X
- 2014
- R
- A24
- 2 h 5 m
- 2014
- R
- A24
- 2 h 5 m
Summary In New York City during the winter of 1981, statistically one of the most violent years in the city's history, an immigrant and his family try 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.
Directed By: J.C. Chandor
Written By: J.C. Chandor
- 2014
- R
- A24
- 2 h 5 m
- 2014
- R
- A24
- 2 h 5 m
A Most Violent Year
79
7.0
Where to Watch
Summary In New York City during the winter of 1981, statistically one of the most violent years in the city's history, an immigrant and his family try 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.
Directed By: J.C. Chandor
Written By: J.C. Chandor
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 44 Critic Reviews
79
86% Positive
38 Reviews
38 Reviews
14% Mixed
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 44 Critic Reviews
79
86% Positive
38 Reviews
38 Reviews
14% Mixed
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
A far more interesting film than its title implies. And a film you’ve never seen before.
J. C. Chandor's A Most Violent Year is a powerfully told story, a thrilling surprise, and both Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain do remarkable work.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 220 User Ratings
7.0
70% Positive
153 Ratings
153 Ratings
20% Mixed
44 Ratings
44 Ratings
10% Negative
23 Ratings
23 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 220 User Ratings
7.0
70% Positive
153 Ratings
153 Ratings
20% Mixed
44 Ratings
44 Ratings
10% Negative
23 Ratings
23 Ratings
A finely tuned character study that doesnt conform to genre expectations and instead transcends them. Slow, brooding tension and character development anchor the film into an unforgettable whole.
Report
I've never seen another film that treats with as much directness and subtlety what is "right" about not just struggling to survive but also struggling to succeed. Walking away from the theater I had the distinct feeling of just having been shown how conflicted leadership can be. The depth of artistry and breadth of moral scope were impossible to shake off. I have lived with this film since seeing it.
Report
Evocatively shot by "Selma" wizard Bradford Young, A Most Violent Year reflects a world where nothing is held sacred. You watch with nerves clenched, holding on tight.
A Most Violent Year, Chandor’s absorbing no-bull NYC drama, further clarifies what might be the most promising career in American movies: an urban-headed filmmaker attuned to economies of place and time, with an eye on the vacant throne of Sidney Lumet.
This is a film for actual moviegoing grown-ups who don't mind a little quality now and then.
Like that camel-hair coat Abel wears, A Most Violent Year is classy and commands respect, but a stronger pulse under the lapels would make us care much more.
Grand in its aims but tepid in its conclusions, A Most Violent Year burns slow and gives off very little heat. It's not really that violent. But it sure feels like a year.
After only Margin Call and A Most Violent Year, J.C. Chandor is one of my favorite directors. The way he sets up and executes dramatic conversational moments without overplaying his hand is remarkable. Isaac, Chastain, and Oyelowo are at the absolute head of the class, and they are each pitch perfect in this film. About halfway through the proceedings, I wanted so badly to have this movie serve as the pilot to a new dramatic series. But by the end I was so happy that it stands alone and does so so powerfully.
Report
Such a slow-burn that it never makes a single flame but rather just glows like dying coals in a campfire. I love a lot of the cast. But it seems to me that the whole film was one giant McGuffin. This is a film that you merely observe rather than get absorbed by. There's not enough magnetism to keep one intrigued. I am although glad to see it wasn't trolled too badly by other users, as it's not a bomb. Just something to watch once, take what you can salvage from it and move on quickly. Gonna have to give it a 6.
Report
This movie is basically The Godfather part II but without the flashbacks and not nearly as good.
It just doesn't feel like it has enough conflict.
There is conflict, but it just doesn't feel like it.
However, there are some really good moments in it that make it worth watching. The score is amazing.
Well made and well acted, just not very engaging.
Report
This certain cure for insomnia plays as an adaptation of scenes **** off the cutting room floors of Godfather and Goodfellas, plus one or two from The Wolf of Wall Street. The monotony is occasionally broken up by the film's only saving grace - the chemistry between Isaac and Chastain, who shine in their scenes together. Unfortunately, they are too few and far between, and this insipid drama shows just how little it has to say about any of the themes it touches on but makes no effort to try and explore. The lack of pace, action and plot development in the screenplay make A Most Violent Year, a most exhaustingly boring film.
Report
Yet another pitifully over-rated little crime drama with no authentic script. Very thin on story and a tremendous bore. Like this director's last film, it skillfully masquerades by tone and camera work as something more rich and more important than it is. There's nothing much here. The plot is derivative of so many other mob and crime movies but with much lower stakes. This is a glorified student film made by someone who is stealing from past great films rather than portraying any kind of real experience and it shows all the way.
The lead actor does his best Al Pacino and comes up short. He looks like him, probably how he got his career, and sounds like him when he raises his voice. What he misses is the original power and authority. Chastain does an accent and a type a hundred other actresses have tread over before and it's the same old same old. This film is a prime example of the boredom of watching actors act in a half baked scenario by a director fudging it as some kind of auteur unsuccessfully spinning much out of nothing at all.
Report
Production Company
Before The Door Pictures,
Washington Square Films,
FilmNation Entertainment,
Participant,
Imagenation Abu Dhabi FZ,
CounterNarrative Films,
Old Bull Pictures
Release Date Dec 31, 2014
Duration 2 h 5 m
Rating R
Tagline The result is never in question, just the path you take to get there.
Website
http://amostviolentyear.com/
Awards
Golden Globes, USA
• 1 Nomination
Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards
• 4 Nominations
Central Ohio Film Critics Association
• 4 Nominations
