St. Vincent

This is one of the best films of the year so far.
Vincent MacKenna (Bill Murray) isn't a likable character. As his young charge, Oliver (Jaeden Lieberher), puts it, he drinks too much, smokes and gambles but for those who he cares about, he is truly noble.
Maggie (Melissa McCarthy) is his new next door neighbor and she needs someone to watch her son because she is new at work and works long hours. She's a CAT scan techinican, a job which makes her miserable. She's trying to start again because her unattractive husband managed to have several affairs behind her back. So she pays Vincent to watch her son.
Vincent teaches Oliver how to fight, to get back at the nasty bullies at his private Catholic school, how to gamble so they can win it big, which manages to happen, just once though, and how to speak up for himself. Sure, he shouldn't be bringing a child into a bar or to the tracks but Vincent has a hidden secret. His wife is suffering from early onset dementia and doesn't even recognize him anymore, but he visits her, disguised as a doctor and does her laundry every week. But the man is broke and his wife is in danger of being evicted from her lovely home and has a lone shark (Terrance Howard) after him.
Then the film takes an even darker turn. Vincent suffers a stroke and needs physical therapy to recover which he does.
But Maggie is sued by her ex for full custody and that doesn't go well because of everything Vincent has done with Oliver but fortunately, this movie ultimately has a happy ending.
Sure, Vincent's wife dies and he doesn't hear about it, but Maggie forgives Vincent whom Oliver sort of hails as a saint and they end eating around the table as a big, dysfunctional but happy family.
Murray and McCarthy have excellent support from Naomi Watts as Daka, the pregnant Russian prostitute who is fired from her job as a dancer because of her condition, though she seems happy with having a baby and cries when her daughter is born. She also isn't shy, having no problem breast feeding the baby at a table with young boys present.
Chris O'Dowd is also great as the priest who teaches Oliver about saints and religion but is blind to the bully problem happening in his own classroom. He is a Catholic, which is the best religion because they have the most rules.
Sure, the plot has been done before, a grumpy old man softens with the a little help from his friends, but the acting truly shines. Everyone is great. It is nice seeing McCarthy playing something different from what she normally does but Murray is certainly the best, giving an excellent performance that should capture the attention of the awards. Even the Australian Watts manages to nail a Russian accent and get Vincent to eat vegetables and clean up his dump of a house and weasels her way into having a job taking care of him while he finishes recovering.
There are problems with the film, like the timeline is off, just slightly. And Oliver forgives the bully too easily, though I'm glad they became friends, bonding over their absent fathers. Who knows if Maggie's ex will let have full custody in the end or not, though Oliver wants to have a relationship with his father even though he thinks they are doing just fine without him. Daka's daughter might or might not be Vincent's but Oliver doesn't get involved with other people's affairs, which makes sense in a way. The lone shark also just disappears after Vincent suffers a stroke right before his eyes, never getting his money back. And how does Vincent pay for everything when he is beyond broke? Still, the film was greatly enjoyable with snappy remarks and brilliant acting all around. Grade:A-