The film stars Philip Seymour Hoffman, John Turturro, Christina Hendricks, and Richard Jenkins.

In a voice-over, journalist Richard Shelburn reads from his column about the "working men of God's Pocket".

While at work during lunch hour, Leon racially taunts an older African-American worker while brandishing a knife.

At a bar, Shelburn meets an aspiring young journalist, whom he takes to bed, but cannot perform because he has drunk too many screwdrivers.

Mickey makes arrangements for Leon with funeral director "Smilin' Jack" Moran, but worries about the expense.

Shelburn is assigned by his editor to cover the story; when he later visits McKenna's bar, he is warmly received by the patrons.

Protecting Arthur, Sophie shoots both men dead and calls the police, claiming they were trying to rob her store.

Seeing Mickey in chase, the driver runs a red light, causing a crash that spills meat and Leon's corpse onto the street.

The website's critical consensus reads: "Well-cast but frustratingly clichéd, God's Pocket fails to strike a sensible balance between comedy and drama.

"[2] On Metacritic, the film received a score of 51 out of 100, based on 27 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

[3] The Hollywood Reporter called it a "half-good effort" that lacked the "snap, precision and stylistic smarts a mixed-tone project like this requires.

Stephanie Merry from the Washington Post said, "What began as an intriguing snapshot begins to feel grotesque and inscrutable.

Richard Roeper said, "John Slattery's direction is skilled and steady... Great actors at the top of their game working with rich material.

"[6] David Edelstein of New York Magazine/Vulture said, "Slattery adapted the book with Alex Metcalf and gets the tone just right.