A Most Violent Year (MOVIE)

 

A Most Violent Year is a 2014 crime drama film written and directed by J. C. Chandor. The film stars Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain with Alessandro Nivola, David Oyelowo, Albert Brooks, and Catalina Sandino Moreno. It had its world premiere as the opening film of the AFI Fest on November 6, 2014 and was released theatrically on December 31, 2014.

Plot

Set in New York City during the winter of 1981, statistically one of the most violent years in the city's history, the film centers on the life 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.

Cast

    Oscar Isaac as Abel Morales
    Jessica Chastain as Anna Morales
    Alessandro Nivola as Peter Forente
    David Oyelowo as Lawrence
    Albert Brooks as Andrew Walsh
    Catalina Sandino Moreno as Luisa
    Ashley Williams as Lange
    Elyes Gabel as Julian
    Jerry Adler as Josef
    Christopher Abbott as Louis Servidio
    Elizabeth Marvel as Mrs. Rose
    Peter Gerety as Bill O'Leary
    David Margulies as Saul Lefkowitz
    Annie Funke as Lorraine Lefkowitz
    Kathleen Doyle as Lefkowitz secretary
    Patrick Breen as an instructor

Production

On May 23, 2013, Deadline reported that filmmaker J. C. Chandor would write and direct A Most Violent Year, which was to begin shooting in the fall. Neal Dodson and Anna Gerb co-produced the film along with FilmNation Entertainment's Glen Basner as executive producer. On January 22, 2014, A24 Films acquired the US distribution rights to the film, which A24 then scheduled for release in the fourth quarter of 2014. The film was co-financed by Image Nation and Participant Media, and produced by Before the Door Pictures and Washington Square Films.

Casting

On June 5, 2013 Javier Bardem joined the film to play the lead. On July 16, 2013 Jessica Chastain joined the cast to play the lead role along with Bardem. On December 3, 2013, Oscar Isaac officially replaced Bardem. On January 27, 2014 Albert Brooks joined the film, playing Isaac's character's attorney, and actress Catalina Sandino Moreno also joined the film in a supporting role. On January 29, 2014, while the film's shooting was underway, David Oyelowo joined the cast. Other cast members include Ashley Williams, Elyes Gabel, Harris Yulin, Giselle Eisenberg, and Elizabeth Marvel. On February 21, 2014 Alessandro Nivola was cast to play Peter Forente, a heating oil distributor who is a competitor to Isaac’s character.

Filming

Principal photography began on January 29, 2014 in New York City.

Music

The musical score for A Most Violent Year was composed by Alex Ebert, who previously collaborated with director Chandor on All Is Lost (2014). Influenced musically by the culture and life of the 1980s, specifically thinking of Miami Vice and Scarface, Ebert predominantly utilized synthesizers.[16] "It's a synthesis of sort-of calling-card themes and extended atmospheres. There’s horns and flutes and strings, but there’s also sort of these meditative synthetic beds underlying."

A soundtrack album was released by Community Music on December 16, 2014.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the AFI Fest on November 6, 2014 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. The film was released in four United States theaters on December 31, 2014 by A24 Films.