Ho, Ho, Ho, It’s Time for Another Misguided Christmas Caper!
Prepare for a yuletide adventure that’s as naughty as it is nice! “Bad Santa 2” is back with all the raunchy humor, heartwarming moments, and outrageous characters you’ve come to expect from this twisted holiday franchise. But is it worth your time and money? Let’s find out in this candid review.
Review by Ben Dover
“Bad Santa 2” picks up where the first film left off, with our beloved alcoholic and misanthropic Santa, Willie T. Stokes (Billy Bob Thornton), back in action. This time, he’s teamed up with his trusty sidekick, Marcus (Tony Cox), to rob a charity for children on Christmas Eve. But things quickly go awry when Willie’s estranged mother, Sunny (Kathy Bates), enters the picture, adding a whole new level of chaos and dysfunction to the mix.
This movie goes a long way to proving that sometimes Hollywood can take a perfectly good movie and beat it like a rented mule. “Bad Santa 2” is what happens when studios decide that comedy is like a Christmas fruitcake – you can keep reheating it long after its expiration date.
Billy Bob Thornton returns as Willie T. Stokes, looking like he’s aged about as gracefully as my first marriage. Thirteen years after the original, Willie is still a walking disaster, but now he’s less shocking and more just… sad. It’s like watching your alcoholic uncle try to recreate his glory days at a family reunion nobody wanted to attend.
The plot, if you can call it that, involves Willie teaming up again with Marcus (Tony Cox) to rob a Chicago charity during Christmas. Because apparently, lightning can strike twice in the same thoroughly inappropriate place. Kathy Bates joins the cast as Willie’s mother, playing a criminal so terrible she makes Willie look like a boy scout. Their relationship is less “heartwarming family comedy” and more “how many felonies can we commit together?”
Brett Kelly returns as Thurman Merman, the weird kid from the first movie, now slightly older but no less bizarre. He’s like that one relative everyone in the family knows is strange but keeps inviting to Christmas dinner anyway. His continued presence is both disturbing and weirdly endearing.
Where the first “Bad Santa” felt like a razor-sharp comedy with genuine heart, this sequel feels like a photocopy of a photocopy. The jokes are louder, cruder, and somehow less funny. It’s trying so hard to shock that it forgets to actually be clever. The original movie was offensive in a way that felt brutally honest. This feels like offensive for offense’s sake.
The comedy is so forced it’s like watching your dad try to use teenage slang. Every joke is cranked up to eleven, but volume isn’t comedy. It’s just noise. The film seems to believe that more profanity and more crude behavior automatically equals more laughs. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t.
Thornton looks like he’s doing this purely for the paycheck. His performance lacks the raw, broken energy of the first film. He’s not so much a character as he is a collection of bad behavior clichés walking around in a Santa suit.
Bottom Line: A sequel that proves not every cult classic needs a follow-up. This is the cinematic equivalent of getting socks for Christmas – disappointing, slightly embarrassing, and something nobody actually wanted.
Rating: 2/5 Martinis (And both of these are going directly into my system before, during, and after the movie)
Fun Fact: The movie made a mere $24 million worldwide, proving that even die-hard fans of the original weren’t buying what this sequel was selling.
Budget: $26,000,000 (estimated)
Gross worldwide: $24,079,268
Memorable Quote: “I’m too old for this sh*t.” – Willie, which feels less like a line of dialogue and more like Billy Bob Thornton’s actual internal monologue along with just being outright theft.
Best Scene: Honestly? The credits rolling, signaling the end of this mess.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I need several drinks to wash away the memory of this film.
Ben Dover has been advised by multiple film critic associations to stop watching holiday comedies that arrive 13 years too late. He continues to do so anyway.
Who Stars in This Mess?
- Billy Bob Thornton as Willie T. Stokes
- Tony Cox as Marcus
- Brett Kelly as Thurman
- Kathy Bates as Sunny Stokes
- Christina Hendricks as Diane
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
“Bad Santa 2” is a raunchy, barely funny film skipping it will keep the mempry of the first one in your mind much better.
Synopsis and Plot Breakdown
“Bad Santa 2” follows Willie T. Stokes, a washed-up alcoholic and mall Santa, as he teams up with his partner, Marcus, to rob a charity for children on Christmas Eve. But their plans are thrown off when Willie’s estranged mother, Sunny, enters the picture. Sunny is a manipulative and abusive woman who is determined to get her hands on Willie’s money. As Christmas Eve approaches, Willie and Marcus must find a way to pull off their heist and escape Sunny’s clutches.
5 Famous Quotes from “Bad Santa 2”
- “I’m not a bad person, I’m just a drunk with a bad attitude.”
- “I’m not a regular Santa, I’m a cool Santa.”
- “Ho, ho, ho, motherfuckers!”
- “I’m not going to hell, I’m going to Disneyland.”
- “I’m not a kid anymore, I’m a grown-ass man.”
5 Interesting Notes from “Bad Santa 2”
- The film was directed by Mark Waters, who also directed “Mean Girls” and “Freaky Friday.”
- The film was NOT a box office success, grossing just barely it’s budget worldwide.
- The film received mixed reviews from critics, but it was generally well-received by audiences.
- The film is the second installment in the “Bad Santa” franchise.
- The film was released on November 23, 2016.
Trailer
Reviewer Notebook:
Robbing a charity makes me hate this in the first place, pick something everyone hates and it might have worked a lot better.
Credit to Kathy Bates for nearly saving this mess.
One line I will remember from her: “If you got a problem with that take it up with the lollipop guild.”
Never thought I would see Christina Hendricks get effed against a dumpster. They should have set it on fire.
