Fatman (2020)

As if the year 2020 wasn't quite mad enough as it is, it ends with a film in which Mel Gibson plays an unhappy, tired, Santa Claus who is due to be targeted by the gun sights of a grudge-bearing Walton Goggins. Yes, that is the basic plot of Fatman, but there's a bit more to it.

Times are tough. Less kids are making it on to the "nice" list, which means gift-delivering Chris, AKA Santa, is leaving more lumps of coal than ever before, and this means that he and his wife (Ruth, played by Marianne Jean-Baptiste) can barely afford to keep their household in working order. Chris reluctantly ends up taking on a military contract, a gig that will at least make up for the income shortfall in recent years. Meanwhile, a spoilt young kid (Billy, played by Chance Hurstfield) pays for someone to kill Santa. That someone seems to have been waiting for this moment for most of his life.

Written and directed by Eshom and Ian Nelms (two brothers who have been working on movies together for a number of years now), Fatman is an interesting idea dragged down by a couple of major mis-steps. Although technically competent, and fairly well-plotted (with the exception of what feels like one major plot hole - why didn't the character played by Goggins task himself with hunting down Santa years before a rich kid hired him?), it's never as amusing or entertaining as it could be.

First off, you have the problem of the casting. I still don't mind seeing Mel Gibson onscreen, but he's not a good fit for the role of Santa. Even this Santa. He's neither good nor bad, just a grouchy old man who can no longer seem to bring any joy to the world. 

Second, you have the problem of the tone. Is this supposed to be funny? It's not, not really. It's also not tense, not thrilling, and doesn't have any drama that fully engages viewers with the material. Going in to this blind, it may even take some viewers a little while to join the dots. That could have been part of the fun if the trailer hadn't given everything away already.

Third, it's kind of pointless. A lot of movies can be pointless, that's no major negative in and of itself, but this one is pointless in a way that feels annoyingly unaware of itself. By the end of the movie you may find yourself thinking not that much has changed, despite some characters stating otherwise, and you'd be right. There's magic used, and forgotten, when it's convenient, and none of the consequences have any proper impact. It's not quite a lump of coal in your stocking, but it's the small fruit selection you're made to eat in between handfuls of chocolates.

I've already mentioned Gibson being a bad fit for the role, but at least Goggins does better, despite his character being occasionally mishandled (although his single-minded approach to his main task is great). Hurstfield gives an absolutely perfect performance as the rich kid not used to things not going his way, Marianne Jean-Baptiste does a good job as Ruth, AKA Mrs. Claus, and there are plenty of solid supporting turns.

Worth watching as an oddity, Fatman isn't one you're likely to revisit often (if at all). Yet it feels fitting that this is one of the new Christmas-themed movies we got to help us towards the end of 2020.

5/10

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The Hateful Eight (2015)

Although he's become, arguably, a much more divisive figure in recent years, Quentin Tarantino is a director who certainly knows how to sell his product. The hype machine for The Hateful Eight started up quite a while ago, and continues while the movie is on release (thanks to the limited 70mm screenings - which are even more limited here in the UK, unfortunately). Which makes it hard to process if you come out of the cinema having not completely loved one of his films. Thankfully, that's a rare occurence. Aside from Death Proof (which I still rate as a solid 7/10) and the second volume of Kill Bill, I've never felt disappointed by Tarantino. I have an idea of what to expect going in, and he delivers.

The Hateful Eight is his second Western, coming along after his first full feature in the genre (the superb Django Unchained). Whereas the film before it, however, was a lively mixture of violence, comedy, and discomfort, The Hateful Eight turns out to be quite a different animal. Despite still having a similar mix of ingredients, in differing amounts (which I guess you could say about every Tarantino film, of course).

Kurt Russell plays John Ruth, a man travelling with a woman named Daisy Domergue (played by Jennifer Jason Leigh). He's taking Daisy to the town of Red Rock to collect a bounty and see her hung. Unfortunately, the wagon that the pair are travelling in can barely keep ahead of a blizzard that's on their tails. Major Marquis Warren (played by Samuel L. Jackson) is stuck in the snow, and eventually receives a life from Ruth. As does Chris Mannix (Walton Goggins), a little while later. And the new quartet get themselves to Minnie's Haberdashery, just in time to get much-needed shelter and warmth, where they meet some other men who are also avoiding the blizzard. But everything might not be as it seems.

Taking cues from his previous works, Agatha Christie, and The Thing, Tarantino would seem to have lined up another treat for fans. The cast certainly stay on the top of their game - alongside those mentioned, viewers will enjoy turns from Bruce Dern, Tim Roth, and Michael Madsen, as well as a few others. The premise is solid. And the framing and cinematography is often gorgeous, even if the majority of the movie takes place in the one location.

The big surprise here is also the biggest disappointment. The writing isn't up to scratch. Oh, there are moments that will tickle your earbuds, and moments that I am sure the cast absolutely relished sinking their teeth into, but there are also some big mis-steps. For example, one scene shows a character who barely brings himself to talk to another character, except in anger. But that only last a few scenes, only until Tarantino NEEDS the characters to talk in order to set up a big scene. Then we have two scenes that utilise a voiceover narration because, well, I just don't know why. If the whole movie had the same kind of commentary then it would be fine, or if the scenes couldn't be expressed in a purely visual manner, but it doesn't and they could. Making the decision to clumsily chat over just a couple of random scenes quite a bewlidering one.

The other aspect of the writing to cause some frustration is the level of self-cannibalising that Tarantino indulges in. Viewers know that you can rely on ol' QT to pepper his movies with a veritable cornucopia of references to other films, which is part of the joy, but when he sprinkles in enough moments that feel as if they're referencing his own past glories then it's hard not to think that you're watching a copy of a copy, inevitably appearing as a weaker image. Even the one or two songs used on the soundtrack don't feel right. They just feel as if they've been put there by a man who knows that it's expected of him. This may seem like a minor niggle, and something not worthy of this full paragraph, but once it's noticed it then becomes hard to completely enjoy the movie without considering the shadow cast over it.

But let me clarify something. Although I have gone on about the negative aspects of the movie, I still had a hell of a great time with The Hateful Eight. I was on board as soon as Russell and Jackson started to speak to one another and every subsequent character introduction set another smile on my face (especially Roth, who really should be getting more great movie roles). There's an original score by Ennio Morricone for fans to enjoy. And when the script works, as it does in many instances, then you can revel in the simple pleasure of great actors delivering great lines.

Overall, this is far from his best work. But I'll take a lesser Tarantino movie over many other viewing choices, any day.

NB - due to the fact that I don't live within a reasonable distance of Leicester Square in London, the version of the movie that I watched wasn't the full 70mm version, that comes complete with a few minutes of extra footage, overture, and intermission. BUT all of you lucky Edinburgh folk, and anyone near enough to commute, DO get the chance to see the full version next month, at The Filmhouse - http://www.filmhousecinema.com/showing/the-hateful-eight-70mm-feb16/

7/10

Pick up this Tarantino boxset here, to tide you over until The Hateful Eight is released - http://www.amazon.com/Quentin-Tarantino-Ultimate-Collection-Blu-ray/dp/B00U1QGJBM/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1452156857&sr=1-1&keywords=quentin+tarantino