Bad Santa

Bad Santa
Originally uploaded by Struthers.

The true meaning of the spirit of Christmas is well-worn cinema territory, and thank Christ that Bad Santa is nowhere in the realm of family holiday cheer. In fact if your kids are the kind who still leave out cookies and milk for the fat guy, then keep them well away from this hilarious gem.
Director Terry Zwigoff (Ghost World) pulls no punches in his depiction of an alcoholic Santa who hates children and his equally foul-mouthed elf (Tony Cox) who each year work in a different shopping mall, before robbing the place of it's holiday takings on Christmas eve.
Santa Clause (Billy Bob Thornton, A Simple Plan) is on the slippery slope to alcoholic oblivion, soiling himself more often than the spoilt children who sit on his lap each day. However firing the duo is impossible for the store manager (the late John Ritter), as his elf is not only a "little person", but he's also black.
Things get interesting for Santa when two people enter his life. He finds himself, between swearing fits, having to placate an 8-year-old boy who believes he really is Santa; and a barmaid (Lauren Graham, Gilmore Girls), who has a thing for guys in the red suit.
With a nosey store detective (Bernie Mac, Oceans 11), sniffing around, and in a film where Santa has exactly zero redeeming qualities, you can be sure this bad boy isn't ending like other Christmas favourites; Miracle on 34th Street, or The Santa Clause.
The script is hilarious, Billy Bob is pitch-perfect, and the story flies by while the jokes keep rolling. Bad Santa is brilliant and bawdy and shows us what the true meaning of Christmas really is. (Commercialised robbery).

Bad Santa rates 4 1/2 stars.