Advertisement

In ‘A Most Violent Year,’ Oscar Isaac’s brutal struggles

Share

Pop culture seems intent on taking us back to a time of urban grit and crime. On Fox this fall, “Gotham” will portray a city, clearly modeled on New York, that’s on a “razor’s edge” of violence, as one of its characters puts it in the first episode, Now J.C. Chandor will be furthering the theme with his “A Most Violent Year.”

The “All is Lost” helmer’s latest effort will hit theaters on Dec 31, distributor A24 announced Thursday, widening through the month of January. The movie—whose teaser trailer dropped Thursday as well; you can watch it above—also focuses on a dangerous time in New York, as a couple played by Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain seeks to navigate the months of 1981, considered the most brutal in the city’s history.

“When it feels scary to jump, that is when you jump,” Isaac says in a convincing outerborough accent as the trailer opens. The stylish images that follow depict him as a working-class businessman under siege, and besieging others, in snippets of urban violence. Chastain appears in several shots too, as a wife both loving and struggling. “My husband’s an honest man,” she assures people who believes he isn’t.

Advertisement

In his previous work (it includes “Lost” and “Margin Call”) Chandor has specialized in survival stories, whether literal or existential. Men of decent intentions but questionable actions fight to keep on after getting themselves in over their heads. The theme appears to take on some rich new dimensions here, against a new and colorful backdrop, as Isaac’s character wages not just a war with his enemies but his own conscience.

“You will never do something as hard as staring someone straight in the eye and telling the truth,” he says as the trailer winds down. Judging by the moral murkiness here, watching him try to meet that challenge could be one of the season’s more enjoyable cinematic pleasures.

Follow @ZeitchikLAT for movie news

Advertisement