Watch A Most Violent Year

A Most Violent Year is a crime drama movie from 2014 that tells the story of Abel Morales, played by Oscar Isaac, a Colombian immigrant who runs a successful heating oil business in New York City in 1981. The movie is set in one of the most violent years in the city's history, and Abel's business becomes the target of violent attacks that threaten to destroy everything he has built.

As the movie begins, Abel is trying to close a deal to purchase a waterfront property that will allow him to expand his business. He needs to come up with a large sum of money to secure the deal, and he decides to seek financing from one of his competitors, mobster Peter Forente, who offers him a loan at a high interest rate.

While Abel is dealing with the loan, his trucks are repeatedly hijacked, and his drivers are beaten and robbed. The attacks escalate to a point where one of Abel's drivers is almost killed, and he decides to take matters into his own hands. He hires an armed security team to protect his drivers and his business, but his actions draw the attention of the District Attorney, Lawrence, played by David Oyelowo. Lawrence believes that Abel is involved in criminal activities, and he launches an investigation to bring him down.

At the same time, Abel's wife, Anna, played by Jessica Chastain, gets involved in the business, and her connections to Peter Forente's criminal network put her at odds with Abel's plans for legitimacy. Anna sees the violence as an opportunity to take control of the business and turn it into a criminal enterprise, but Abel refuses to compromise his principles and insists on conducting his business lawfully.

As the attacks on his business continue, Abel struggles to keep his cool and maintain the trust of his drivers and his clients. He faces pressure from Peter Forente, who demands that he pay the loan back and threatens to harm him and his family if he fails to do so. He also faces pressure from Lawrence, who believes that he is hiding something and wants to expose him as a criminal.

A Most Violent Year is a slow-burning movie that relies heavily on its characters' performances and the atmospheric portrayal of New York City in the early 1980s. The movie is a meditation on the nature of violence, crime, and corruption, and it raises questions about the price of success and the limits of morality.

Oscar Isaac delivers a nuanced performance as Abel Morales, a man who is torn between his ambition and his conscience. He portrays Abel as a complex character who is both vulnerable and determined, a man who wants to succeed but is afraid of losing everything he has worked for. Jessica Chastain gives a powerful performance as Anna, a woman who is driven by her own ambition and loyalty to her family. David Oyelowo is excellent as Lawrence, a man who is determined to bring justice to a city that is drowning in violence and crime.

The movie is beautifully shot by cinematographer Bradford Young, who captures the gritty, desolate landscapes of New York City in the winter of 1981. The movie's soundtrack, composed by Alex Ebert, is haunting and melancholic, adding to the movie's overall sense of unease and foreboding.

A Most Violent Year is a movie that rewards patience and attention to detail. It is a slow-paced movie that doesn't rely on action or violence to tell its story. Instead, it is a movie that relies on its characters' performances and the atmospheric portrayal of a city in crisis. The movie raises important questions about the nature of violence, crime, and corruption, and it leaves the viewer with a sense of unease and uncertainty that lingers long after the end credits have rolled.

A Most Violent Year is a 2014 crime movie with a runtime of 2 hours and 5 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 6.9 and a MetaScore of 79.