Home > Drama >

Bad Santa

Watch Now

Bad Santa (2003)

November. 26,2003
|
7.1
|
R
| Drama Comedy Crime
Watch Now

A miserable conman and his partner pose as Santa and his Little Helper to rob department stores on Christmas Eve. But they run into problems when the conman befriends a troubled kid.

...

Watch Trailer

Cast

Similar titles

Reviews

GamerTab
2003/11/26

That was an excellent one.

More
Matrixiole
2003/11/27

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

More
Fairaher
2003/11/28

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

More
Brenda
2003/11/29

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

More
isabelcsilva
2003/11/30

I think this movie was great. It has a hilarious humor. The story portrays the growth of a man who grew tired of his miserable life and found something worth fighting for. One can note the evolution of Santa's behavior throughout the entire film mainly from the moment the boy appeared. I think the director's intention was to show viewers that it's never too late to change, that everything is not what it seems and that we can all make a difference.

More
mpdmartin
2003/12/01

Bad Santa (2003) Reviewed by Martin Davis, Retrospect Film on Facebook 'Bad Santa' has been described variously as 'The nastiest Christmas film ever', 'The ultimate anti-Christmas film' or 'One of the best Christmas films ever'. In truth, it's much more than any of those descriptions. It's quite simply a great film, brilliantly scripted, and with assured direction from Terry Zwigoff, following on from 2001's excellent 'Ghost World'. With some exceptional performances, it's also very, very funny. The only person Willie T. Stokes (Billy Bob Thornton) hates more than anyone else is himself. Consumed with self loathing and drinking himself into oblivion, Willies' life and everyone in it are one endless series of disappointments. Unscrupulous and immoral, Willie is a bad person and he knows it. One thing he is good at though is cracking safes. Every Christmas with the help of his diminutive partner in crime, Marcus (Tony Cox) he finds work as a department store Santa Claus. With Marcus as his elf assistant, their sole intention is to rob the store on Christmas Eve. With Willie permanently drunk, abusive to the kids and having sex in the changing rooms, despite his best efforts, Marcus cannot avert the suspicions of store detective Gin Slagel (Bernie Mac). Slagel quickly brings his concerns to the attention of the mall manager Bob Chipeska (John Ritter), in his last film appearance. Meanwhile Willie is enjoying a passionate affair with Sue (Lauren Graham), a barmaid with a Santa Claus fetish. Things are further complicated by the unwelcome attention of a young boy, Thurman Merman, who believes the foul mouthed Willie to be the real Santa. Willie finally finds a purpose to his life, teaching Thurman to stand up to bullying after the youngster inadvertently saves him from suicide. With the clock ticking, will the Yuletide criminals be apprehended before they can complete their audacious robbery and will Willie find redemption in a childs innocence? Rude, crude and with the blackest of humour, 'Bad Santa' with a total of 300 profanities, may not be to everyones taste but it manages to be both hilarious and moving without once slipping into sentimentality. Both Jack Nicholson and Bill Murray showed interest in the title role but were already committed to other projects. It's difficult to imagine anyone other than Billy Bob Thornton as 'Bad Santa' though and he gives a career best performance, ironically losing out on a Golden Globe award to Murray for 'Lost in Translation'. This is one Christmas film that can be enjoyed at any time of the year. Excellent. Martin Davis, Retrospect Film on Facebook

More
bbewnylorac
2003/12/02

This movie is a breath of fresh air in so many ways. It's hilarious. On the surface, it's off-putting. Just for starters, there's the profanity, and the dedicated immorality of Billy Bob Thornton's mall Santa character, Willie, and everyone around him. In a way Willie is like a particularly evil version of Bill Murray's grumpy curmudgeon character in Groundhog Day. But Bad Santa has so much the ring of truth to it. When Willie -- a thief, alcoholic and conman -- is forced to look after a determinedly sweet little boy, he discovers he does have a heart somewhere in there and he might just be a rough diamond. The little boy is just the best actor. In fact, you will rarely see a better performance from a child. Some of it is the script, but also the boy plays it so naturally deadpan that most of his lines are hilarious. Good on the directors for going with someone unconventional and not just the cookie-cutter cute kid. The caustic, crude, very un-jolly Billy Bob Thornton is born to play the role of Bad Santa. The movie won't be to everyone's taste, but those with any sense of subtlety and a wicked sense of humour will find it a joy.

More
John Doe
2003/12/03

Bad Santa is a 2003 comedy film directed by Terry Zwigoff and is written by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa. The movie is absolutely hilarious and is a must see! This film is about Willie a false Santa Clause / crook (played by Billy Bob Thornton), he drinks a lot, swears a lot, and he doesn't care if you've been naughty or nice! With his partner Marcus (played by Tony Cox), they are an unstoppable team...or are they? Willie soon meets The Kid a chubby, curly blond hared boy (played by Brett Kelly) (His real name is Thurman Merman) is really good at driving Willie up the wall (and it's not to get more presents from the North Pole). But the two do eventually become friends (sorta). Willie eventually gets involved with the cops and I don't want to spoil the rest of the film so you should just see it for yourself.I give Bad Santa a 10/10.

More