"Bad Santa" gets good rap

January 22, 2003

Terry Zwigoff's Bad Santa seems to be getting off to a good start. The Dimension Films release has been getting good buzz since it finished production and is, according to Ain't It Cool News, one of the funniest movies in a long time, and if the lead character is as cruel and whacked-out as he's said to be, we could be in for a wild ride.

Bad Santa stars Billy Bob Thornton as a career criminal who robs malls during the lucrative Christmas season. The only problem is he finds himself donning a Santa suit and playing with the kiddies the best way to break into the joint every year. The film also stars John Ritter as a mall manager, Cloris Leachman as the grandmother of one of the kids Thornton takes a liking to, and Bernie Mac as a slimeball detective.

Bad Santa is the brainchild of filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen (Fargo) and was once thought of as a vehicle for Bill Murray. Zwigoff's previous film was the enormously entertaining Ghost World. Bad Santa hopes to hit theaters this December.

Matthew Dalton

Source: Ain't It Cool News