Review of Eastern Promises (2007) by Zachary N — 31 Aug 2013

This is my first review. I just watched this film so it's still fresh in my mind. I won't go into the story.

I did like this film. There were both the likeable and the hateful characters. A very good performance by Viggo Mortensen. His Russian accent disappeared a couple of times but I'll forgive him. Armin Mueller-Stahl was pretty damn good too. Naomi Watts was consistent, but that's all the praise I can give her. Though the film should have been about her, she took the backseat and it really was Viggo who stole the show. I was pretty disappointed by Vincent Cassel. He was all over the bloody place.

The whole film was a strong, continuous narrative. I've heard people complaining about the lack of surprises in the script. I really did not think they were necessary. I predicted a lot of the things before the end of the film, but I was delighted in the way they were presented. It's not the best thriller there ever was, but it's an engaging story. I wasn't expecting a great piece before I watched this, so I'm pretty happy with what I got.

I will list a couple of weaknesses, however. The ending was lacklustre. I needed a bit more umph. For God's sake, the head of the Russian Mafia is going to be arrested and we're not even going to give that 2 minutes of screen time?? The ending wasn't all Hollywood, which I'm pleased about, but all I ask for is a reasonable conclusion with all loose ends tied up. The ending, plus a couple of really cringe-worthy moments in the dialogue, prevented the film from reaching the heights it was capable of. That's just my opinion.

Still though, solid 4 stars.