Review of Bad Santa (2003) by Michael G — 02 Aug 2012

Billy Bob Thornton strikes a pot of gold with his take on foul mouthed, alchoholic, not very festive Willie (funny).

Willie (of course in this case has nothing to do with a man's dnagly bit) is a bit of a traveller due to his annual stealing at a shopping mall. He gets hired by malls to be their Santa Clause impersinator and greet kids with festive spirit. However, he clearly isn't into the "Christmas spirit" and needs assistance from Marcus (Tony Cox) and Lois (Lauren Tom) in order to pull off this perfect crime. However, when he meets fiesty barmaid Sue (Laruen Graham) and "The Kid" (Brett Kelly) who gets bullied and lacks stability, his life begins to change as the movie duration increases.

Some of the scenes in this movie are incredibly funny for most peoples cultures and ethics but the laughs are inconsistent which is a real shame. Looking at other aspects though, the acting is realistic if silly and the transformation of Willie is touching and shows the movie has a heart at its core (which is more than can be said for lots of comedies these days).

Overall, despite a lower content of laughs than I was expecting, the movie as a whole is a real treat and shouldn't be missed! This should not be watched in front of kids though; there will be lots of explaining to do afterwards otherwise. Unfortunately though, a dark themed comedy like this needs a larger injection of laughs I'm afraid.