The Last Rites of Joe May (2011)

Synopsis

Short-money hustler Joe May always believed he had a glorious future ahead of him, despite all evidence to the contrary. Released from the hospital after a long battle with pneumonia, Joe is forced to confront the harsh reality of his legacy: everyone he knew had assumed he was dead, and life had gone on around him without missing a beat. Returning to his old Chicago neighborhood, he finds his car gone, all his worldly possessions pawned by his landlord, and the apartment he’s lived in his entire adult life rented out to a single mother named Jenny and her eight year-old daughter. After flirting with homelessness, Joe reluctantly moves in with the new tenants of his home - at least until he is able to get back on his feet. Even as Joe doggedly pursues his comeback, he finds the odds stacked drastically against him. His health continues to deteriorate, he gets no respect from the local mob boss, and his best friend & former partner-in-crime has moved into an assisted living facility. Throughout this ordeal, Joe’s one lifeline is his burgeoning friendship with his new co-tenants. So when things turn ugly between Jenny and her boyfriend – a crooked detective with a penchant for domestic violence - Joe is determined to take a stand for his unlikely new family, and perhaps take one last shot at redefining his legacy.

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