from killing Gotham's first-born sons. Bruce also finds himself falling for Selina Kyle (Michelle Pfeiffer) amid the background of Christmastime.

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'Gremlins'

Billy Peltzer (Zach Galligan) receives a small, furry creature from his father as a Christmas present. When he fails to follow the rules for taking care of it, Billy's new pet wreaks havoc on his town on Christmas Eve.

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'Lethal Weapon'

Suicidal cop Martin Riggs (Gibson) is partnered up with reluctant detective Roger Murtagh (Glover) during the holiday season. The buddy-cop film follows the duo as they uncover a massive drug-trafficking ring and form an unexpected bond.

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'Harry Potter'

The popular film franchise features numerous Christmas scenes, but Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is arguably the most festive one with the Yule Ball.

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'Mean Girls'

The 2004 comedy follows Cady Heron (Lindsay Lohan) throughout the entire school year as she infiltrates the popular girl clique. At the Winter Talent Show, Cady saves the Plastics' "Jingle Bell Rock" dance routine by singing the holiday tune after their boom box gets kicked off stage.

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'You've Got Mail'

Joe Fox (Tom Hanks), the owner of a corporate bookstore, begins an unexpected online romance with his rival and small bookstore owner, Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan). Although most of the movie takes place the rest of the year, some of the most poignant scenes are set against a Christmas backdrop.

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'L.A. Confidential'

The 1997 crime film follows a group of LAPD officers in 1953 as they attempt to solve a murder at a Los Angeles coffee shop. The three protagonists — Detective Lieutenant Exley (Guy Pearce), Officer White (Russell Crowe) and Sergeant Vincennes (Kevin Spacey) — all have their own motives for uncovering the case, which kicks off on Christmas Eve.

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'Trading Places'

Executive Louis Winthorpe III (Dan Aykroyd) and hustler Billy Ray Valentine (Eddie Murphy) switch places around Christmas as part of a bet to see how each man will handle their new circumstances. The 1983 comedy features Aykroyd in a dirty Santa Claus suit for a portion of the film.

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'Eyes Wide Shut'

The Stanley Kubrick-directed erotic thriller begins with Bill Harford (Tom Cruise) and his wife Alice (Nicole Kidman) attending a Christmas party where other guests flirt with them. After learning that Alice once considered having an affair, Bill finds himself invading a masked orgy of an unnamed secret society.

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'The Long Kiss Goodnight'

After single mom Samantha Caine (Geena Davis) suffers a concussion during the holidays, she begins to have unexplained violent memories. Samantha hires private detective Mitch Hennessey (Samuel L. Jackson) to look into her past and learns she's a government assassin.

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'The Hating Game'

This 2021 movie is technically a rom-com, but since it's set at Christmastime, there are plenty of scenes filled with stealthy holiday cheer. Based on the novel of the same name by Sally Thorne, the film follows assistants Lucy (Lucy Hale) and Joshua (Austin Stowell) as they compete for the same job at the publishing house where they both work. Their animosity, however, starts to fade once they get to know one another — especially after they attend a picturesque winter wedding together.

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'Carol'

Based on Patricia Highsmith's novel The Price of Salt, this 2015 period drama tells the story of Carol Aird (Cate Blanchett) and Therese Belivet (Rooney Mara), who begin an affair after meeting at a department store during the Christmas season. Set in 1952, their romance is made all the more complicated by the fact that Carol is in the midst of a messy divorce from her husband, Harge (Kyle Chandler), who's threatening to take their daughter away.