A Most Violent Year
A crime drama set in New York City during the winter of 1981, statistically one of the most violent years in the city's history, and centered on the lives 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.
The film underperformed commercially against its moderate budget of $20.0M, earning $12.0M globally (-40% loss). While initial box office returns were modest, the film has gained appreciation for its fresh perspective within the crime genre.
15 wins & 52 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
A Most Violent Year (2014) demonstrates meticulously timed narrative architecture, characteristic of J.C. Chandor's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 2 hours and 4 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.3, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
Abel Morales
Anna Morales
Lawrence
Assistant District Attorney
Julian
Main Cast & Characters
Abel Morales
Played by Oscar Isaac
An ambitious immigrant heating oil company owner trying to expand his business legitimately while facing violent attacks and legal scrutiny in 1981 New York.
Anna Morales
Played by Jessica Chastain
Abel's wife and daughter of a crime family, she handles the company's finances and pushes Abel toward more aggressive tactics to protect their business.
Lawrence
Played by Albert Brooks
A pragmatic attorney and advisor to Abel who counsels him through legal challenges and the increasingly dangerous business landscape.
Assistant District Attorney
Played by David Oyelowo
A determined prosecutor investigating Abel's business for fraud and corruption, representing the legal threats closing in on him.
Julian
Played by Elyes Gabel
A loyal truck driver for Abel's company who becomes a victim of the hijackings and makes decisions that endanger himself and the business.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Abel Morales drives through a snowy New York City in 1981, dressed impeccably in a camel coat, representing his carefully controlled image as an ambitious heating oil businessman trying to succeed legitimately in a corrupt industry.. Significantly, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 15 minutes when One of Abel's drivers is violently attacked and his truck hijacked at gunpoint in broad daylight, escalating the violence against his company and threatening his ability to secure the bank financing needed to close on the terminal property in 30 days.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 31 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This demonstrates the protagonist's commitment to Abel chooses to continue pursuing legitimate business methods despite mounting pressure, refusing to arm his drivers or retaliate, instead doubling down on his attempt to secure the waterfront terminal through legal means, committing everything he has to prove his way can work., moving from reaction to action.
At 61 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 49% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Of particular interest, this crucial beat The DA formally charges Abel's company with fraud, and the bank refuses to provide the financing needed to close on the terminal. Abel realizes his legitimate path is failing and time is running out—he has only days left to secure funding or lose everything he's worked for., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 92 minutes (74% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Abel discovers that Anna has secretly taken money from the company (an illegal act) to protect their family, revealing that even his own wife has compromised his principles behind his back. His identity as a righteous man succeeding through legitimate means dies as he realizes the system has corrupted everyone around him, including those closest to him., shows the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 100 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. Abel accepts Anna's stolen money to complete the purchase, makes a deal with a gangster for a loan, and synthesizes his idealism with pragmatism. He chooses a middle path: technically completing the deal, but accepting that he must operate in moral gray areas to survive. He hasn't become violent, but he's no longer purely righteous., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
A Most Violent Year's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs a 15-point narrative structure framework that maps key story moments. By mapping A Most Violent Year against these established plot points, we can identify how J.C. Chandor utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish A Most Violent Year within the crime genre.
J.C. Chandor's Structural Approach
Among the 4 J.C. Chandor films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 7.1, reflecting strong command of classical structure. A Most Violent Year represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete J.C. Chandor filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional crime films include The Bad Guys, Batman Forever and 12 Rounds. For more J.C. Chandor analyses, see Margin Call, All Is Lost and Kraven the Hunter.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Abel Morales drives through a snowy New York City in 1981, dressed impeccably in a camel coat, representing his carefully controlled image as an ambitious heating oil businessman trying to succeed legitimately in a corrupt industry.
Theme
Abel's lawyer tells him "You're not gonna like what you're gonna become" when discussing the increasing violence against his business, establishing the central thematic question: Can a man succeed through righteous means in a corrupt system, or will he be forced to compromise his principles?
Worldbuilding
Establishment of Abel's world in 1981 NYC during the height of crime: his heating oil business, his marriage to Anna (daughter of a gangster), the hijackings of his trucks, his attempts to maintain legitimacy, the purchase offer for a fuel terminal on the water, and the DA's investigation into industry-wide corruption.
Disruption
One of Abel's drivers is violently attacked and his truck hijacked at gunpoint in broad daylight, escalating the violence against his company and threatening his ability to secure the bank financing needed to close on the terminal property in 30 days.
Resistance
Abel debates how to respond to the escalating violence: Anna pushes him to arm his drivers and fight back like her father would have, competitors are undercutting him, the DA increases pressure, and Abel struggles to secure financing while maintaining his principle of doing business "the right way" without resorting to violence or corruption.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Abel chooses to continue pursuing legitimate business methods despite mounting pressure, refusing to arm his drivers or retaliate, instead doubling down on his attempt to secure the waterfront terminal through legal means, committing everything he has to prove his way can work.
Mirror World
Anna emerges as the thematic mirror character who represents the pragmatic path of survival through force that Abel rejects. Their relationship embodies the tension between idealism and pragmatism, with Anna embodying her gangster father's philosophy that violence is sometimes necessary.
Premise
Abel navigates the corrupt heating oil industry on his own terms: pursuing multiple banks for financing, implementing GPS tracking on trucks, recruiting new salesmen with his philosophy of integrity, dealing with the DA's investigation, and attempting to identify who is behind the hijackings, all while maintaining his principle of operating legitimately.
Midpoint
The DA formally charges Abel's company with fraud, and the bank refuses to provide the financing needed to close on the terminal. Abel realizes his legitimate path is failing and time is running out—he has only days left to secure funding or lose everything he's worked for.
Opposition
Everything collapses around Abel: multiple hijackings continue, a driver shoots a hijacker in self-defense creating legal liability, Abel discovers Anna has been hiding a gun and embezzling money for protection, competitors spread rumors, the Hassidic seller threatens to back out, and Abel is forced to pursue increasingly desperate measures to find capital including approaching gangsters.
Collapse
Abel discovers that Anna has secretly taken money from the company (an illegal act) to protect their family, revealing that even his own wife has compromised his principles behind his back. His identity as a righteous man succeeding through legitimate means dies as he realizes the system has corrupted everyone around him, including those closest to him.
Crisis
Abel confronts the darkness of his situation: his wife has betrayed his principles, his business is about to collapse, he's out of legal options for financing, and his competitors are closing in. He must decide whether to abandon his principles entirely or find another way forward.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Abel accepts Anna's stolen money to complete the purchase, makes a deal with a gangster for a loan, and synthesizes his idealism with pragmatism. He chooses a middle path: technically completing the deal, but accepting that he must operate in moral gray areas to survive. He hasn't become violent, but he's no longer purely righteous.
Synthesis
Abel closes the deal on the terminal using questionable money, chases down the hijacker to discover it's a desperate competitor, chooses not to turn him in to police (showing both mercy and complicity), makes a deal with the DA by giving up his competitors while protecting his own family, and secures his business empire through compromise rather than pure virtue.
Transformation
Abel stands with Anna looking out over the waterfront terminal and the city—he has won his empire, but at the cost of his moral purity. He is no longer the idealist from the opening, having learned that success in a corrupt system requires accepting moral compromise. The most violent year has transformed him into a pragmatist who has preserved himself by becoming part of the system he wanted to transcend.