Our take
Jessica Chastain and Oscar Isaac star in this slow-burning but impeccable crime thriller.
Abel Morales (Isaac) owns a fuel distribution company in 1980s New York. His competitors are violent and corrupt, and the feds are after him. The temptation to resort to unlawful methods is high, especially that his wife (Chastain) is the daughter of a mobster.
A Most Violent Year is about how this temptation of corruption unfolds and whether Abel will surrender to it or not.
What it won
Golden Globes
1 nom
Spirit Awards
3 noms
Nat. Board of Review
3 wins
The story
A thriller set in New York City during the winter of 1981, statistically one of the most violent years in the city's history, and centered on the lives of an immigrant and his family trying to expand their business and capitalize on opportunities as the rampant violence, decay, and corruption of the day drag them in and threaten to destroy all they have built.
Elsewhere
"Some of the menacing atmosphere, and even a few scenes, descend from the first two "Godfather" movies. But, in fact, Chandor has done something startling: he has made an anti-"Godfather.""
— David Denby
"JC Chandor is fast becoming one of America's most intriguing and unpredictable filmmakers."
— Adam Woodward
The details
Streaming arrival
Who picked it
Bilal Zouheir is the founder of A Good Movie to Watch. He is based in the US and a member of the Nevada Film Critics Society. He grew up in Morocco, where he learned English from watching movies. Bilal's work with A Good Movie to Watch is focused on offering an alternative to streaming algorithms, which are often used as commercial tools by streaming services.
So pitch perfect – I can’t remember the last time I saw a movie like this carried so smoothly forward hitched to a single, quietly phenomenal performance. Winter’s Bone, maybe?
That look, conveyed in that brief nod, as he was negotiating his way through yet another crisis at the end. What’s the line? “The hardest thing you’ll ever do is look someone in the eye and tell them the truth.” Just amazing.
I kept waiting for the twist but it didn’t come. Well acted but a bit too predictable.