A young boy whose parents have just divorced finds an unlikely friend and mentor in the misanthropic, bawdy, hedonistic war veteran who lives next door.
The home stretch is drenched in sticky-sweet sentiment, but Murray’s fans will rejoice at the chance to see their idol in full-on grouch mode.
As a movie it’s too neat and diagrammatic, but Murray is watchable right through to the end.
Murray’s finest, funniest, meatiest performance since Lost In Translation — just a shame it’s contained in such a lightweight dramedy.
For the most part St Vincent is sweet and salty in near equal measure, but that it culminates in such an overtly Hollywood celebration of imperfection tips the balance.
It’s a terrible denouement, but a very decent hour or so to get there.
Can someone (other than Wes Anderson) please harness the comic superpower that is Bill Murray?
The film is an intriguing blend of sweet (its manipulative, unashamedly mawkish storyline) and sour (Murray's wonderfully bad-tempered performance).
This would be nothing at all without Bill Murray – and, quite frankly, even with him it isn’t an awful lot.
St Vincent is jaunty, fun–filled entertainment but the plot is on the ragged side and you'll need to forgive all the brazen tugging at the heartstrings.
If there’s a saving grace in St Vincent it’s that Bill Murray’s natural irascibility means that he instinctively avoids the traps this blatant piece of awards bait seems intent on pushing him into.
It’s always watchable but a reminder that this kind of story, notably Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino, has been done better before.
It is a shame because the production values and cinematography are excellent. It is impressively ambitious and Law is convincing. Such a daft story, however, would have worked better as a straightforward romp.
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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