Bad Santa (2003)

Director:

Terry Zwigoff

Writers (WGA):

Glenn Ficarra (written by) &
John Requa (written by)

Release Date:

26 November 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

He's very naughty . . . and not very nice. [DVD]

Plot:

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, and the security boss discovers the plot.

Plot Keywords:

Christmas | Elf | Department Store | Bartender | Midget

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

Billy Bob Thornton	...	Willie
Tony Cox	...	Marcus
Brett Kelly	...	The Kid
Lauren Graham	...	Sue
Lauren Tom	...	Lois
Bernie Mac	...	Gin
John Ritter	...	Bob Chipeska
Ajay Naidu	...	Hindustani Troublemaker
Lorna Scott	...	Milwaukee Mother
Harrison Bieker	...	Milwaukee Boy
Alex Borstein	...	Milwaukee Mom with Photo
Alexandra Korhan	...	Girl on Santa's Lap
Dylan Charles	...	Milwaukee Bratty Boy
Billy Gardell	...	Milwaukee Security Guard
Lisa Ross	...	Milwaukee Bartender

Also Known As:

Badder Santa (USA) (longer version)
Un santa no tan santo (Argentina) (Mexico) [es]
Babbo bastardo (Italy) [it]
Bad Santa (Spain) [es]
Méchant Père Noël (Canada: French title) [fr]
Mosul cel rau (Romania) [ro]
O ai Vasilis einai sketi lera (Greece) (TV title) [el]
O ai Vasilis einai... lera (Greece) [el]
Paha pukki (Finland) [fi]
Papai Noel às Avessas (Brazil) [pt]
Vastik Vana (Estonia) [et]

MPAA:

Rated R for pervasive language, strong sexual content and some violence. (also director's cut)

Runtime:

91 min | 88 min (Director's cut) | 98 min (unrated version)

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Netherlands:12 | Portugal:M/16 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Zurich) | Spain:18 | Singapore:M18 (cut) | Malaysia:(Banned) | Australia:M (TV rating) | Ireland:18 (extended version) | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Brazil:14 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A | Finland:K-15 | France:U | Germany:12 (original rating) | Germany:16 (extended version) | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15PG | Italy:VM14 | Japan:PG-12 | Norway:11 | Peru:14 | Philippines:R-18 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R (also director's cut) (certificate #40305) | USA:Unrated (unrated DVD version) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Chile:14

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Dimension Films

Trivia:

Bill Murray was signed on as Willie but dropped out for Lost in Translation (2003).

Goofs:

Continuity: When Willie and Marcus go to the store and the security guard stops them it is 8:00. When Marcus is climbing through the vent, the clock on the wall says 9:05, and he is supposed to be doing this right after they got in the store. (Although, as always, the clock could be wrong.)

Quotes:

[first lines]
Willie: Hey, can I get another drink down here?

Movie Connections:

References The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Soundtrack:

The Sleeping Beauty, Ballet Suite, Op. 66a (Valse)

Wonderfully Funny, Very Irreverrent Christmas Movie

This is one of the best Christmas movie of all times. The casting is brilliant, and the chemistry between all the characters is very much present.

Billy Bob Thornton was especially funny as the loser in life who dons the red suit every Christmas. Just seeing Santa behaving drunken and swearing every other word tells you how different this is from the typical Christmas family friendly movies.

Bernie Mac was funny in his supporting role, and Tony Cox was OK. Billy Bob was phenomenal.

I've watched this movie twice already this Christmas season, and I loved every minute of it.