The portrayal of men and male-centric issues in media and culture is a highly sensitive subject and we only have ourselves to blame for that because we keep killing and raping everybody in sight and put the blame on other people. I'm a white, straight man from Germanic descent, so I'm pretty much the embodiment of evil and these issues interest me. In an attempt to make a run at an Oscar last year, director J.C Chandor released A MOST VIOLENT YEAR, a stylish and low-key era piece about the cost of success and integrity in America that doesn't accomplish much but to hint that you need to be kind of an asshole in order to find success without committing any crimes.
Abel Morales (Oscar Isaac) is the owner of an expanding heating oil company in New York. He's looking to buy a refinery in order become self-sufficient and lands a deal with the Hasidim Jewish family owning the land. After making a down payment, he's got 30 days flush in order to close the deal and find the entire sum. Only problem is that his trucks keep getting robbed and drained of all their oil by an unknown party, which hurts the company financially and exposes them as a flight risk for financial institutions and potential investors. Everybody wants Abel to defend himself against these almost immaterial aggression, but only him sees the avalanche of problems it might cause.
A MOST VIOLENT YEAR is a rather well-written and slickly directed movie, but it's insanely obvious that it was meant to compete for prizes. It's more than competent, but it's way too controlled and deliberate. The screenplay and the acting angle for gritty and understated, yet the presentation is stylish and manicured, creating a pleasant but predictable contrast. It'll make you say ''wow, that's a beautiful movie,'' but it's not going to tear the fabric of reality and make you forget that you're breathing like great movies do. You do not create a great movie with the will to do so. it'll always come off as trying too hard. There's a certain level of organic alchemy to memorable films.
Here's Oscar Isaac in: ''Serious Guy filmed by Colored Lens."
So, the execution of A MOST VIOLENT YEAR was heavy-handed and deliberate, but it managed to raise interesting questions about the measure of success for men anyway. Is it wealth, power, reputation? What if you could get only one of these at the expense of the others, no matter how hard you work? In A MOST VIOLENT YEAR, Oscar Isaac's character Abel tries to achieve financial independence for his business, but the consequences of his meteoric rise for his competitors force them into desperate decisions.
Thing is, you can't take somebody's meal away and not expect him to react violently. Abel doesn't want to play hardball because his company is being audited by the District Attorney, yet taking the moral high ground has other consequences that hit a lot closer to home. Success is an abstract concept you're being sold and it's up to you to define it. In that regard, A MOST VIOLENT YEAR is an honest and somewhat successful attempt at exposing the true nature of the American Dream.
The question still lingers in the air: should you bother watching A MOST VIOLENT YEAR or not? I don't have the answer to that question. The reviews have been nothing short of stellar, so most of you might think it's amazing. Would I watch it after reading a similar review to mine? Probably, it would spend a couple more weeks in my Netflix movie queue, but it's a cerebral enough film to remain challenging despite the pompous and deliberate presentation. I don't think A MOST VIOLENT YEAR is a great film and that Oscar Isaac's performance was transcendent, but I believe it was an interesting movie and that Isaac was competent. It might elicit strong responses on first viewings, but it's not going to beat father time.
Thing is, you can't take somebody's meal away and not expect him to react violently. Abel doesn't want to play hardball because his company is being audited by the District Attorney, yet taking the moral high ground has other consequences that hit a lot closer to home. Success is an abstract concept you're being sold and it's up to you to define it. In that regard, A MOST VIOLENT YEAR is an honest and somewhat successful attempt at exposing the true nature of the American Dream.
The question still lingers in the air: should you bother watching A MOST VIOLENT YEAR or not? I don't have the answer to that question. The reviews have been nothing short of stellar, so most of you might think it's amazing. Would I watch it after reading a similar review to mine? Probably, it would spend a couple more weeks in my Netflix movie queue, but it's a cerebral enough film to remain challenging despite the pompous and deliberate presentation. I don't think A MOST VIOLENT YEAR is a great film and that Oscar Isaac's performance was transcendent, but I believe it was an interesting movie and that Isaac was competent. It might elicit strong responses on first viewings, but it's not going to beat father time.