BAD SANTA (2003) - ♦♦♦♦

Directed by - Terry Zwigoff

Written by - Glenn Ficarra, John Requa

Starring - Billy Bob Thornton, Bernie Mac, Lauren Graham

"Bad Santa is certainly not your average and conventional Christmas movie. It tells the story of a pair of thieves who specialise in robbing shopping malls after working in them during Christmas season as Santa and elf. However, Santa here is not the lovable, chubby, aged and long bearded guy the children love to see, but an alcoholic who is often late for work, always stinks of booze, is constantly horny and scares the kids away. 

Terry Zwigoff's film is gloriously rude and frighteningly offensive. Nevertheless, it is a comedy drama that is far from being stupid. This is easily proved by its surprisingly mature screenplay that, despite being not afraid to use campy and inappropriate humour, also balances the silly side of the film with a clever examination of the characters, revealing them as broken, lonely and infinitely sad. 

In the end, the film reveals a sweet inner core that is just understated enough to seem more genuine than the vast majority of countless other seasonal movies. 

Bad Santa also works, however, because of the leading performance by Billy Bob Thornton, who fills the boots of the worst Santa ever with amazing poignancy, restrained sensibility, without overplaying any aspect of his character and in the process even eventually making him seem appealing, like a sad clown."

Comedy, USA/Germany