a_chinn Review of St. Vincent

St. Vincent (2014)

Chiches abound, but the cast and especially Murray are irresistible

[7/10 · 20 August 2018]

A sappy and cliche filled story about a crabby old man who takes care of his quiet shy latchkey neighbor kid. Both learn life lessons from one another and both become better people for it. Oh, did I mention there's also a hooker with a heart of gold and there's also a single mother doing the best she can? Before you dismiss this formula story set-up, the grouchy old neighbor is played by Bill Murray, so that alone should be enough to make you want to give "St. Vincent" a chance. First time writer/director Theodore Melfi does deliver a story that's corny, cliched, and predictable (one medical emergency seemed particularly unnecessary, not adding anything to either character or plot), but despite the maudlin set-up and cookie cutter character tropes, the cast is incredibly strong, led by Murray as Vincent. He takes care of young Jaeden Lieberher, teaching him how to fight dirty, how to gamble, and how to get a bartender's attention, but it's Bill Murray teaching him these life lessons! So even though we've seen this tired formula a hundreds of times before, it's hilariously fun to watch with Murray playing the child-hating curmudgeon. How can you resist Bill driving around in his 1984 Chrysler Lebaron, gabling and drinking, and consorting with his Russian prostitute/girlfriend, Naomi Watts, all while taking care of a young child. As with these sorts of films (everything from "Little Miss Marker" to "Bad Santa"), Lieberher teaches Murray how to be kinder towards others and Lieberher learns how to stand up for himself. Lieberher's mom is played by Melissa McCarthy in what is surprisingly straight role, which is an inserting change of pace for the usually hilarious comedic actress and she's very good. Watts is also quite good in a primarily comedic part that could have easily slid into an annoyingly cliched character, but she elevates the material so that you genuinely care about her character. This's what the entire cast does for the film, elevating the cliches and making it worth watching. They may not be characters you'd want to actually spend time with in real-life, but they are characters you care about, are compelling to watch on-screen, and who you are rooting for. Overall, "St. Vincent" is not a great film, but the cast very nearly makes it such. Chris O'Dowd and Terrence Howard also appear in the film.