Bad Santa 2
Who asks for these sequels that come decades later? Was there a band of Bad Santa fans who were petitioning for a sequel all these years later? I don’t remember the original film too well as I saw it way back when but I remember it for having a purpose on top of being known for being raunchy and crude. At the time having an adult themed Christmas film was great as there weren’t many around and that film was smart and full of laughs. Bad Santa 2 is nowhere near as good, its just BAD. And pointless.
The film starts off with Willie Soke being a drunken mess (as usual). As he tries to kill himself he is soon reunited with Thurman and Marcus. This time there’s a twist as he must work with his estranged mother to steal money from a charity. Sound interesting? It’s not. A lot of the film is phoned in. For the most part the script is lazy and uninteresting its like everyone just rushed through the film. While the film does just go through the motions I liked Kathy Bates in this. She’s always a terrific actress and she was easily one of the best parts of the film.
The jokes are X-rated as expected but just not bad. Most of the jokes revolve around genitalia and sex as expected. Nothing wrong with vulgar and offensive humor if it actually makes you laugh and is in a film that keeps your attention. Hardly any of them hit though. I’m a fan of Christina Hendricks but she was a one dimensional love interest for Billy Bob Thornton. There’s just no dimension in this film. The lines just feel like they were written before hand just to be fit in at random intervals of the film. I’m not the biggest fan of Christmas films as there are probably only 3 or 4 that really resonate with me, but I know a good one when I see one. Avoid this at all costs. Just watch the original and long for Bernie Mac instead. I’ll be generous with the rating because its the holidays.
5/10