Despite its title, A MOST VIOLENT YEAR is not about St. Louis in 2015 but about New York City in its most crime-ridden year of 1981. Oscar Isaac stars as ambitious Colombian immigrant Abel Morales, who began his career as a truck driver for a heating oil biz run by a mobster whose daughter Anna (Jessica Chastain) he eventually married. Abel took over ‘Standard Heating Oil’, and grew it quickly – but too quickly in the eyes of his competitors. As the movie opens, Abel and his attorney (Albert Brooks) are on the verge of a big move – borrowing a million and a half dollars to buy two oil tanks in a prime area of Queens. With 30 days to secure the cash needed to close the deal, it’s a risky investment, but if all goes according to Abel’s plan, he will eventually be able to store and move fuel on a larger scale. But Abel’s dream soon begins to fall apart. Armed thugs, likely employed by his competitors, are assaulting his oil truck drivers and stealing the fuel. A district attorney (David ‘MLK’ Oyelowo) lets Abel know that he’s prepared to hand down corruption indictments on the company. Abel’s drivers want to carry guns for protection and Anna wants to go to her mafia-connected family for assistance. But Abel resists, insisting on doing things legally as the only thing he values more than his ambition is his honor, or as he tells his wife: “I’ve spent my whole life trying not to be a gangster.”
Writer/Director J.C. Chandor (MARGIN CALL, ALL IS LOST) has done something that I wasn’t sure was possible in this age of instant gratification: make a compelling crime movie without cheap theatrics or even a single murder. One of the most refreshing things about A MOST VIOLENT YEAR is the manner in which it combines genres in unexpected ways. The basic framework is familiar: corrupt cops, corrupt city officials, corrupt union bullies, and corrupt lawyers. But, if you think you’ve seen this story already, be prepared for more than one surprise. Not only does Chandor throw away almost every stereotype in favor of real, three-dimensional characters, he has written a script of unexpected intelligence and perceptiveness. What’s more, the traditional formula for this sort of picture has been turned on its head. For a film with the word ‘violent’ in the title, there’s surprisingly little carnage, but the threat of menace is always there and the lack of bloodshed is not something you really notice until the film is over. There is an edge-of-the-seat foot chase on the Queensboro Bridge and a terrific car pursuit when Abel spots one of his trucks being commandeered, but that action that exists to serve the story. Like the films of director Sidney Lumet, whose work Chandlor’s film echoes, A MOST VIOLENT YEAR is knowledgeable about the city of New York and the people who make accommodations with it. His script is savvy about a number of things. Not only does it have a good feel for both sides of the union corruption issue, it’s aware of the political rivalries and behind-the-scenes dealmaking that keeps a city running.
Oscar Isaac’s calm, careful portrayal is one of A MOST VIOLENT YEAR’s great pleasures. The opposite of a bloodthirsty immigrant like SCARFACE’s Tony Montana, Abel is the low-key anti-gangster. Fastidious in his wardrobe and exact in his speech, Isaac’s Abel is a portrait of a man obsessed with remaining in control while staying within the law. A scene in which he tells newly-promoted sales reps precisely how to deal with prospective clients; accept tea instead of coffee, hold eye contact longer than one comfortably should, is a marvel of acting, yet Isaac rarely raises his voice or even emotes. That’s left to Jessica Chastain, who plays Anna as a ruthless, business-like woman who controls and manipulates her husband’s principals into the illegal model of success she grew up knowing. Hers is a complex character and a startling, show-stealing performance that I’m stunned was passed over for a supporting Oscar nod.
Thematically, A MOST VIOLENT YEAR blends the detailed union workings of ON THE WATERFRONT with THE GODFATHER’s notions of loyalty and family. Much is made of the bond between boss and employee, and we get to feel the weight of what these men feel for each other, making the necessary betrayals later on that much more significant. This is a picture that’s at times exciting, at times meditative, never boring and always engaging. A MOST VIOLENT YEAR is one of the best films of last year.
5 of 5 Stars
A MOST VIOLENT YEAR opens in St. Louis January 30th at (among other places) Landmark’s Tivoli Theater
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