Plot: What’s it about?
“Bad Santa” might be one of the more off-color comedies to come around in years. It’s also almost depressing to watch as these characters don’t have any single redeeming qualities. Then again, that’s the point. Billy Bob Thornton, best-known for his work in “Sling Blade” and “Armageddon” takes the title role and evidently has a fun time doing it. The movie was inspired by, not surprisingly, Joel and Ethan Coen (“Fargo”) and was directed by relative newcomer Terry Zwigoff whose previous effort on “Ghost World” won him critical accolades. The movie wasn’t without controversy, however, as it was released back during the holiday season and the depiction of a drunken Santa Claus is something that a lot of people don’t want to associate with the jolly fat man. Nevertheless, the movie received some critical marks and went on to become a modest success at the box office. That being said, it’s now on DVD and with seven minutes of additional footage has gained the title “Bad(der) Santa”. Apparently they didn’t offend people enough the first time around, so they’ve added some new scenes to the movie. In any case…
Billy Bob Thornton plays Willie, a drunken, broken down shell of a man who has never had a break in his life. He had a nasty childhood, beaten by his father and has now turned to a life of crime. Every December, he and his partner Marcus (Tony Cox) go to a different city where they masquerade as Santa Claus and an elf. Due to Marcus being a “little person”, they’re a natural pair and never have trouble finding employment. They do manage to burn their bridges as they rob the department store that they work at, only to skip town the next day. Willie claims to go straight, using the money to open a bar in Miami. He drinks whiskey at a pace that would kill an elephant and somehow manages to have sex with women in cars and plus-sized dressing rooms. It’s sad to say, but there are probably people like this out there somewhere. Things are going to plan as the town of Phoenix is their latest scam. Willie meets a bartender who isn’t turned off by his off-color remarks and with her “Santa Fetish”, the two form an unlikely couple. He then meets a kid (Brett Kelly) who believes that he really is Santa and even lets him crash at his expensive house. Trouble ensues when Willie starts to develop an attachment to the kid.
I have to admit that watching this movie was a bit painful. There’s some funny parts, but it’s John Ritter’s last movie, movies about alcoholics (funny or not) aren’t entertaining to watch and the humor is done in such a way that when you laugh, you feel bad for doing so. Now I could be in the minority, but I did find “Bad Santa” funny, just not as funny as I thought. The image of a “mall” Santa hobbling around drunk and cussing at the kids is funny in concept, but we have to ask “when does it go too far”? Bernie Mac offers some laughs in a supporting role and it does feel a bit odd to watch a “Christmas” movie in June. While this movie is sure to have fans, I’m not so sure that I could call myself one of them. Perhaps I took it too literally and should have just enjoy the show, but something about humor this dark can’t always be taken with a grain of salt.
Video: How does it look?
The included 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer looks very good, on par with every other new to DVD movie out there. Colors are strong, but not oversaturated and giving the movie a very natural look. Some of the outdoor scenes look a bit bright to me, but maybe they were trying to show us how Willie felt (being hungover and all). I noticed no signs of edge enhancement and the level of detail was solid as well. Black levels are right on target, too. To put it bluntly, the transfer has a couple of faults, but nothing too shocking. Those expecting a fine-looking transfer will certainly get what they paid for.
Audio: How does it sound?
As far as sound goes, this isn’t anything too terrific. The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack does a good job at reproducing the soundtrack and though the surrounds aren’t used too often, they do chime in from time to time. Most of the movie is dialogue driven and if you can filter out all of the curse words (I think there’s a line or two of dialogue in there without them), it’s a decent sounding track. The audio is essentially pretty uneventful, but viewers shouldn’t be disappointed.
Supplements: What are the extras?
“Bad(der) Santa” doesn’t come equipped with too many extras, the main one is the seven minutes of added footage that wasn’t shown in theaters. I didn’t see the movie in theaters, so I don’t know what was added in (though I have a good guess). There are three deleted scenes in addition to the added footage and a “Making of Bad Santa” that tells of how the movie was written, who inspired it and how it actually got made (it wasn’t expected to). Some outtakes round out the supplements as well as some trailers of other Disney movies (though not this one, odd).
