Nikolai Luzhin: Forget any of this happened. Stay away from people like me.
Underrated filmmaker David Cronenberg is back in the spirit of his last film 'A History of Violence' with his latest feature 'Eastern Promises' a taut well-crafted crime thriller centering around the dirty doings of the Russian mafia in London. The ever-so-talented Naomi Watts plays a delivery nurse in London who one night delivers a baby from a dying 14-year-old Russian immigrant. The 14-year-old Russian immigrant dies in delivery and only leaves behind her journal. Translating her journal, Naomi Watts learns her demise involves the Russian mafia syndicate lead by the ruthless but seemingly sweet Seymon (Academy Award Winner Armin Mueller-Stahl) and his psychotic son Kirill (Vincent Cassell). Viggo Mortensen stars as one of Seymon's henchmen/drivers who becomes entangled in the mysterious death of the 14-year-old Russian immigrant. Although I didn't think 'Eastern Promises' was quite on-par with Cronenberg's masterpiece 'A History of Violence', it was certainly a very intense and involving motion picture. The acting is phenomenal. Viggo Mortensen steals the film with his indescribably brilliant screen presence and powerful performance. Perhaps we could expect to see Viggo Mortensen's name on the Best Leading Actor list when the Oscar nominations come out this upcoming February. Naomi Watts is great as always in a tedious kind of role, while Vincent Cassell gives his best screen performance to date as Seymon's crazy son. Armin Mueller-Stahl is certainly Oscar-worthy here as the head bad guy. Stahl manages to create one of the most terrifying movie villains in recent years without raising his voice or even being impolite. Cronenberg's directing is masterful as always especially during a bathhouse fight sequence that is exquisitely crafted. The only downfall of the film is the writing. It's solid, but it's nothing innovative. That really threw me for a loop. Cronenberg the man behind 'Videodrome', 'Naked Lunch' and 'A History of Violence' is a lot of things but never, ever conventional. 'Eastern Promises' stands as his most conventional film to date. That's not a bad thing, I was just expecting something a bit more original. All in all, despite dragging a bit at certain parts and conventional writing, 'Eastern Promises' is a great film and stands as one of the best films of the year so far. Grade: B+
Underrated filmmaker David Cronenberg is back in the spirit of his last film 'A History of Violence' with his latest feature 'Eastern Promises' a taut well-crafted crime thriller centering around the dirty doings of the Russian mafia in London. The ever-so-talented Naomi Watts plays a delivery nurse in London who one night delivers a baby from a dying 14-year-old Russian immigrant. The 14-year-old Russian immigrant dies in delivery and only leaves behind her journal. Translating her journal, Naomi Watts learns her demise involves the Russian mafia syndicate lead by the ruthless but seemingly sweet Seymon (Academy Award Winner Armin Mueller-Stahl) and his psychotic son Kirill (Vincent Cassell). Viggo Mortensen stars as one of Seymon's henchmen/drivers who becomes entangled in the mysterious death of the 14-year-old Russian immigrant. Although I didn't think 'Eastern Promises' was quite on-par with Cronenberg's masterpiece 'A History of Violence', it was certainly a very intense and involving motion picture. The acting is phenomenal. Viggo Mortensen steals the film with his indescribably brilliant screen presence and powerful performance. Perhaps we could expect to see Viggo Mortensen's name on the Best Leading Actor list when the Oscar nominations come out this upcoming February. Naomi Watts is great as always in a tedious kind of role, while Vincent Cassell gives his best screen performance to date as Seymon's crazy son. Armin Mueller-Stahl is certainly Oscar-worthy here as the head bad guy. Stahl manages to create one of the most terrifying movie villains in recent years without raising his voice or even being impolite. Cronenberg's directing is masterful as always especially during a bathhouse fight sequence that is exquisitely crafted. The only downfall of the film is the writing. It's solid, but it's nothing innovative. That really threw me for a loop. Cronenberg the man behind 'Videodrome', 'Naked Lunch' and 'A History of Violence' is a lot of things but never, ever conventional. 'Eastern Promises' stands as his most conventional film to date. That's not a bad thing, I was just expecting something a bit more original. All in all, despite dragging a bit at certain parts and conventional writing, 'Eastern Promises' is a great film and stands as one of the best films of the year so far. Grade: B+