A Most Violent Year
Set in New York in 1981 (the city’s most violent year on record), writer-director J.C. Chandor’s third film focuses on aspirational heating oil mogul Abel Morales (Isaac) struggling to stay straight in the midst of endemic political and industrial corruption. On the brink of sealing a deal for some dockland that will secure the future of both his company and family, Abel must contend with the dual threats of his trucks being frequently hijacked, and an investigation by the District Attorney (Oyelewo) into his own dealings, all while quelling the perhaps more criminal instincts of his tough wife Anna (Chastain).
While the never more relevant anti-capitalist themes are instantly apparent, the crux of this drama is more introspective. Abel determines to buck the broken system – to attain some purer form of the American Dream he so admires – despite enormous pressure to just play by the crooked rules. Isaac, by no coincidence recalling Al Pacino’s Michael Corleone before he went into full-blown megalomaniac mode in Coppola’s Godfather films, handles the moral dilemmas and increasing angst of his character magnificently. It’s a quietly seething performance, complimented by Chastain’s more fiery, instinctive turn as the glammed up Lady Macbeth in their believable and complex relationship.
It’s very much a mood piece, body-swerving genre clichés, beautiful to look at and dripping menace via Bradford Young’s sepia-tinged cinematography under Chandor’s expert direction. For the ears, Alex Ebert’s unsettling, organ-led score and the constant reporting of violent crime over radio and television heightens the overwhelming threat. A slow-burn it may be, but this is vital, engaging cinema from a young filmmaker with an uncommon clarity of vision and considerable talent who is now three for three after the excellent Margin Call and All Is Lost.