Blu-ray Review: Bad Santa

THE MOVIE: 4 stars out of 5

Frankly, I didn’t know what to expect when I popped this disc into my Blu-Ray player but was pleasantly surprised with the result. Bad Santa stars Billy Bob Thornton as a really bad Santa, one that is a drunk, a womanizer and a thief, who teams up each Christmas with a “little person” to sit as Santa for the children while casing malls all across the country for grand larceny, never failing to take home bags of loot and cash on Christmas Eve while the shops are closed. Co-starring Bernie Mac, the late John Ritter and Lauren Graham, this film is a keeper in either of the two versions presented on this Blu-Ray disc. I have always enjoyed wise cracking, dark and cynical humor and this film has it in spades as Bad Santa gives a new twist to the term “Holiday Spirit.” Recommended.

THE VIDEO: 4 1/4 stars out of 5

Encoded with AVC and presented in its original aspect ratio of 1:85:1, the video on this release is a mixed bag. On the whole, the colors are accurate but a little washed out with less than stellar black levels which rob the film of the three dimensional look that is the hallmark of the best HD transfers. The picture appears to be noise free but a little on the soft side which again deprives it of the sharpness that is characteristic of the best high def transfers. Simply put, this transfer lacks the pop that I have kind of gotten used to from the recent spate of excellent transfers from both formats. Is it a bad transfer? No, far from it and is leaps and bounds better than DVD. Did the quality of the transfer detract from my enjoyment of the film? Not at all. I just thought that film could have and should have looked better.

THE AUDIO: 4 3/5 stars out of 5

Presented with an uncompressed PCM track at 48 kHz/24 bit, the audio on this disc was very good, even for a dialogue driven film. The dialogue was full and rich and well placed in the mix and always stood out from the rest of the sound field. As one would expect with such a film, the surround channels were not often engaged but when they were, they were used very well, with a rich, dynamic and open sound. What really shined in the mix was the music. Several of the musical numbers sounded fantastic totally enveloping my room with a rich, detailed and open sound. The music in this film was an aural treat and totally unexpected. It is amazing how good music can sound on both high def formats. Well done.

IN CONCLUSION

If you would like some cynical and dark humor along with some foul language and wanton sex thrown in for some holiday cheer, check out Bad Santa. I think you will be glad you did.

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