Win Win

A struggling lawyer and volunteer wrestling coach's chicanery comes back to haunt him when the teenage grandson of the client he's double-crossed comes into his life.
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The playlist Best Films of 2011 so far - Runners Up (in June):
“Win Win”—In the unofficial list of greatest American filmmakers currently working today, one name is frequently left off and forgotten: Tom McCarthy. The writer, director and sometimes actor first made a big wave behind the camera with “The Station Agent” a film with a quirky premise—a little person takes up residence in an old train station in rural New Jersey—that found a lovely, relatable core of humanity and heart. For this next effort, McCarthy waded towards an “issues film” with “The Visitor” but once again defied expectations, allowing the richness of cultural diversity play out on screen between Richard Jenkins and Haaz Sleiman to quietly underscore that importance that the immigrant experience has on everyone in this country. And McCarthy scores once again with “Win Win,” a highly original story that finds him returning to a familiar theme about the rewards of reaching out to someone who needs a helping hand. In this case the unlikely hero is Mike Flaherty (Paul Giamatti), a not-so-honest lawyer who winds up taking care of a client’s runaway grandson Kyle (Alex Shaffer). Facing financial and professional difficulties, Mike is reluctant to take on yet another responsibility but as more of Kyle’s story comes to the fore, he teams with his wife Jackie (Amy Ryan) to give the kid an opportunity at a life he never knew he could have. Heartwarming, real and absolutely hilarious, McCarthy’s film is a character driven story in the vein of Alexander Payne, with the thematic and social reach of Mike Leigh. “Win Win” lives up to its title.