St. Vincent
Weinstein Company, The | Release Date: October 10, 2014 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
64
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 40 Critic Reviews
Positive:
25
Mixed:
15
Negative:
0
Watch Now
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
Total FilmJames MottramJan 9, 2015
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. Read full review
60
EmpireSimon CrookDec 1, 2014
Murray’s finest, funniest, meatiest performance since "Lost In Translation" — just a shame it’s contained in such a lightweight dramedy. Read full review
60
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzOct 16, 2014
Melfi, who also wrote the script, goes for broke on the sappy front. It's a credit to Murray's skill — or maybe the strength of his personality — that he never submits completely to all the heart-string tugging. Read full review
60
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriOct 10, 2014
The destination is often familiar and not always particularly interesting, but the ride itself isn’t always so bad, especially when you’ve got Bill Murray along for company. Read full review
60
The New York TimesManohla DargisOct 9, 2014
The actors don’t do all the heavy lifting by themselves. The uniformly good performances make it clear that Mr. Melfi knows how to handle actors, and there are some funny bits. Read full review
60
Time OutJoshua RothkopfOct 7, 2014
St. Vincent has nothing on Rushmore, an obvious forebearer, even though it strains for the same egalitarian spirit of thrown-together family, one that includes a pregnant Russian stripper (Naomi Watts) and a sympathetic but firm Catholic schoolteacher (Chris O’Dowd). Read full review
60
The GuardianCatherine ShoardSep 7, 2014
There is a contrivance to both story and script that grates, rubs up against Murray’s appeal as a loose cannon. Read full review
58
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerOct 10, 2014
Schmaltz this thick requires a director who can at least make us feel that our tears are not being shamelessly jerked. But St. Vincent is too clunky to hide its tear-slicked tracks. Maybe that’s a good thing. At least that’s more endearing than being worked over by a smooth operator who knows exactly which buttons to press. Read full review
58
The A.V. ClubJesse HassengerOct 8, 2014
St. Vincent goes down easier than it probably should. It helps that Lieberher, though saddled with some cutesy movie-kid dialogue, makes a sweet and empathetic sidekick for Murray (he calls him “sir” constantly, like Marcie in old Peanuts strips), and that McCarthy, like so many gifted comedians, proves capable of playing it straight as needed. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeTy BurrOct 16, 2014
So it is with St. Vincent, which might be Murray’s “Gran Torino” if you squint at it from one angle, or “Old Meatballs” if you come at it from another. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleOct 16, 2014
The problem on which the movie turns is this: Bill Murray’s natural quality as an actor exudes self-knowledge and knowledge of the world. If he looks depressed, the aura suggests, it’s not because he knows less than we do. He knows more. Murray brings that quality to bear in St. Vincent, but it doesn’t fit. Read full review
50
SalonAndrew O'HehirOct 9, 2014
Murray, as always, supplies any number of small, memorable moments — he ultimately relies on the same defanged sentimentality. Read full review
50
The DissolveNathan RabinOct 8, 2014
St. Vincent is even sappier and more committed to yanking heartstrings and manipulating emotions than Hyde Park On Hudson or The Monuments Men, and ultimately even more precious and treacly. Read full review
50
ObserverRex ReedOct 8, 2014
Lazy, eccentric, chain-smoking and accident-prone, Mr. Murray gives ’em what they clamor for. His eventual redemption as a saint in disguise is predictable. The direction is negligent and the jokes are mild. It’s an O.K. little picture that doesn’t really go anywhere, but it has a resonance that is easy on the heart. Read full review
50
Village VoiceAlan ScherstuhlOct 7, 2014
Some moments still work after the movie grows mawkish. Read full review
More From This Movie

64 Critic Reviews

7.5 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 71 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL