This film ranked #21 in Time Out's list of the 100 greatest French films. Click here to see the full list.
Director: Jean-Marie Poiré
A cult classic with French audiences, ‘Santa Claus is a Bastard’ was adapted from a play of the same name, co-written by its actors. A black comedy packed with sharp and politically incendiary dialogue, it takes aim at anyone and everyone: the rich, the poor, Catholics, immigrants, drag queens, lepers and even Santa Claus. Its aggressive, thorny brand of humour is (alas) absent from contemporary French comedy, with the box office seeming to favour either uplifting (‘The Untouchables’) or goofy, family-oriented films (‘Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis’).