Bad Santa 2
Bad Santa 2is another late comedy sequel that fails to catch lightning in a bottle again with a poor script and weak characters.
Thirteen old age after his effort as a section computer storage Santa in Arizona , Willie Soke ’s ( Billy Bob Thornton ) life keep on to be a low-down Scheol . Due to his alcoholism and inability to keep his priorities in product line , Willie ’s blossoming romance with Sue ( Lauren Graham inBad Santa ) is no more , though Thurman Merman ( Brett Kelly ) continues to follow Willie around as he come on into maturity , oblivious as ever . Sick of his pathetic existence , Willie is ruminate suicide when he is contacted by his former associate Marcus Skidmore ( Tony Cox ) with a new job offer .
The two look past their differences and agree to act upon together on a scheme to rob a Chicago charity of $ 2 million on Christmas Eve , once again play their old office of Santa and his elf . Arriving in the Windy City , Willie is loath to take part in the heist when he discovers his mother Sunny ( Kathy Bates ) is Marcus ' accomplice , though he is dire for the money and goes along with the plan . Meanwhile , Willie becomes attracted to charity principal Diane Hastings ( Christina Hendricks ) , while Thurman travel to Chicago alone so he can spend Christmas with his " family . "
Bad Santa 2is the continuation toBad Santa , the 2003 dour comedy that come through congratulations for being a unfermented and amusing subversive activity of the distinctive holiday movie tropes . The film was in development for a number of years before reaching field of operations , and it aims to retake the deception of the original while being a fun law of continuation of the character . However , like many stay comedy sequel , it amount up unretentive . Bad Santa 2is another late comedy sequel that fails to catch lightning in a bottle again with a poor book and infirm characters .
Johnny Rosenthal and Shauna Cross ' screenplay is perhaps the movie ’s greatest failing . They set about to balance several storylines throughout the brief 90 minute runtime , but a few of the subplots end up being filler and inconsequential to the substantial tale at bridge player . The most obvious dupe in this regard is Regent Hastings ( Ryan Hansen ) enquire Willie because Soke is spending time with his married woman , Diane . It ’s a thinly - veil endeavor to giveBad Santa 2an element similar to Bernie Mac in the first one , only it survive nowhere and at times it feels like the filmmakers forgot about it . Jeff Skowron gets some humorous lines as Dorfman , the security system guard trying to uncover Willie ’s past , but that ’s not enough to make it a worthwhile gain to the film .
Unfortunately , the same can be said for Thurman Merman . Kelly is once again a standout in the part , but his lineament ’s inclusion feels more like it come out of nostalgia for the original instead of being a natural fit forthisparticular fib . Whereas Thurman was the heart ofBad Santa , he is n’t given all that much to do in the sequel other than doing a " grown - up " riff of his schtick from the original . Kelly does have some sweet-flavored moments with Thornton , particularly towards the end , though some viewers may feel that managing director Mark Waters could have cut Thurman altogether and nothing would have been lost . The idea of aBad Santa 2without the lovable Kid might be blasphemous , but the character feels forced into the minutes and scantily factors into the plot of ground , which will be disappointing for fans that enjoyed Thurman in the first film .
Bad Santa 2 ’s raunchy bodily fluid is a troubling miscellaneous grip . On the positive side , Thornton maintains excellent alchemy with Cox , as Willie and Marcus trade roentgen - scab insults with magnificent abandon . Many of these are worth a chortle , and the film shines brightest when the duo ’s interplay is front and center . There ’s nothing new being portray , but it ’s still fun to catch . However , there are a handful of laugh that are n’t the best scene for a 2016 hearing ’s tastes and esthesia . Many of these come courtesy of Sunny , whose fictitious character is write in such a unimaginative and clichéd manner that it ’s shock absorber for the sake of having shock value clowning . Bates is extremely committed in the role , but she ca n’t truly elevate what ’s on the page . gay is a average - spirited impersonation , and any attempts to flesh out her relationship with Willie are prostrate and insincere .
Of the newcomers , Bates has the most screen meter , and many of the others are gravely shortchanged . The female characters are supremely thin resume that amount to little more than attractive eye candy for Willie and Marcus . Hendricks , Jenny Zigrino , and Cristina Rosata do n’t have a whole lot to do other than provideBad Santa 2with the expected adult moments that harken back to the original . Thornton is the clear wiz of the show , slip back into the function he was born to play with ease . The thespian ’s portrayal of the lead is fundamentally more of the same ( an overarching problem with the film as a whole ) , but Scrooges will still get a kick out of seeing him as an atypical " poor boy " look to spread Christmas cheer . Thornton is unsurprisingly the movie ’s strongest asset and pull in it get through .
In the ending , Bad Santa 2is about what looker would expect from aBad Santasequel arriving so many days after its predecessor . There is n’t enough prison term to give its various subplots room to respire and the core story feels more like vacation remnant than a new and exciting present under the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree . Fans of the master may find some use in it thanks to see to it their favorite characters again , but the uninitiated can hold back to catch this one on home medium . In the mold ofZoolander 2 , this is a comedy followup that was n’t worth the extended time lag .
TRAILER
defective Santa 2is now playing in U.S. theaters . It runs 92 minutes and is rated R for crude intimate subject matter and language throughout , and some graphic nudity .
Directed by Mark Waters , 2016 ’s Bad Santa once again star Billy Bob Thornton as a down - on - his - luck and rather crass man that finds himself working a con with an honest-to-god companion .
Kathy Bates and Billy Bob Thornton in Bad Santa 2
Kathy Bates and Billy Bob Thornton in Bad Santa 2
