“Guns n’ Glass” – Callum Quinn, © 2022
Unfortunately, I am not about to guide us into that great debate that’s turned families and friends against each other for decades: Is, or isn’t Die Hard a Christmas movie? No, that’s an analysis for another time. But whether or not you would count Die Hard among the classics on your holiday viewing list, many people tend to think about this movie as the Christmas season approaches. In particular, our hearts and minds are drawn to the story’s main protagonist: NYPD officer and one man army, John McClane.
So, why do we love McClane? Well, he’s incredibly badass, admirable, intelligent, strong, determined, and capable. In fact, you might go so far as to say he’s the prime example of a fictional hero. But he’s not just your run of the mill action hero; after so many years, John McClane has remained a household name due to the fact that he embodies everything that makes a protagonist stand out among the myriad of action and adventure heroes of page and screen.
And so, what better way to celebrate the season of giving than to take a closer look at this amazing hero and all the traits he has to offer?
When it comes to the hero archetype, our fictional protagonists can vary. But to all intents and purposes, John McClane is the Everyman Hero. This fact is, perhaps, what draws us to him the most: at first glance, there’s nothing heroic about him. He’s an average human being—one we can identify with. Perhaps one we can even see a bit of ourselves in. He makes mistakes: the tension between himself and his wife at the start of the film is a strong indicator of this. And as the night goes along, we see his reactions to these mistakes. He kicks himself, and he regrets the things he’s done and said.
He also, above all, shows fear. One piece of writing advice I’ve taken to heart is that your hero is only as strong as your villain. And while we can write a whole separate post about Hans Gruber (played by the always great Alan Rickman), what we really need to take away from this idea is that many times throughout the course of the movie, McClane is given cause to fear for his life. He’s outnumbered; his enemies have all the high-tech gadgets; someone he loves is being held hostage, and the people who should be in charge of the situation are doing nothing to help him. Because of this, his back is constantly against the wall. In fact, he is seriously wounded a number of times in a number of different ways.
But both his fear and his pain further back up the Everyman archetype: while he may be an experienced cop, his skills are not extraordinary. He is no superhero—he’s just a man who got trapped in a sticky situation. But because he is fearful, we also see him as determined. And, because he is in pain, we see him as strong: despite his wounds, he keeps moving; despite being outnumbered and outgunned, he knows he has to do something in order to save the lives of the hostages and to stop the bad guys. And it’s this strength and determination that drives him forward when other people might choose to give up.
And because of this humanness, we find ourselves rooting for him all the more. Because he has no superpowers, because he is not invincible, we are more convinced of the Everyman’s mortality. Therefore, we fear for his safety (and cringe with each wound) more than we would for a Super or Epic hero. We’re also more impressed when he makes it through each new trial.
But at the very heart of things, McClane also has an arc. While he makes mistakes at the beginning of the film, by the end of his story he has changed for the better. His eyes have become opened to his previous flaws, and it is because of his self-reflection and ensuing change of attitude that he is able to mend the damaged relationship between him and his wife. With this type of story and this type of hero, the underlying theme is discovered in the destination, and not in the journey; McClane’s fighting would be for naught if he didn’t have something to fight for, and by the end of the film we can see just how much his will to survive had to do with his will to make things right.
As a character, John McClane has worked his way into our imaginations as the epitome of the Everyman Hero. He keeps moving forward, in spite of his pain; he fights, in spite of his fear, and he learns, in spite of his flaws. Whether you consider it a Christmas classic or not, Die Hard has a lot to offer audiences in terms of spirit and resilience during even the coldest of times.
— C.O.
