Review of Eastern Promises (2007) by Mikem — 26 Sep 2007
If there is one thing Cronenburg is so good at, its taking a movie beyond the limits of being just a movie. It is more a study of the human being, and their behaviors and nature, and how they act and who they are, and who they pretend to be.
This movie takes you into the lives of the Russian mob, a very dark, disturbing place to be, and a family of a young woman (played by Naomi Watts), her uncle and aunt find themselves thrown into the chaos.
They discover a diary of a young prostitute, and this diary has a lot of power in this movie. Muehller-Stahl, who plays the leader of the vory V Zakone brotherhood, is absolutely terrific, and can shoot one glance that could freeze you, and then cut you to pieces.
He is menacing, not in his actions, but in his look alone. Also, Viggo Mortensen delivers the performance of his life, playing this mysterious, off-put, odd friend of the son of the brotherhood leader.
He can exude both evil, and kindness in just a few different shots. The action in the movie is real, and it is haunting, and one scene in particular will most likely stick with you in your head for quite some time.
This is a movie to be taken seriously, and deep, deep under its seemingly simple layers of story, lies a very interesting tale that leads through the cobwebs of the Russian mob, and just what happens when family is messed with.
This is a very good piece on humanity, and it is something not to be missed at a time when all Hollywood can chock up are lame Dane Cook films and same-old same-old "kill the zombie" movies.
This review of Eastern Promises (2007) was written by Mikem on 26 Sep 2007.
Eastern Promises has generally received very positive reviews.
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