A Most Violent Year

Written, directed, and produced by J.C. Chandor and starring Oscar Isaac as the owner of an oil company trying to make it big in New York, A Most Violent Year.  This was an unexpected kind of movie for it's title with a gritty 70's kind of feel to it. It challenges the assumptions we have of violence in the films we watch, the obtainment of the American dream, and all the while also being a story about immigration and class.  Isaac's performance was stellar and he has the same controlled and ambiguous kind of cool with a nod to Pacino's performance in The Godfather. Jessica Chastain and David Oyelowo, as usual, are at their very best.  It's a really taut kind of film with a slow pacing that is riveting to watch and with a tension that's kind of captivating to watch.