Billy Bob Thornton

  • The Astronaut Farmer (2006)

    The Astronaut Farmer (2006)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (In French, On Cable TV, June 2021) Despite decades of ardent movie-watching, I still find films that I regret missing upon release, and The Astronaut Farmer is merely the latest in a long list. I’m not sure why I haven’t seen this film in theatres upon release — I’ve always been interested in space stories, and this film, about a man putting together a rocket in his barn with the intent of launching it for an orbit or two, is clearly along the lines of favourites, such as The Right Stuff and October Sky. No matter — even if it’s fifteen years later, there I am admiring the result. Billy Bob Thornton anchors the film as the cantankerous farmer (formerly pilot and astronaut-in-training) defying advice and good sense in putting together a rocket. The Astronaut Farmer handwaves a major objection by telling us he’s buying parts from rocket manufacturers — the major sticking point is obtaining the fuel, which brings him to the attention of the federal government, national security agents and an unsympathetically portrayed FAA. Much of the film plays like a modern fantasy, with a rugged individualist going through incredible trials to thumb his nose at his doubters. On paper, it sounds iffy, but it plays much better on-screen thanks to well-grounded handling by writer-director Michael Polish and good performances from Thornton and Virginia Madsen. It’s still not completely convincing (my own sticking point is how the rocket launches without setting fire to the hay-filled barn and much of the surrounding farm), but it’s curiously effective as a tale of wonder and ambition. Much of the media circus that comes to dominate the film’s middle third also feels reasonably accurate. The Astronaut Farmer is not a great film, but it’s a good one, and I regret missing it on the big screen.

  • Going Overboard (1989)

    Going Overboard (1989)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On TV, January 2021) Nearly every superstar has their early embarrassments, and Going Overboard would probably be even more of an obscure title today if it wasn’t for the fact that it’s Adam Sandler’s first starring role, prior to his tenure on Saturday Night Live. It has not aged well, but then again, it’s probably amazing to its filmmakers that we’re still talking about it thirty years later. Executed on a shoestring budget (something proudly highlighted in the film’s first moments), it’s a low-effort, low-energy, low-laughs comedy about a cruise ship crewmate aspiring to become the ship’s stand-up comedian. Terrorists and Miss World contestants become involved. Billy Bob Thornton also pops up, along with a late-career cameo from the legendary Milton Berle. The narrative is often punctuated by fourth wall breaks (probably the funniest material that the film has), and by gratuitous shots of pretty women—anyone talking about the obvious male gaze will be surprised to find out that the film was directed by a woman, Valerie Breiman. While Going Overboard is not terribly good, I wouldn’t go so far as to steer people away from it. For one thing, it shows how Sandler’s early screen persona is surprisingly similar to his later one; for another, the film does manage a few funny moments. It’s a bit of a capsule of 1980s issues (notably in designating Noriega as an antagonist, and in using as premise cruise ship terrorist attacks) and it does have a smattering of interesting actors slumming away. Heck, there are many worse movies than Going Overboard in Sandler’s own later filmography.

  • Bad News Bears (2005)

    Bad News Bears (2005)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (In French, on TV, June 2020) I’ll admit it—curiosity was my main reason to see the Bad News Bears remake. The original is so deeply stepped into the culture of 1976, from the bicentennial to the fashions to the attitudes and lack of self-censorship, that any attempt at an update would seem doomed from the start. Perhaps the nicest thing I can say about it is that it’s at least competent—Director Richard Linklater knows what he’s doing, and he’s able to give a nice lived-in Austin feeling to the film. Also helpful is Billy Bob Thornton’s grizzled performance as the washed-up, disreputable middle-aged man who takes on the job of trying to coach the worst little league team: even if the remake sands off a lot of edges of the original, much of the character remains intact. Still, this remains familiar formula stuff (even if a more nuanced ending doesn’t take away much)—Linklater for the kids. But when it works, there’s no shame in letting it work.

