Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that this movie, though it features a Santa Claus character and Christmas theme, is not for kids and may even be too much for some adults. It includes profanity, nonstop drinking and smoking, extremely explicit sexual references and situations, and graphic violence, including a suicide attempt, hitting below the belt, murder, and shooting. Note: This is a review of Badder Santa, an unrated version that was released on DVD and is available through Netflix.
Families can talk about dark comedies and raunchy humor. Do you think comedies are getting raunchier? What more recent comedies can you compare this to? Would this movie work with a more innocent brand of humor or not? Which movies are funny without the violent and sexual content?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Teresa Talerico
Adults who like dark comedy and raunchy, irreverent humor will enjoy BAD SANTA.
As Willie, a hard-drinking, foul-mouthed ex-con posing as a department store Santa Claus, Billy Bob Thornton is so very good at being bad. For years Willie and his partner in crime, a dwarf named Marcus (Tony Cox), have teamed up in various cities to pull off their annual Christmas heist: They get jobs as Santa and his elf in a department store so they can rob the place blind on Christmas Eve. Willie, whose specialty is safecracking, is the worst Santa ever. Slovenly, self-loathing, and angry at the world, he drinks and smokes on the job, insults the kids, and has sex with women in the ladies' fitting room.
In Phoenix, however, he gets a chance to rise from those ashes. There he meets the perfect woman for him, as well as Thurman, a lonely little boy who lives with his grandmother (the wonderful Cloris Leachman). Thurman desperately needs a father figure. Willie, who has no patience with kids and is hardly a role model, isn't the most ideal choice: Not only does he steal the family's car, but he also robs their safe -- assuring the kid that he needs the money to repair his sleigh. "Is Granny spry?" Willie asks Thurman as he cases their home and decides to move in for a while. Still, Thurman seems to adore his live-in Santa. Willie, meanwhile, develops a fondness for the kid and is soon protecting him from bullies and teaching him to defend himself. A scene where Willie and his girlfriend help decorate the home for Christmas is surprisingly sweet.
Indeed, Willie emerges as the ultimate antihero. Those who aren't utterly offended by him might even find themselves rooting for Willie, who is portrayed as more of a washed-up, disorganized loser than a genuine menace. He may start out as a Grinch, but he appears to be headed for his own version of redemption.
The late John Ritter -- this was his last film -- is great as the uptight department-store manager. And Lauren Graham of TV's Gilmore Girls clearly had fun playing Willie's love interest, a bartender with an unusual fetish. She brings just the right mix of freewheeling sexiness and earthy compassion to her role. Bernie Mac is solid as the store's deadpan, scheming security guard, and Cox plays a great straight man to Thornton's over-the-top Willie.
There's no question that viewers will find Bad Santa crude and irreverent. But while some might be shocked and disgusted, others will find themselves laughing all the way through this unconventional Christmas tale.
Viewers who enjoyed Bad Santa might also like Old School or The 40-Year-Old Virgin. For unorthodox Yuletide flicks better for the younger set, try Elf or Scrooged.
Rate It!
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Sexual ContentVery explicit sexual situations and references, borderline NC-17. A man and a woman -- both shown clothed from the waist up -- have sex in a car. They later have sex in a hot tub. A man and a woman have what is implied as anal sex in a department store's fitting room; their legs are shown under the door. A man hits on a girl during a pinball game; she is later revealed to be underage. |
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ViolenceViolence includes murder, characters being shot, attempted suicide. A man is killed when other characters conspire to murder him and then pin him between two vehicles. Police officers and a store robber engage in a gun battle. His partner, who flees the scene, is shot eight times by police, but survives. A lot of fighting, such as punching, kicking, shoving, and kicking in the groin. A man appears to be attempting suicide in his car in a garage, but he doesn't go through with it. |
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LanguageExtreme profanity and strong language throughout. |
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Social BehaviorSeveral characters are outright criminals who steal, con people, and even commit murder. The main character's specialty is safecracking. During the Christmas holidays, he poses as Santa Claus in order to rob department stores. He also steals a car, takes money from a residence's safe, and is overall a selfish, mean, reckless individual. However, the movie establishes him as an antihero whose actions are played for laughs. He later experiences an epiphany when he befriends a lonely boy and becomes an unorthodox father figure to him. |
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Drug/Alcohol/TobaccoCharacters drink and smoke throughout the movie. The main character is a belligerent alcoholic who regularly drinks to excess. |
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