Billy Bob Thornton, Bernie Mac, Lauren Graham

Willie T. Stokes is a washed-up, wise-cracking Department Store Santa who can't help but be more naughty than nice. Underneath his ill-fitting red suit, Willie is actually a safecracker who makes one ...( read more  read more... )big score every year--on Christmas Eve. As shoppers head home from the mall, this Santa and his ingenious Elf--Willie's midget partner-in-crime Marcus--crack the store safe and make off with their own holiday stash. But then comes Phoenix. Here Santa and his Elf find their annual heist endangered by a pesky store manager, a savvy mall detective, a sexy Santa fan and an innocent but beleaguered 8-year-old misfit who decides to believe that Willie--as intoxicated, acid-tongued and felonious as he seems to be--is the real Santa he's been seeking.

Flixster Users

73% liked it

178,397 ratings

Critics

76% liked it

182 critics

R, 1 hr. 33 min.

Directed by: Terry Zwigoff

Release Date: November 26, 2003

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DVD Release Date: June 22, 2004

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Stats: 7,393 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (7,393)


  • September 15, 2009
    Good Santa!
  • January 3, 2009
    "Wish in one hand, shit in the other. See which one fills up first."

    "Bad Santa" is almost a perfect holiday movie. If not the best, it's at least the funniest. By far.

    Billy Bob Thornton plays a constantly drunken, vile character called Willie. He is miserable with his life, b...( read more)ut in the end, he will find something worth fighting for. And he does it perfectly! His comedic timings, talent are something that will make his character one of the most memorable in the history of comedy.

    "I'm an eating, drinking, shitting, fucking Santy Claus"

    "Bad Santa" is not for everyone. If you have a liberal sense of humor and don't mind foul language (instead, you kinda love it...), this movie is totally for you!

    When I've read reviews about the film, I've noticed that people criticize the film because of its language. If the characters wouldn't swear, the movie wouldn't be as effective as it is now. For me, the dialogue was perfect! Crude and vulgar. "Bad Santa" is the funniest christmas movie made. More of this, please.

    "No, I'm an accountant. I wear this fucking thing as a fashion statement, alright?"
  • December 13, 2008
    Hilarious christmas feel bad movie with a black heart which thaws believably.
  • December 12, 2008
    not the usual fairytale christmas crap which is why i enjoyed it. only billy bob thornton could play this life sucked out of loser and it works. before fairytale lovers go looking somewhere else it has got a moral to the story but it's subtle and honest rather than over the top a...( read more)nd stupid like every other christmas crapper
  • December 11, 2008
    Billy Bob Thornton plays a foul-mouthed drunken safe cracker who once a year gets a job as a department store Santa in order to rob the place. When I watched this I was thinking I'd be getting a deconstruction of seasonal sentimentality and a welcome antidote to the usual sacchar...( read more)ine drenched mush that's the hallmark of the average Christmas movie. What I got was a guy in a Santa suit saying fuck. Over and over again. True, his first tirade against the dim-witted fat kid is funny but once you've seen that you've seen the whole thing, and inevitably it resorts to the usual growing as a person bullshit by the end. I'm as big a fan as politically incorrect humour as the next person, but this just plain isn't funny. Stick to Scrooged.
  • November 13, 2009
    SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GALERIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND ITS A BIT WEIRD ASWELL!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • November 1, 2009
    the language is discusting rude. it does not make you feel christmasy at all
  • October 29, 2009
    This was the funniest Christmas movie Ive ever seen.I laughed from beginning to end
  • October 23, 2009
    very funny love billy bob
  • October 23, 2009
    From Sling Blade to Armageddon, to Bad Santa....Billy Bob Thornton is da man

Critic Reviews


May 3, 2005
Nick Schager, Lessons of Darkness

An uproarious all-out assault on propriety. full review

December 5, 2003
David Edelstein, Slate

Thornton's performance is -- there's no other word -- beautiful. full review

November 29, 2003
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

I found the escalating disreputability of Bad Santa completely cathartic. full review

November 26, 2003
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

I didn't like this movie merely because it was weird and different; I liked it because it makes no compromises and takes no prisoners. And because it is funny. full review

November 26, 2003
Ty Burr, Boston Globe

Mac and Graham have little to do, sadly, but this may be the bravest acting Thornton has ever done, so complete is his refusal to play to our sympathies. full review

November 25, 2003
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

There simply aren't enough laughs in this Christmas comedy -- it's more like a stocking stuffed with lumps of coal. full review

November 24, 2003
Edward Havens, FilmJerk.com

Sure to become a holiday perennial for those with a macabre sense of humor, or forever laminated on Santa's naughty list. full review

November 20, 2003
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

It could become a Christmas perennial for Scrooges of all ages. full review

View more Bad Santa reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • KarnEvil9
    November 4, 2007
    "Are you fucking with me???"
  • beckee615
    September 6, 2007
    This movie is one of my fav.!! It was soooo funny & kept me rolling all through!! Love it!!
  • Robin3point
    June 16, 2007
    it was fuuny but not to yell about
  • angelicchance
    March 18, 2007
    Such a horrible movie, it couldn't have sucked any worse
  • Toreejake
    January 9, 2007
    'I'M ON MY FUCKING LUCHBREAK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
  • shane72
    October 13, 2006
    This films amazing reli funny "Fuck Me Santa"

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Bad Santa Trivia


  • In the movie Bad Santa, one kid asked for a made-up toy from Billy Bob Thornton. What was it?  Answer »
  • 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.  Answer »
  • Which word completes the films? _________ Boys _________ Santa Very _________ Things   Answer »
  • What movie features a mall santa named Willie and Thurman Murman (The Kid)?  Answer »

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