Fans of Oscar Isaac may know the actor from titles like Dune and Star Wars, but have you seen this indie crime drama from 2014?
A Most Violent Year stars Isaac as Abel Morales, an immigrant and businessman who finds his livelihood threatened by encroaching crime and violence in New York City, where he lives.
The film is unmissable, but if you wait too long, you just might miss it before it leaves Amazon Prime Video at the end of this month.
Watch With Us breaks down why you have to catch this film before it’s gone.
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The Cast Is the Film’s Backbone
Led by Isaac and Jessica Chastain, A Most Violent Year follows the actors as a married couple Abel and Anna, fighting to protect their growing business from corruption and stick to their principles. Isaac plays the tough, ambitious Abel effortlessly, and he and Chastain have great chemistry. But the film wouldn’t be what it is without its compelling supporting cast.
In addition to Isaac’s dynamic performance as a cutthroat hustler and Chastain as his mob-connected wife, the film features David Oyelowo (Role Play) as Lawrence, an assistant district attorney investigating the Morales family, Albert Brooks (Finding Dory) as the Morales’ attorney, and Alessandro Nivola (The Brutalist) as a mafia-affiliated competitor of the Morales’.
The Narrative Is Patient, But Gripping
The plot of A Most Violent Year is anything but dull, even though it may be a bit slow-moving. But that creates a mesmerizing atmosphere as you are slowly enveloped by the film’s moody, crime-ridden world. While not outwardly flashy or showy, A Most Violent Year hinges on compelling subtlety. It’s a dark, gritty take on the American Dream that is both exciting and thought-provoking.
Directed and written by J.C. Chandor (Kraven the Hunter), the film coasts on a sustained tension that threatens to boil over — until it does. It’s both satisfying and deeply grim, and Chandor deftly weaves through a complex plot until its masterful conclusion.
Oscar Isaac Showcases His Versatility
If you’re mostly familiar with Isaac through his recent blockbuster works (and excited to see him in the upcoming Frankenstein remake from Guillermo del Toro), there’s no better time than the present to check out his work in a smaller film like A Most Violent Year. While now famous for his roles as Poe in Star Wars and the Duke Leto Atreides in Dune, Isaac got his start in smaller-scale films like Inside Llewyn Davis and Drive.
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Isaac is, thus, not just a big mainstream Hollywood actor — he can easily move between both worlds, and his commanding yet effortless performance in A Most Violent Year is proof of that. Isaac doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb. Instead, he seamlessly blends in with the world of the film and its character actor supporting cast, evoking a new-age Al Pacino.
A Most Violent Year leaves Prime Video on September 30.
