I don’t know what it is, maybe a byproduct of our twisted society, but there is a need out there to make Christmas movies as fucked up as possible. While I firmly admit to being an avid fan of Bad Santa, it doesn’t appear to have anything on Fatman, which has the gall to cast Mel Gibson as a version of Santa Claus who has lost the holiday spirit.
Is this the full Mel Gibson comeback story or what? He’s been forgiven to such a degree Hollywood lets him play Santa? The Big Guy? Bringer of good cheer and presents? Eater of milk and cookies?
Well, in Fatman he’s hardly the version of Santa Claus we know and love. Instead, he’s turned his back on a world he thinks has turned against him. When he leaves one naughty boy a lump of coal for Christmas, the kid hires a hitman played by Walton Goggins to literally kill Santa. There’s also something about the government hiring Santa for a Black Ops mission, but that seems like it’s taken from a totally different movie?
This looks ridiculous, and while it’s not going to offend me I can hear them screaming “War On Christmas!!” already.
Written and directed by Eshom Nelms and Ian Nelms, Fatman hits theaters on November 13th followed by VOD on November 17th.
