This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 25th, 2007 at 6:27 pm and is filed under B, Christmas Movies, Comedy, Mob, Crime and Scam Movies. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
Director: Terry Zwigoff
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Tony Cox, Brett Kelly, Lauren Graham, Lauren Tom, Bernie Mac, John Ritter.
Bad Santa (actually I watched the extended “Badder Santa” version) is a mean-spirited, but occasionally funny dark comedy that features decent writing and a good performance by Billy Bob Thornton as one of the least likable main characters to ever star in a comedy.
Not your average ‘golly-gee’ Christmas formula film, to be sure, but it has some funny moments and entertainment value.
Really, you know nothing says Christmas to me more than an inside job department store heist by Santa and his little person elf (Tony Cox). Billy Bob Thornton is Willie, and, after a soggy getaway, Santa goes south instead of north and is soon drunker than a frat boy on a Fort Lauderdale weekend. His debauched life of crime continues. Eventually, he meets a strange boy (Brett Kelly) and a pretty girl (Lauren Graham); not that this changes his impossibly bad attitude. However, this is a Christmas movie and maybe even a lowlife like Willie can find a little humanity. maybe.
Don’t put this one on expecting a typical, syrupy-sweet, ‘God-bless-us-everyone’ kind of Christmas movie. Still, there are some guilty, groan-like giggles here and a redeeming ending. Well, sort of.
