This week, we’re continuing our countdown to Christmas, where we roundup our favourite festive flicks. If you missed part one, you can find it here. This week, we’re looking at some of the more unusual Christmas films. Don’t forget to check back next week for the final instalment!
Die Hard
Breaking away from the Christmas norm, Die Hard has no reindeer, Santa or Christmas cheer. What it does have, however, is a firm place in our list of favourite Christmas films.
Die Hard is Bruce Willis’s first outing as John McClane, a hardened NYPD cop who travels to Los Angeles on Christmas Eve to find his estranged wife. However, he soon finds himself in a deadly standoff with armed terrorists, after they storm the building his wife’s Christmas party is in. Led by the fearsome Hans Gruber, played by the late Alan Rickman, the terrorists take everybody hostage, except for McClane, who manages to slip free. Alone (and barefoot), McClane must work singlehandedly to take down Gruber and his thugs before it’s too late.
The Blu-ray comes with several special features, including commentary by director John McTiernan and special effects supervisor Richard Edlund, trailers and an interactive stills gallery.
Gremlins
Another film which has cemented itself firmly into the Christmas schedule is Gremlins, which has earned itself a cult status among film lovers.
Set during the weeks before Christmas, a father buys a small, furry creature, known as a Mogwai, for his son Billy. There are only three rules that come with the Mogwai: do not expose it to bright light, do not get it wet, and do not feed it after midnight. Of course, it’s not long before Billy has broken all three rules, which causes the creature to spawn a number of companions, who run riot through the town.
The Blu-ray comes with some great extras, such as deleted scenes, a behind-the-scenes documentary and a number of trailers.
Scrooged
A hilarious original take on the Charles Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol, Scrooged is the perfect antidote to the traditional Christmas film.
The film stars Bill Murray as Frank Cross, an ill-tempered and cynical TV executive who has a cut-throat determination to make sure his network’s ratings are the highest they can be, no matter who he upsets in the process. When he makes his staff work on Christmas Eve, Cross is visited by three spirits, who attempt to show him why he has to change his ways. The film also stars Karen Allen, John Forsythe and Bobcat Goldthwait.
If you’re a fan of Murray’s dry sense of humour, then this is the Christmas film for you!
