L'année de toutes les violences

Chandor (All is Lost) is one of the more prolific young directors working. With AMVY, an adult mystery-drama-thriller, he screams of the classics: tension of French Connection, quiet of Chinatown, and menace of Mean Streets. It's a fantastic period piece that creates an authentic, distinct look at 1980s New York, while tonally replicating films from that era. Is it a bit TOO quiet and a bit TOO slow at times? Yep…but the taut skill on display is too good to ignore. Abel Morales, a successful, hardworking oil company owner, tries to thrive and survive during 1981 NYC, the most violent year in history. Despite this premise, the crime-action is more a successfully imminent background thought than a constant in-your- face presence. As the movie progresses and ultimately gets better, the subtle suspense builds, and each individual incident pushes Morales closer to his breaking point. Isaac shines in the protagonist role, playing one of the coolest characters around: broken yet proud, strong yet vulnerable, decent yet pressed, and shrewdly bad-to-the-bone. I wish Chastain was a bit more up to the task as his ominous, hardly-doting wife, but luckily she's not a huge distraction to the otherwise stellar acting by some of Hollywood's great new talents. Throughout the solid work being done, we are presented with some great things to ponder: wanting the American dream without knowing why; struggling to be successful without becoming corrupt; juggling humility and pride in a world that drains you. Unfortunately the character's relationships with these different questions bring the movie to a bore at times. Mostly though, it manages to be a solid little award-season drama.

Having seen it a few days ago, the more I think of "A Most Violent Year", the more I like it.

This is not a spoiler, but a friendly tip: don't expect a lot of what the title implies, because the movie does not focus on violence.

While there are tense and violent moments, the movie's strenght lies in the performances and the interactions between characters.

Oscar Isaac plays Abel, a businessman who is trying to make a clean living while being more and more pressured by an unknown threat. The competition plays dirty while he wants to stay an honest man.

Abel's moral struggle is what the narrative revolves around. Jessica Chastain play Anna, Abel's wife and business partner. She is equally as powerful, assertive and dominant as he is, if not more so.

The director did a wonderful job at creating a tense, sad and dramatic mood throughout. The cinematography is wonderful, the subtle moody soundtrack plays a big part in creating a feeling of impending doom throughout the entire movie, and I am very impressed by the recreation of a 1981 New York. It's very immersive.

While nothing mainstream audiences will drool over, I find "A Most Violent Year" an excellent drama. If you like this movie, you should give "The Two Faces Of January" a chance as well. Not only you would notice what a chameleon Oscar Isaac is, but you might enjoy the classic mood and character-driven vibe of that film as well.

This is a movie I often don't recommend to any of my friends because I truly feel it takes someone with a certain level of appreciation for film and the patience to watch this plot unfold. Now I don't mean for that to come off as snobbish, but this is a movie that could easily be cast off as boring by people who are just looking for an entertaining film. However, if you are a person who possess some level of appreciation for film and would like to see a good, albeit slow tale, I would highly recommend this movie.

The first thing of note in this movie is Oscar Issac's performance. He plays Abel Morales, an entrepreneur who runs a fuel company. He is one of Hollywood's best rising stars, and he shows what he's got in this film. He gives a very subtle, even performance that is reflective of his character, and it works very well. Jessica Chastain is also very good as his wife, and her character's primary motivation is her children and their safety. I felt that she really cared about her kids.

I don'y want to go too much into the story because it is a good one. But the fine details of the story is not what matters. It is the intricacy of the characters that is the important aspect of this film. To see how hard Abel will work for his family and his legacy shows the drive of man, and a sort of twisted sense of the American dream.

First of all let me just say, if IMDb allowed 0.5 votes, this would probably get a 6.5 from me. Where to begin with this one ? Well it's shot well, the cast nail the parts, but from start to finish you are waiting for the film to come to life, and unfortunately it just never does.

Some people will appreciate this film much more than others, but for me it was average at best. The main reason we all watch films and television, is to be entertained, and unfortunately with A Most Violent Year, it feels like we have been left wanting.

You never really get to appreciate 1980s New York, a couple of panoramic skylines don't really cut it. With a bit more substance to the story, better visuals & some period music, this film could & should have been much better.

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Once again, Chandor gives us a well-written, well-acted, beautifully photographed film, on a relatively small budget, that winds up being incredibly watchable. I would say he's done this with all 3 of his films. None of them were action-packed film, but that all had a truth and reality to them, that really pulled me in.

I've read some reviews on here that complain that the film was too slow for them or that it was "boring." Look, despite it's title (which may have mislead a lot of viewers going in), this film is not for the Fast and Furious or Transformers crowd. It's not even for people who loved the blood-soaked Scarface.

It portrays violence and the fear of running a business in NYC in the early 80s, in a very real way. And it captures the early 80s look flawlessly.

This film may, however, be be for people who loved films like The Godfather or DePalma's Dressed to Kill. Not only does Oscar Issac seem to channel bits of Michael Corleone, but the film is lit and photographed in a very similar manner to the way that Gordon Willis shot The Godfather. Also, for those who think there was a ton of action and killing in the Godfather, outside of the final few minutes, there really isn't. Though very different films, what pulls you into the Godfather and Dressed to Kill is similar to what pulls you in here. Tension, honesty, a simple story, well told. No BS. No shooting up a whole town, with dead bodies falling everywhere, and then cutting to the next scene at dinner.

In real life, violence is frightening, finding a gun is frightening, shooting a gun at someone is frightening, having your life savings at stake, and the fear of losing everything you've worked for is frightening. Chandor pulls this all together to build tension, and it results in a very satisfying film.