"Bad Santa 2" will hit the cinemas in the UK on Wednesday 23 November 2016. The 1-hour 32-minute comedy is a follow on from the 2003 original "Bad Santa." For some reason, the originals of any movie are always considered better than the next in the sequence, but reviews so far do seem to agree that it is wicked comedy, hillarious and will make you laugh until you drop. However, this comes with provisions.
'Profane, low brow and raunchy 'Bad Santa 2'
According to Movieweb, this movie is going to offend some people. Julian Romans reveiw says that the movie is raunchy, with trashy sex scenes, low brow humour and it is "profane." This does not sound like a lot of laughs so far, but he does elaborate and point out that for those who care naught for political correctness will enjoy a good belly laugh and those who don't mind that "There's not a drop of decency here," will "laugh yourself into the ground, get up, and then fall back down again.
It's really that funny."
Vulgar, nasty and offensive movie
The New York Post is less enthusiastic, describing the movie as "vulgar, nasty and offensive." They too referred to the original movie and described it as the "funniest movie of the 2000's." But it seems they are not overly happy with the sequel, although they do acknowledge there are some funny bits.
The plot
The movie plot is summarised by Rotten Tomatoes as "Fueled by cheap whiskey, greed and hatred, Willie Soke (Billy Bob Thornton) teams up with his angry little sidekick, Marcus, to knock off a Chicago charity on Christmas Eve. Along for the ride is chubby and cheery Thurman Merman, a 250-pound ray of sunshine who brings out Willie's sliver of humanity.
Mommy issues arise when the pair are joined by Willie's horror story of a mother, Sunny Soke, who raises the bar for the gang's ambitions, while somehow lowering the standards of criminal behavior."
Very bad timing for a movie that violates cultural norms.
One of the best of many bad reviews comes from Andrew Barker for Variety, who criticizes the timing of the movie.
He wrote, "With “Bad Santa 2,” it’s hard to imagine a worse time for a film whose entire raison d’être is the willful violation of cultural norms and good taste in a period of history where the exact same things are occurring at the highest levels of government."
A disappointing movie - times have changed
Times change and what might have been funny in 2003 is not particularly funny as the world reels under unprecedented political upheaval.
From Donald Trump to Brexit and the rise of the right and the liberal left clashing their views over refugees and the pro-lifer movement up in arms over something Hillary Clinton said...well - it is a different world today. Nevertheless, according to Variety, even if times had been different, the movie is at best a "half-hearted affair" offering mostly "considerable disappointment."
You can watch the trailer for "Bad Santa 2" below. If bad language offends you - give it a miss.
