It's alright. Fairly average film but like the idea of a tough santa. The acting is decent but feels at time a bit too silly to take serious. One time watch from me.
A dark Christmas comedy that is all gimmick and no substance (the trailer is far better than the actual film!) with Mel Gibson as a grumpy Santa Claus who lives and works on a farm, with his wife and elves, readying for the night he has to deliver toys to the world's children. Worried by the declining morals of youngsters his business is failing and his subsidies from the US Government have been cut. But things get worse when he leaves a lump of coal for a spoilt, nasty rich kid who then hires a hitman (Walter Coggins) to kill Santa. Yes you heard that right. Said Hitman also has a long standing grievance against Santa and relishes the job. The sad thing here is that despite the set up there was great potential here for a fresh, contemporary Santa story with some social commentary about youth crime, millennial entitlement and declining standards but the film descends into clichéd old age jokes and a shoot 'em up, and yes it's quite bloody. Gibson is the best thing about this film, he deserved a better script that had less cartoonish characterisations.
The actors were good, Mel Gibson is suited to a grumpy old Santa disillusioned with the world. A querky concept for a film. It was okay, could have been better.