The original Bad Santa was a medium-size hit back in 2003, but it didn’t do much to make Billy Bob Thornton’s career go into the stratosphere. Instead, it proved to be a perennial favorite for Grinches around the holidays. Now, he’s back in the sequel 13 years later and for the most part, it upchucks a lot of the same material just like Thornton is when his character’s had too much to drink.
Thornton is back again as Willie Soke, still very much the alcoholic, womanizing, self-loathing thief who seems to have retired until his old dwarf pal Marcus (Tony Cox) comes to him with an offer he can’t refuse.
They travel to Chicago in order to rob a charity of $2 million. Little does Willie realize, his estranged mother (Kathy Bates) works for the charity and wants a piece of the action herself. Thornton and Bates try to score some laughs, but again upchucks arise.
Willie not only has to contend with the robbery, but also with falling in love with the owner of the charity (Mad Men’s Christina Hendricks) and also teaching his young friend Thurman Merman (Brett Kelly) how to pick up chicks. Willie and the kid do earn some laughs where the relationship between he and his mom fail.
Now I will admit there are some funny scenes in Bad Santa 2, but they’re also surrounded by plot elements that serve mainly as filler to keep it on autopilot.
The first movie was hilarious in its no-holds-barred, take no prisoners approach and Thornton’s performance mainly spearheaded all of the vulgar spontaneity. Here, it mostly features gags without a purpose (unless you want to literally gag) and goes through the motions.
Stick with the original unless you like material that is as old as your last case of eggnog still in the refrigerator from last Christmas.
Grade: C+
(Rated R for crude sexual content and language throughout, and some graphic nudity.)