  • Bad Santa 2 (2016)

    Bad Santa 2 (2016)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, July 2017) The original Bad Santa became a classic of the counter-sentimental Christmas subgenre, so any sequel would have big shoes to fill. It may not be such a disappointment, therefore, if Bad Santa 2 is more ordinary than amazing. Sadly picking up a decade and a half later with the characters in just-as-bad shape, this sequel moves to Montréal Chicago for wintry theft. The highlight of the movie is probably the mother/son relationship between Billy Bob Thornton and the irreplaceable Kathy Bates, both of them delightfully scummy as lifelong bad influences. Tony Cox shows up again as a violent wildcard, while both Christina Hendricks and Jenny Zigrino show up as voluptuous eye candy. Alas, Brett Kelly also shows up as a grown-up creepy kid (still creepy), and his inclusion in the plot is more sad than hilarious or heartwarming. Bad Santa 2 works best as a foul-mouthed criminal caper procedural than a falsely cynical Christmas movie—it’s not quite able to re-create the original’s blend of world-weary sentimentality. But it does try, and it won’t be out of place when, in two or three years from now, it will tag along the original in a combined Blu-ray edition. Like most R-rated comedies, Bad Santa 2 pushes its jokes as far as it can go, and some of them definitely end up over the line of good taste—even for seasoned R-rated viewers. That’s another reason why even if the movie does scratch more or less the same itch as the original, it won’t qualify for essential viewing even for fans of the subgenre. Underneath the unrelenting stream of foul language, sexual references and overall bad behavior, it’s an average effort made with perfunctory skill. It works, and it will work if viewers are hungry for something like the original, but it’s not much more than that.

  • Our Brand is Crisis (2015)

    Our Brand is Crisis (2015)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, July 2016) As a political junkie (with acute flare-ups in election years like this one), I’m perhaps more enthusiastic than most at the thought of movies seeing political operatives as heroes. Our Brand is Crisis (adapted from a true story) follows a group of American consultants as they are hired to help during a Bolivian election pitting a few bad choices against each other. But it’s not just candidates battling it out when the operatives have their own grudges to nurse against each other. In South American politics, nearly all tricks are allowed, and so much of the movie is spent following the twists and turns of the campaign as the consultants try to outwit each other. It sounds fun, it should have been hilarious and somehow … isn’t. Too contemplative to deserve a full “black comedy” qualification, Our Brand is Crisis falls short of the potential it had set up for itself. It’s also remarkably pat, as if it didn’t know about the audience’s political sophistication. Oh, so your candidate lies, cheats, won’t hold his promises and is widely disliked? Well, start with that rather than lead up to it, or be shocked when it happens. Otherwise, there seems to be a distinct lack of energy in David Gordon Green’s execution of the material, or maybe a dearth of substance itself. Sticking too close to the true story may have been a mistake. At least Sandra Bullock is enjoyable as a genius-level political consultant reluctantly dragged into the mud of a campaign once again. (She’s particularly funny early on, not so much afterwards.) Billy Bob Thornton gives her capable repartee as a longtime rival, while Anthony Mackie, Zoe Kazan (captivating in a woefully underdeveloped character) and Joaquim de Almeida are serviceable supporting players. Still, Our Brand is Crisis doesn’t reach its full potential and mishandles its ending by being far too falsely outraged after its own shenanigans. Just as there have been plenty of movies about political consultants, others are sure to follow. But it may be a good moment for newer and fresher narratives than “protagonists discover that their candidate is terrible” and “protagonists contemplate the damage they’ve done to democracy” because those have been done enough times already.

  • The Baytown Outlaws (2012)

    The Baytown Outlaws (2012)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, December 2013) I’m becoming increasingly fond of the small-scale gems that emerge from the muck of Cable TV movie channels, and The Baytown Outlaws pretty much qualifies as such.  It’s not a big, profound or even all that clever film, but it’s executed with a decent amount of energy and skill.  It helps that the tone of the film is the kind of snarky crime/comedy/action hybrid that I can watch all day long.  Here, Billy Bob Thornton and Eva Longoria slum a bit as (respectively) a crime lord and his abused ex-girlfriend who hires three vigilante anti-heroes to rescue her godson from him.  The plot is slight, but the incidents along the way are certainly off-beat, ranging from a killer group of prostitutes, road pirates and native bikers.  The Baytown Outlaws is anarchic, scattered, cartoonish (sometime literally so, to good effect) and morally off-center, but it’s also steadily amusing as what it does.  Writer/director Barry Battles clearly stretches his modest budget beyond what could have been expected from such a production.  Best seen as part of the grind-house exploitation sub-genre, The Baytown Outlaws exceeds expectations, and that alone distinguishes it from most little-known movies that show up on cable TV alongside the most familiar titles.