A Christmas themed action thriller—that is an utter delight—Fatman has arrived on DVD, Blu-Ray, streaming, and On Demand. So, basically, you have no excuse for missing this new Christmas classic!
Directed by brothers Eshom Nelms and Ian Nelms, Fatman follows a sequence of events that has certain coal in his stocking-receiving 12-year-old-boy hopes will end with jolly St. Nick without a pulse. Who would take out Santa Claus? Why our boy Walton Goggins, who has his own reasons for wanting the titular individual wiped off the earth.
None of that no more Santa talk will wash over you when it is revealed that the Nelms (who also co-wrote the script) cast the one and only Mel Gibson in the role—whose Santa is pretty adept at hand-to-hand combat and wizardly with his weaponry.
What is not to like about Fatman? This writer says nothing as even though it is barely a few months old, many—including this writer—has placed the film among the “best Christmas films ever made,” right alongside It’s a Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street, Die Hard, and now Fatman.
It’s not simply because, as it is written, there is not another soul on the planet who could embody the Nelms’ Santa like Gibson.
Robert Downey Jr., at the 2008 Iron Man press conference, said something that I’ll never forget. A film [like this] is only as good as its villain. Goggins has a literal blast diving into the persona of a man who not only has no issue ending Christmas as we know it but stopping the heart of one of the world’s most beloved figures.
Known as Chris (Gibson), things aren’t going as well as he would prefer. More children are more naughty than nice, and business is slow. To help, Chris partners with the U.S. military to use his elf-driven workforce to utilize their assembly line virtuosity when the calendar is on the verge of being replaced by this year’s model.
In a stroke of casting genius, Marianne Jean-Baptiste was tapped to portray Ruth, aka Mrs. Claus. Sure, she can bake cookies that will melt your mouth, but she too can handle a gun. Goggins’ Skinny Man has no idea the buzzsaw he is about to saunter into on the job, possessed by vengeance.
Jean-Baptiste (Without a Trace) not only portrays her Ruth as someone who can handle any curveball thrown at her, but she is gifted with turning on a dime and hitting her response out of the park. She also supports Chris in a manner that befits a soul that can deliver billions of toys to boys and girls across the globe in one fateful night. She is an equal partner in their North Pole endeavor and will do anything she can to ensure their success.
Goggins is a revelation. The Justified star exhibits a sparkle in his eyes with his effort that is simultaneously hilarious and downright frightening. The way he dives into the assignment reveals enormous amounts of passion for his craft that was born during his past (think childhood). He identifies with Chance Hurstfield’s Billy Wenan for similar reasons. He passionately believes that this spoiled rich kid can avoid the same life choice fate is he rids the world of the source of the terror—the one and only Santa Claus.
The way that Goggins plots his revenge-satisfying attack on Kris Kringle is meticulous to experience. The Hateful Eight actor dives into the ambiguously monikered Skinny Man with such palpable abandon, I would watch a film with his character simply living day-to-day. Skinny Man is lethal, has a sense of humor, and more importantly, it a hitman whose targets—must past the mustard to be worthy of his time and awesome aptitude. The Goggins aspect of Fatman alone puts the biggest smile on my face.
Gibson does grizzle well. He also portrays a fellow who is not only seeking the point of all this thing called life but wonders whether this entire Santa Claus effort is worth his time. His dealings with the military are elevated by his situation and the direness of a world where children brandishing guns killing other children is the world where we reside. He is frustrated when he returns from this year’s mass present parting with a bullet in his sled… and himself because someone thought it would be funny to shoot Santa. Hilarious.
So, when Skinny Man shows up looking for a fight, he encounters a fellow not burdened with a larger than life belly to match his reputation, but an individual who takes defending a way of life that has existed for millennia as serious as it comes.
There is a segment of the population that loves to see Gibson portray a baddie. In many ways, his St. Nick has streaks of that, but those coal receiving fellows deserve their stocking stuffer of the black tarrish rocks. Fatman, as conceived by the brothers Nelms, is as much a story about justice, and lessons we all could use a refresher course on, but also love for the people in your life and the good you see in the rest of the world that is worth fighting for and making an example of those who wish to do him or his operation harm.
There is no question that the Academy Award winner (Braveheart) has mettle. I first discovered that in Gallipoli in 1981. As Fatman, he may have the role that most fits his strict set of talents at a particular moment in time in a cinematic landscape that pure movie magic.
The Helms brothers have smartly laid out a number of plotlines that splinter off of the primary Chris versus Skinny Man drama. The relationship between Chris and Ruth is textured and feels rooted in modern romantic reality. Elf 7 (Eric Woolfe) embodies the entire elvan workforce, and as such the Helms have painted Santa’s elves with a brush that is as human and filled with soul as is possible. The brothers’ creativity knows no bounds and for more on those two gifted filmmakers, don’t miss my exclusive interview with the Nelms brothers.
When it comes to bonus features, this film itself would be enough! But we welcome with open arms the insightful Audio Commentary. It features Gibson, the Nelms brothers, producer Michelle Lang and splendidly, cinematographer Johnny Derango. Each contributes priceless gems of knowledge, and it is put together in the most maximized fashion. By that, I mean that it is almost as if they are reading my mind! As a thought makes its way through my noggin’, one of those Fab Five offers their informed two cents on that very subject. The Commentary is something I normally recommend at the end of the review. But this time out, when you do pop in Fatman for subsequent viewing, immediately turn on the commentary track, sit back and warning(!), the mind will be blown.
Another fascinating featurette is Storyboard to Film Comparison with Director’s Commentary. It comes in 1080p and portrays—what from the outside seems effortless—a behind-the-scenes extra that brings viewers along for a ride into the storyboarding process and in the process, the why this time-consuming effort has been a part of Hollywood history since the artform’s inception.
Film Grade: A
Bonus Features: A