More good news today for All Is Lost and Margin Call director J.C. Chandor’s next film, the 1981-set drama A Most Violent Year. Following its acquisition by upstart distribution company A24 last week at the Sundance Film Festival, Academy Award-nominated actor Albert Brooks has now joined the already impressive cast.
He’ll star alongside Oscar Isaac, Jessica Chastain and Alfred Molina in the film, which focuses on an immigrant and his family struggling to build a life for themselves while staying away from the rampant crime, corruption and moral decay that’s prevalent throughout 1980s New York. The film is set during the harsh winter of 1981, which saw one of the city’s highest rates of violent crime.
Brooks was considered a dark horse candidate in the buildup to nominations for the 2012 Academy Awards for his role as the menacing crime boss Bernie Rose in Nicolas Winding Refn’s brilliant thriller Drive. With A Most Violent Year, it looks like he’ll get to take on another slimy part, as Brooks will reportedly play the attorney for Isaac’s protagonist.
Shooting is set to begin in New York City shortly, with A24 evidently aiming to get the film into theaters late this year so as to give them a strong contender for next year’s Oscar race. The studio made a big splash this year with acquisitions like Spring Breakers, The Bling Ring and The Spectacular Now, but none of those films made the cut for Oscar attention (though a tongue-in-cheek campaign for James Franco’s gonzo performance in the former film did gain traction for a while).
Chandor’s last effort, the Robert Redford-starring All Is Lost, was almost entirely shut out by the Academy this year, save for a nomination for Best Sound Editing. However, the director may stand a better chance of hitting it big with A Most Violent Year, unquestionably a more palatable film for general audiences than All Is Lost. He’s certainly got the star-power, and we won’t have to worry about the film having a strong script on par with its cast. As with Margin Call and All is Lost, Chandor is both writing and directing. Â
Are you interested in checking out A Most Violent Year? Let us know in the comments section.
