A Reel 20: ELF and BAD SANTA

This month marks the 20th anniversary of two films that have become holiday classics: ELF and BAD SANTA.

 

The first to come down the chimney was ELF. Directed by future Marvel and STAR WARS helmer Jon Favreau, ELF told the tale of a human raised by Santa’s elves, who discovers his true origins and heads to NYC to find his biological father.

 

The original script for ELF came from David Berenbaum way back in 1993. Jim Carrey and the late Chris Farley were considered for the role of Buddy the Elf. The original script had a dark tone, and Favreau changed things to be a homage to the old Rankin/Bass Christmas specials.

The role of Buddy the Elf would go to Will Ferrell in his first post-SNL film. The rest of the cast would be filled by James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenburgen, Ed Asner, Bob Newhart, Peter Dinklage, and Peter Billingsley. Upon release, ELF would be a critical and box office smash, and today it is considered to be one of the best Christmas films of all time.

 

Later in the month came the dark comedy BAD SANTA. Directed by Terry Zwigoff, BAD SANTA was about a department store Santa who was actually a professional thief, and a sex-addicted alcoholic.

 

The idea and original script for BAD SANTA was developed by film titans Joel and Ethan Coen. The brothers would eventually move to the role of executive producers. The script was described as crass and anti-Christmas and rejected by Universal Pictures. For those same reasons, it was picked up by Bob Weinstein of Miramax.

 

The lead role was won by Billy Bob Thornton, who beat out veteran actors Bill Murray, Jack Nicholson, and Robert DeNiro. The rest of the cast would include Tony Cox, Brett Kelly, Lauren Graham, Bernie Mac, and John Ritter. The film would be Ritter’s final role, and was dedicated to his memory.

 

BAD SANTA would be a box office and critical hit, and over the years has become standard viewing on holiday watchlists. 

 

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ELF and BAD SANTA were two holiday films that were released before Thanksgiving. This was done not only to get a jump on the season, but to avoid the box office juggernaut that would be THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING which was set for December. Despite this, and the stark difference between the two films, they have both moved onto the status of holiday classics. ELF is loaded with heart, is clever, and carries an absolute fearless sense of humor. BAD SANTA is indeed crude and nasty, and not for everyone's holiday tastes, but even Scrooge is bound to get a hearty laugh out of it. This holiday season, sprinkle some candy on some pasta, curl up with a big bottle of cheer, and let the laughs fly like a reindeer.