Badder Santa

Theatrical Release Date: 2003 11 26 (USA)

UPC: 786936245042

Studio: Dimension

MPAA Rating: NR   Contains:[Brief Nudity, Strong Sexual Content, Not For Children, Profanity, Substance Abuse, Slapstick Violence]

Summary: The Christmas season just got a lot less joyous in this very dark comedy. Willie T. Stokes (Billy Bob Thornton) is a con man and a thief who teams up with his friend Marcus (Tony Cox), a midget, for a very special scam each year during the holiday season. Willie gets a job as Santa Claus at a shopping mall, his pal tags along as an elf, and they use their employee status to crack mall security and rob stores blind just before Christmas. However, there's one flaw to this plan -- Willie is a bitter, foul-mouthed and perpetually grouchy alcoholic who doesn't care for kids, and it's all he can do to keep himself from getting fired while on the job. The mall's manager (John Ritter, in his last film appearance) is certain something's wrong with the Santa he's hired, so he asks the mall's chief of security (Bernie Mac) to do some research on Willie. Meanwhile, one of the kids Willie is forced to talk to becomes a regular customer; overweight, awkward, and the frequent target of bullies, the boy manages to arouse something like sympathy from Willie, who tries to give him some advice and develops something vaguely resembling Christmas sprit along the way. Bad Santa was directed by Terry Zwigoff, who enjoyed previous success with Crumb and Ghost World. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Category: Comedy

Awards: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or – null Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Film Presented – Cannes Film Festival

Features: ccDeleted and alternate scenes (over seven minutes of never-before-seen footage)
Behind-the-scenes special
Outtakes
"Badder Santa" gag reel

Badder Santa

Format: DVD

Release Date: 06/22/2004

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Theatre Wide-Screen

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1

Runtime: 98 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Side #1 --
1. Christmas in Milwaukee [7:29]
2. On the Wagon? [4:31]
3. Florida Robbery [4:07]
4. "#%&^-Stick?" [3:24]
5. "What D'You Want?" [3:58]
6. "Prove It" [4:35]
7. "Is Granny Spry?" [3:32]
8. Keeping a Low Profile [5:29]
9. Santa's New Hideout [7:25]
10. "Wanna Play Again?" [4:11]
11. "That's Gonna Sting a Little" [4:35]
12. "He's Clean" [5:20]
13. Negotiating [5:20]
14. Turning a Corner [5:12]
15. Boxing and the Wooden Pickle [1:59]
16. A Merry Christmas Eve [4:51]
17. The Kitnerboy Redoubt [5:51]
18. "For Christ's Sake It's Christmas" [5:08]
19. End Credits [7:53]

Perry Seibert

Terry Zwigoff's fearlessly vulgar Bad Santa produces big laughs from some of the most repulsive behavior ever put on screen. At the center of it all is Billy Bob Thornton as alcoholic thief and department-store Santa Willie T. Stokes, giving a performance so lacking in vanity that his every gesture, glance, and remark are foul, wretched, and toxic. Arguably the funniest performance of his career, Thornton is matched by a game cast that never shrinks from his undiluted misanthropy and self-hatred. Lauren Graham gives such an open, self-knowing performance that she not only makes her character's attraction to Stokes believable, but actually makes him more attractive to the audience as well. Tony Cox and Bernie Mac match Willie's self-interest and provide a worthy partner and adversary for him. The script, which originated with Joel and Ethan Coen, sets out to offend and succeeds -- but like with all great vulgar comedies, the audience laughs as it is repulsed because the behavior is rooted in the characters. Some may be turned off when Willie delivers a profanity laced tirade at (not in front of but "at") the young boy who simply wants to be friends with Santa, but many in the audience will recognize that Thornton is simply (if shockingly) bringing the spirit of W.C. Fields into the 21st century. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Bryan Callen  Actor 
Ryan Pinkston  Actor 
Georgia Eskew  Actor 
Alexandra Korhan  Actor 
Natsuko Ohama  Actor 
Dave Adams  Actor 
Max Van Ville  Actor 
Sheriff John Bunnell  Actor 
Tonya Renee Banks  Actor 
Harrison Bieker  Actor 
Briana Norton  Actor 
Tom McGowan  Actor 
Billy Gardell  Actor 
Grace Calderon  Actor 
Joey Saravia  Actor 
Joe Bucaro III  Actor 
Lisa Ross  Actor 
Hallie Singleton  Actor 
Ethan Phillips  Actor 
Peter Quartaroli  Actor 
Bucky Dominick  Actor 
Chloe Colville  Actor 
Lorna Scott  Actor 
Matt Walsh  Actor 
Christine Pichardo  Actor 
Cody Strauch  Actor 
Curtis Taylor  Actor 
Octavia L. Spencer  Actor 
Dylan Charles  Actor 
Hayden Bromberg  Actor 
Michael Dansk  Actor 
Ethan Coen  Executive Producer 
Joel Coen  Executive Producer 
David Kitay  Composer (Music Score) 
Bob Weinstein  Producer 
Terry Zwigoff  Director 
Terry Zwigoff  Screenwriter 
John Requa  Screenwriter 
Glenn Ficarra  Screenwriter 
John Cameron  Producer 
Sarah Aubrey  Producer 
Billy Bob Thornton  Actor 
Tony Cox  Actor 
Brett Kelly  Actor 
Lauren Graham  Actor 
Lauren Tom  Actor 
Bernie Mac  Actor 
John Ritter  Actor 
Ajay Naidu  Actor 
Alex Borstein  Actor 
Cloris Leachman  Actor 

Country: USA