HOW GROUNDHOG DAY WORKS MUSICALLY:    • Groundhog Day's Secretly Amazing Scor...  
0:00 The Theme of John McClane's BS Defined
3:13 The Meaning of Let It Snow
4:29 The Meaning of Run DMC's Christmas in Hollis
6:01 The Antagonists: The Japanese Represented by a String Quartet
7:46 The Antagonists: The Terrorists Represented by Beethoven
8:17 Beethoven's Ninth Symphony Explained
10:50 Recitative of the Pacific Courier Truck
12:33 The Seed that Michael Kamen Plants
13:21 The Ode to Joy Around the World
14:53 Ode to Joy at the Nakatomi Party
16:15 Hans Sings the Ode to Joy
17:16 Why Not Wagner Instead? Answer: A Clockwork Orange
18:26 Theo Sings and Karl Dances
20:06 The Meaning of the Ode to Joy
22:54 Why Ode to Joy Represents Hans? Answer: Perverted Idealism
23:43 Ode to Freedom Concert
24:26 Winter Wonderland
24:59 Christmas Ending Setup
26:24 James Horner's Magic
27:00 John McClane Deals with His BS

Why is Beethoven used in Die Hard? What is the meaning of Let It Snow? And why are there so many musical Easter Eggs like Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in Michael Kamen's brilliant score?? I answer these questions and more in this Die Hard film score analysis where you can find all the musical themes explained in this video essay.

Check out my videos: HOW HAMILTON MAKES YOU CRY PART 2    • How Hamilton Makes You Cry (Part 2) -...   &PART 3    • How Hamilton Makes You Cry Part 3: Un...  
WHY 10 DUEL COMMANDMENTS IS AMAZING    • 10 Reasons 10 Duel Commandments Is Am...  

But also, if you've ever wondered why Die Hard is a great film, look no further than its score. Yup, there's enough sophistication to chew on forever using the tools of musicology and music theory. So here's my deep dive into it. And then the next time you watch Die Hard, you can feel good about seeing a film that kicks ass and has musical sophistication.

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SOURCES

Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves Trailer
   • Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) ...  

Die Hard: The Greatest Christmas Story
   • Die Hard | The Greatest Christmas Sto...  

Furtwängler - Beethoven's 9th Symphony - For Hitler's Birthday
   • Video  

Michael Kamen Concerto for Saxophone
   • Michael Kamen Concerto for Saxophone ...  

Making S&M: San Francisco Symphony and Metallica
   • Making S&M:San Francisco Symphony & M...  

Annie Lennox: Here Comes the Rain Again
   • Annie Lennox . Here Comes The Rain Ag...  

Michael Kamen is scoring The Iron Giant
   • Michael Kamen is scoring "Iron Giant"...  

Sting, Eric Clapton, and Michael Kamen: It's Probably Me
   • Sting, Eric Clapton & Michael Kamen -...  

The Berlin Celebration Concert
   • Video  

Alexander Godunov dancing Don Quixote
   • DON QUIXOTE (Timofeyeva-Godunov, 1976)  

John McTiernan, Die Hard Press Kit Featurette
   • John McTiernan | Die Hard (1988) | Pr...  

Suntory presents Beethoven's 9th with a cast of 10,000
   • SUNTORY presents Beethoven’s 9th with...  

MOVIES/TV discussed

Die Hard
Black Rain
Blade Runner
Gung Ho
A Clockwork Orange
Cruel Intentions
Bob's Burgers, Season 5 Episode 1
Neon Genesis Evangelion, Episode 24
Dead Poets' Society
Get Smart
Immortal Beloved
Sister Act 2
Singin' in the Rain
John Wick
Love Actually
The Pervert's Guide to Ideology
Following the Ninth

MUSIC

Run DMC, Christmas in Hollis
Vaughn Monroe, Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
Bryan Adams & Michael Kamen, Everything I Do (I Do It For You)
Michael Kamen, Die Hard OST
Doug Maxwell, Holiday Brass Ensemble
E's Jammy Jams, Jingle Bells

NEWS

Japan makes Beethoven's Ninth No. 1 for the holidays, The Japan Times
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/...

Die Hard is not a Christmas Movie, According to a New Poll, Uproxx
https://uproxx.com/movies/die-hard-no...

Wagner's heir vows to lay bare family's Nazi history, The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/music/200...

Richard Wagner: beautiful music, terrible human - CBC Music
https://www.cbcmusic.ca/posts/12270/r...

Bruce Willis declares Die Hard is not a Christmas movie, Entertainment Weekly
https://ew.com/movies/2018/07/15/bruc...

The Specter of Hilter in the Music of Wagner, New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/1998/11/08/ar...

#DieHard #HowardHo #HowMovieMusicWorks