REVIEW: Eastern Promises0

I saw “Eastern Promises” just last Sunday, and it’s a thriller by David Cronenberg starring Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts. Here is my take on the film! As always, I’ll keep it as spoiler-free as possible!

Not sure what expectations I had going into this film, since I hadn’t really heard or seen anything from it, besides a trailer a few months ago. But, since I liked Cronenberg’s earlier films (like “A History of Violence”), his way of shooting, and the lead actors I decided to go see the film.

The story takes place in London, and circulates around a “driver” (Nikolaj) for the russian mafia (played by Viggo Mortsensen) and a young nurse by the name of Anna (Naomi Watts) – who helps a 14 year old girl to give birth in the beginning of the film. As the young mother dies directly after concieving the child, Anna tries during the course of the film to find out who the mysterious girl’s parents are by translating a diary she find in the mother’s purse. But when the russian mafia finds out about the diary after Anna confronts them (seeing as the adress to their restaurant is in it) it pretty much all goes down the drain. As you might have understood by now, it’s quite difficult to summarize the plot without giving too much away. I absolutely loved the story, and while it’s a pretty basic thriller story, it has a few twists which make it so much more interesting. But before I go into praising the film, I should let you all know that this is probably one of the most violent films I’ve ever seen. Cronenberg doesn’t try to cover up any of the violence, which really makes you cringe in your seat. It never feels over-the-top or out-of-place though, as it merely adds to the dramatic reality that runs through the entire film.

The acting was superb! Viggo Mortensen and all of the other Americans and Brits really sound believeable in the russian accents they’ve managed to aqquire for the film. Contrary to what I’ve read in some reviews just a few hours ago, I don’t feel Mortensen’s Russian sounds any strange at all. Naomi Watts is of course, as always, a great actor and puts on a good performance, without attracting too much attention to herself. The actor that really shines in the film is Vincent Cassel’s “Kirill” who really out-acts every single one of the remaining ensamble cast. He gives an amazing performance, and as I had only seen him in “Ocean’s Twelve” and “Ocean’s Thirteen” (hardly any real acting possibilities in any of those) it was great to see an actor which such a varied emotional and character range.

I really liked the subtle yet documentary-feeling cinematography kept through the entire film. It’s not shaky-cam, but it has a slightly more realistic tone than what you usually see in these types of crime films. The way the camera is pretty much always moving or tracking in the shots brings great fluidity to the action on-screen. The lightning is also great, with many of the lightning choices covering one part of the actors’ faces in one colour, and the other side in the opposite colour. This gives the film quite a stylized look, but as I mentioned earlier, doesn’t do it to the extreme. So in short, I think it’s a very nicely shot film, while the cinematography doesn’t really attract too much attention to itself.

The musical score and sound mix are equally good, with a real film-noir feeling striking the score made by Howard Shore (composer of among many, many others, the Lord of the Rings trilogy).

If there was one tiny, tiny problem with the film according to me is that it ends a bit too quickly. While I’m sure some people will love the ending – which I did to some extent – it’s hard not to feel as if it’s too abruptly cut off in the middle of the dramatic final act. Overall though, it’s a great film that I’m sure will stand the test of time extremely well! But if you’re not one for quite strong violence, this might be one to avoid.

Verdict: 9 out of 10