Eastern Promises

With a bit of exaggeration, Naomi Watts's character seems to have fallen out of a naive Danielle Steele novel, creating a perfect contrast with the hard male world of the criminal underworld that has a somewhat uncompromising touch (detailed throat slashing, a knife stabbing an eyeball). It's in fact this contrast that is the greatest strength of the story, which is not very revelatory, but it must be said that Cronenberg's understated direction is very pleasant and effective, because despite the trivial plot, his film manages to draw you into the action so that the 100 minutes go by so quickly. Compared to the previous and weak A History of Violence, it is really very engaging with some truly unforgettable scenes (the opening fight in the sauna with Mortensen in a birthday suit). I could watch the phenomenal trio of Mueller-Stahl, Cassel, Mortensen for days. (01/08/2008)

Good advice is better than gold - and believe me this is a good maxim to follow. The second picture by the “new", more approachable Cronenberg is in many ways like the first. And in many ways it is a bit weird. A movie about Russians where they speak, sing and everything else in Russian. However not a single Slav figures in the international cast. As a result it is conspicuous in the intonation, like it or not. It’s not exactly that dumb Hollywood idea of an affected Russian accent, but still. On the other hand, you might not notice, because otherwise the actors are utterly convincing. Not just Mortensen or Cassel, but also the absolutely perfect Armin Mueller-Stahl. But still, it was Viggo who left me with the deepest impression. His calm, confident demeanor speaks volumes. When he makes that gestures toward his uncle in front of the restaurant, you know that if you were there you would never leave the house again and couldn’t look forward to a good night’s sleep for the foreseeable future. The fight in the spa that everybody is raving about it simply... Realistically powerful. But what brings the movie down most is the rather surprising plot. The entire storyline with Naomi Watts is interesting, but seems added on later. Even the sudden ending is untraditional, but... And that’s precisely it. Eastern Promises have rather too many of those for my taste. I’m not saying that this isn’t a very good movie, but just that it could have been better. Considerably better. (01/10/2008)

Pretty restrained for Cronenberg, but you can still see his style. Like most films of his I’ve watched, this one felt very cold, but it still managed to capture my attention thanks to the intense rawness. Cronenberg is not for everyone, but I like playing his emotionally detached games sometimes. 80% (08/18/2008)

Just when I thought I had Cronenberg figured out and not particularly inclined towards my taste, something like this comes along. While in A History of Violence he only touched on the gangsters and wrapped the whole story in somewhat unbelievable personal drama, Eastern Promises is a whole different story. Their simple yet sufficiently detailed story reveals both the complicated personal life of Anna and the hierarchy of a community where they speak with a very distinctive accent and secretly give dirty orders. Thanks to Mortensen's perfect performance, the viewer doesn't escape from that evil and chilling world for even a minute. (02/07/2008)

When watching Eastern Promises, many film fans probably thought, "Thank God that Cronenberg has gained some common sense in his old age and started making understandable genre films accessible to a wider audience." I prefer the old "perverse" Cronenberg, who experimented and came up with original stories beyond the mainstream of cinema. Eastern Promises is not bad at all, although the script is definitely not original and an experienced viewer can guess where the story is heading after a while. For example, the scriptwriter lacked the courage to cross the genre taboo of the death of a child character. What makes this thriller stand out and surpass average productions is the excellent cast and great performances, far from typical B-movies. The atmosphere of the foreign Russian mafia with its secret rituals, tattoos, and "mythology" is naturally attractive. Overall impression: 75%. The depiction of several overly naturalistic shots, such as the stabbing of a human eye in a fight or the mutilation of a corpse, disturbed me, but many fans will probably appreciate it. :-) (09/26/2008)