A Most Violent Year

A24 | Release Date: December 31, 2014

7.0	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 217 Ratings

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User Reviews

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DinhsterApr 13, 2015

A Most Violent Year takes place over a period of 33 days. How does that make any sense? Based on this bit of information, the rest of the movie really falls apart. There isn't one single homicide in this movie. Nobody intentionally hurtsA Most Violent Year takes place over a period of 33 days. How does that make any sense? Based on this bit of information, the rest of the movie really falls apart. There isn't one single homicide in this movie. Nobody intentionally hurts anyone else. The cops and public servants are idiots. And you end walking out going, wtf just happend...? How is this movie titled, "A Most Violent Year"?!?!?!… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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kaystaalFeb 7, 2015

A painfully disappointing movie. Jessica Chastain is the singular virtue of this film. The lead male character, whose moral calculations drive the plot, is neither charismatic, nor convincingly noble. I never rooted for him; I never cared. IA painfully disappointing movie. Jessica Chastain is the singular virtue of this film. The lead male character, whose moral calculations drive the plot, is neither charismatic, nor convincingly noble. I never rooted for him; I never cared. I kept waiting for the movie to "start." After an hour, I began to figure out that the slow, heavy nothingness of the plot was actually the movie. This is as close as I've ever seen to a movie where nothing happens. Imagine your favorite gangster movie, then take out all the funny and interesting parts. That's "A Most Violent Year." There is simply nothing here to care about.

I went with a friend who really wanted to see the movie and asked me to go with him. When it was over, he turned to me and said, "I'm really sorry."… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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jay_QcFeb 14, 2015

I hated everything. So boring !! First time in my life that i feel to say it . I hope this film did not cost much because it does not worth much. Better see something else.

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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andthenshewroteJan 9, 2015

Beyond boring, so thin you can see through it. Nothing is earned. Lots of false drama. Every problem is headed off at the pass. Often hard to follow, not because it's complex, but because it's so vague that there's nothing TO add up. It'sBeyond boring, so thin you can see through it. Nothing is earned. Lots of false drama. Every problem is headed off at the pass. Often hard to follow, not because it's complex, but because it's so vague that there's nothing TO add up. It's another example of the emperor's clothes: it's all atmosphere and no substance. And as the Village Voice so aptly said: There's not much violence, but is sure feels like a year.… Expand

4 of 9 users found this helpful45

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AxeTFeb 13, 2015

Yet another pitifully over-rated little crime drama with no authentic script. Very thin on story and a tremendous bore. Like this director's last film, it skillfully masquerades by tone and camera work as something more rich and moreYet another pitifully over-rated little crime drama with no authentic script. Very thin on story and a tremendous bore. Like this director's last film, it skillfully masquerades by tone and camera work as something more rich and more important than it is. There's nothing much here. The plot is derivative of so many other mob and crime movies but with much lower stakes. This is a glorified student film made by someone who is stealing from past great films rather than portraying any kind of real experience and it shows all the way.
The lead actor does his best Al Pacino and comes up short. He looks like him, probably how he got his career, and sounds like him when he raises his voice. What he misses is the original power and authority. Chastain does an accent and a type a hundred other actresses have tread over before and it's the same old same old. This film is a prime example of the boredom of watching actors act in a half baked scenario by a director fudging it as some kind of auteur unsuccessfully spinning much out of nothing at all.… Expand

2 of 6 users found this helpful24

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finnigan37Feb 5, 2015

A Most Violent Year = a mostly boring movie. The best compliment I can pay to this film is that it is not quite as boring as it rightfully should have been. Mostly this is due to actors making the best of the material and decentA Most Violent Year = a mostly boring movie. The best compliment I can pay to this film is that it is not quite as boring as it rightfully should have been. Mostly this is due to actors making the best of the material and decent cinematography.

Quite simply, this was not a story worth telling. The film is painfully slow and drawn out (one of the worst things you can say about a film is that it seemed much longer than it actually was) with very little action and, well, violence. That would all be fine if the plot was compelling in other ways, but it just isn't. The stakes are low, the characters are dry and one-dimensional, and there isn't much for the audience to actually care about or root for. Should we really care if some guy closes a deal on a piece of waterfront property to expand his heating oil business in 1981?

Ultimately, the film mostly consists of Oscar Isaac sulking around, having conversations, and making uncomfortably-long eye contact with various people.

Don't be fooled by the critical reception. This is apparently one of those films that critics will themselves to like, but which will leave most viewers perplexed by the praise.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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MacArthurFeb 7, 2015

Hollywood anti gun crap. We both walked out before it ended. According to the brain dead perverts who produced this slop, women should be ashamed for being so stupid to want to defend themselves from the mental defectives who prowl theHollywood anti gun crap. We both walked out before it ended. According to the brain dead perverts who produced this slop, women should be ashamed for being so stupid to want to defend themselves from the mental defectives who prowl the neighborhoods.… Expand

1 of 15 users found this helpful114

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sghaffariApr 16, 2016

This is a waste of time. The acting is not great and its story-line makes you fall sleep. Yes the most violent part is the scene where the guy hits the deer and then his wife executes it which was very stupid! Everything from the beginning toThis is a waste of time. The acting is not great and its story-line makes you fall sleep. Yes the most violent part is the scene where the guy hits the deer and then his wife executes it which was very stupid! Everything from the beginning to the end of the movie feels fake.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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dierregiMay 25, 2015

A most unfortunate title for a movie that is actually very tame. The main character is an oil trader who must face some tough competition. The violence boils down to beating and threatening, which may be bad enough in real life, but certainlyA most unfortunate title for a movie that is actually very tame. The main character is an oil trader who must face some tough competition. The violence boils down to beating and threatening, which may be bad enough in real life, but certainly not what one would expect from such a title. It does not help that the pacing of the story is glacial and the movie seems to last forever.… Expand