Running time: 91 minutes
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Tony Cox, Brett Murphy, Bernie Mac
Rating 8 out of 10
There's never been a Christmas film quite like Bad Santa, and there's never been a Father Christmas quite like the one portrayed by Billy Bob Thornton. It's about as far removed from Miracle on 34th Street as it is possible to be, and instead of a cuddly joy-filled figure of Yuletide warmth, Thornton's jobbing Santa Claus is an alcoholic, expletive-spouting bigot, who sends most of his young patrons away crying their eyes out rather than with the present of their dreams. And he's a break-in artist to boot.
Part of the joy of Terry Zwigoff's new film (although it was released in the USA last year) is that it turns all our expectations of what a Christmas film should be on its head. Thornton plays Willie, a meaner-than-mean man who has had all of the joys of life crushed out of him. Willie works once a year as a Father Christmas - presumably spending the other 11 months in an alcoholic haze - and when he's not offending the children who come to see him he's casing the mall for his parting gift: to strip it of its choicest goods before moving on to the next town. As he at one point declares: " I'm an eating, drinking, sh**ting, f***ing Santa Claus".
When Willie arrives at his latest target in Middle America, all of the ingredients are in place for another typical year. He has his sidekick Marcus (Tony Cox) to abuse for being both black and a dwarf, a Mall manager (Bernie Mac) to upset, and thousands of willing children to traumatise. But he fails to count on two new arrivals in his life: an attractive barmaid named Sue (Lauren Graham), with whom he beings a derisory relationship that becomes more serious, and a young kid (a wonderful performance by Brett Kelly) who insists on returning day after day to worship his idol in the Red Coat.
The Kid refuses to take any kind of four-letter response from Willie on board, and realising he has nothing to lose (or more precisely nowhere left to go), he agrees to visit the Kid's house one night, where he discovers that the ten-year-old lives more or less alone, despite the presence of his incapacitated granny. The film subsequently charts their relationship with a strident screenplay that never veers into the maudlin or overly-sentimental.
Thornton delivers another career performance. It's hard to think of a more perfect actor for the role, with his combination of charm and inner angst, and his failure to be recognised for his work was undoubtedly due to the film's lees-than-mainstream appeal. Nevertheless, although it's not one to take your granny to, or indeed any of your young kids, Bad Santa is a riotously funny affair which should appeal to the average Scrooge and beyond. If you're tired of the over-commercialisation of the festive season, this might just be the perfect tonic.
Part of the joy of Terry Zwigoff's new film (although it was released in the USA last year) is that it turns all our expectations of what a Christmas film should be on its head. Thornton plays Willie, a meaner-than-mean man who has had all of the joys of life crushed out of him. Willie works once a year as a Father Christmas - presumably spending the other 11 months in an alcoholic haze - and when he's not offending the children who come to see him he's casing the mall for his parting gift: to strip it of its choicest goods before moving on to the next town. As he at one point declares: " I'm an eating, drinking, sh**ting, f***ing Santa Claus".
When Willie arrives at his latest target in Middle America, all of the ingredients are in place for another typical year. He has his sidekick Marcus (Tony Cox) to abuse for being both black and a dwarf, a Mall manager (Bernie Mac) to upset, and thousands of willing children to traumatise. But he fails to count on two new arrivals in his life: an attractive barmaid named Sue (Lauren Graham), with whom he beings a derisory relationship that becomes more serious, and a young kid (a wonderful performance by Brett Kelly) who insists on returning day after day to worship his idol in the Red Coat.
The Kid refuses to take any kind of four-letter response from Willie on board, and realising he has nothing to lose (or more precisely nowhere left to go), he agrees to visit the Kid's house one night, where he discovers that the ten-year-old lives more or less alone, despite the presence of his incapacitated granny. The film subsequently charts their relationship with a strident screenplay that never veers into the maudlin or overly-sentimental.
Thornton delivers another career performance. It's hard to think of a more perfect actor for the role, with his combination of charm and inner angst, and his failure to be recognised for his work was undoubtedly due to the film's lees-than-mainstream appeal. Nevertheless, although it's not one to take your granny to, or indeed any of your young kids, Bad Santa is a riotously funny affair which should appeal to the average Scrooge and beyond. If you're tired of the over-commercialisation of the festive season, this might just be the perfect tonic.
