What Do The Critics Say?

"I see award nominations all over the place here: it is simply a crackling arthouse of talent in every craft. Mueller-Stahl's cleverness and power of domination may be his best role yet in a filmography that could be taken as a bible of a movie career. And Cassel's sociopathic amorality could not have had a more convincing interpretation. A brilliant villain and images of butchery that couldn't be mistaken for anything else if you were cannibalistic serial killer Jeffery Dahmer." Jules Brenner CINEMA SIGNALS "Mortensen’s work is so good that you’ll want to go back and see Eastern Promises a second time just to appreciate the way he plays us." Robert W Butler KANSAS CITY STAR "Eastern Promises is as honorable an entertainment as it is a humbling work of art." Lisa Kennedy DENVER POST "As Cronenberg's primary vehicle, Mortensen makes the show his own. Mortensen plays the character so strongly the movie stops being about anything or anyone else. The more we get to know him, the denser his mystery gets. Mortensen is the reason to watch this movie. Director David Cronenberg does the best favor for "Eastern Promises" by making the atmosphere serious and heavy, with its gruesome criminal dealings stark and its potential romanticism countered by vivid brutality and cold blood." Jeffrey Chen REELTALK MOVIE REVIEWS

"Eastern Promises is a gloriously dark and compelling thriller that plays cat and mouse with its audience the way that the characters involved play cat and mouse with each other. Mortensen uses a precise economy in his performance that emphasizes rather than undercuts Nikolai’s roiling inner life of enormous Slavic melancholy mixed with a broad dash of humor of the same Slavic vintage. Cassal, as Nikolai’s polar opposite in everything including Semyon’s esteem, goes for broke with a blazing insanity mirrored in those huge pale eyes, infusing a giddiness to Kirill’s impulsive lack of self control." Andrea Chase KILLER MOVIE REVIEWS "This is Mortensen and Cronenberg's second collaboration -- the first was A History of Violence; and it's turning into a beautiful friendship. Mick LaSalle SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE "Features strikingly good performances, as well as a realistic vision of London's darker, wetter corners. Rich Cline SHADOWS ON THE WALL "Eastern Promises instantly takes its place among David Cronenberg's very best films." Todd McCarthy VARIETY "Eastern Promises is a subtle and precisely calibrated work of astonishing cumulative power." Bruce Newman SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS "Menacingly brilliant." Geoff Pevere TORONTO STAR "Eastern Promises will take your breath away, churn your stomach, and then leave you with memories of unforgettable characters as well as perplexing thoughts about good and evil." Janos Gereben ENTERTAINMENT INSIDERS

The Inside Story Even before director David Cronenberg and actor Viggo Mortensen had memorably teamed up for one of the most acclaimed films of 2005, "A History of Violence", screenwriter Steve Knight was searching for a follow-up to what would later be made as his acclaimed first feature, "Dirty Pretty Things". Knight knew that he wanted to keep writing about intriguing subject matter, and people and places in London that are often overlooked. Knight reflects, "I wrote "Dirty Pretty Things" because I was interested in the stories of the 'other London' beneath the surface, the London of newly arrived immigrants. I felt it was an area that could be explored in more than one feature. "Dirty Pretty Things" was about an African and a Turk, and "Eastern Promises" is about another community and another experience." Producer Paul Webster comments, "The London that has emerged in the last 20 years is a polyglot society. Eastern Promises is one of the first films to emphasize that. I saw it as a companion piece to Steve’s earlier work, in that there is a thriller element in a part of London we don’t know about." Originally, Knight had been commissioned to write an hour long telefilm script about Eastern European 'people traffic'. Using that trade as a point of origin (both geographically and character-wise), his narrative moved into exploring those who profit from it. This criminal brotherhood is the Vory V Zakone (pronounced "vor-ee sack-o¬nee"), "which is a real organization," reveals Knight. It soon became apparent that the new script warranted feature film treatment. Knight called on resources in London and New York to be able to meet with criminals in both cities, as well as the London police, the Russian-assigned desk in London’s West End, and the FBI in the U.S. Knight admits, "The reality is so bizarre and upsetting that I had to tone it down for the script. Slavery usually happens in normal suburban streets; you don’t see it, yet it’s going on around you. Similarly, it was a revelation to me how different Eastern nationalities; Russian, Chinese, and Turkish, all operate in unique ways while forging links with each other. The police have difficulty penetrating these underworlds, yet these groups who exist within London are almost self–policing in that they try not to cause too much antagonism outside their own group. The character of Semyon is based on a real-life restaurant owner in New York. The character of Anna was written as a tribute to the midwife who delivered my eldest son at London’s Whittington Hospital; which we later used to double as the exterior of the hospital location in the movie." He went on to elaborate that "The character of Anna was also my way of taking a conventional Londoner and leading her into this concealed world. Those two worlds don’t often meet, let alone collide, so I came up with the emergency Caesarean section as a way to bring the midwife and an enslaved 14-year-old girl together in the thriller context." "The sex-trafficking trade is a huge industry in the U.K.," Webster said. "“Police records have shown that it is run predominantly by criminals of Eastern European descent." Producers, and production companies, from Britain, Canada, and the U.S. joined forces to bring the script to the screen. Cronenberg remembers reading the script and being "immediately sucked into this intense little world of the criminal subculture in London. In a sense, Steve has reinvented the crime movie, because the script accesses all the great parts of that genre while inverting and subverting them in an interesting way. It’s not a retro movie; instead, it’s very modern and intense. What I also found was that it offered a wonderful character study; particularly of Nikolai, and that I wanted to bring these characters to life." Producer Robert Lantos, head of Toronto based Serendipity Point Pictures, had worked on two previous films with Cronenberg ("Crash" and "eXistenZ"). "David has a unique and magical gift. He creates a mesmerizing, hypnotic reality on-screen. Working with him is always a rewarding and memorable experience," he said. There was only one actor considered for the lead role of conflicted Vory V Zakone foot soldier Nikolai Luzhin. "When I worked with Viggo Mortensen on A History of Violence, I noted that he had a kind of Russian or Slavic look to him. He is in fact half-Danish. After our experience on A History of Violence, I wanted to work with him again. In reading the script, I immediately thought of him," Cronenberg recalls. "When we first meet Nikolai, he’s almost dead inside," Knight notes. "He lives in a world of violence and as such is a violent person. But there is also a gentleness about him that comes as a surprise to Anna." Mortensen, who spent weeks in Russia immersing himself in Russian culture says, "Nikolai is a man who has a lot of secrets. He came to London by way of the Ural mountain region, which is a kind of dividing mountain range a couple of time zones east of Moscow on the edge of the Siberian plain. He’s seen a lot and, being close to Kirill, is on the front lines of the family’s doings." "He went away and immersed himself in that world," says Knight, "and spent time with a lot of very disreputable Russian people! I wrote the lines, but the heart and soul of Nikolai is really from Viggo." To play opposite Mortensen, the production needed an actress of comparable stature. In Naomi Watts, they found her. "Naomi has such respect in the acting community; there’s nobody who doesn’t say she’s a fantastic actress," Cronenberg notes, "as well as a total delight to work with." Watts, who had long sought to work with Cronenberg, says she found Knight’s script to be "a page-turner, a really good thriller, and a window into a world that hasn’t been seen much." Watts researched her role as a midwife, at Whittington Hospital. There, she witnessed a C-section and observed labor sessions with midwifes and birthing mothers. "I was present at such powerful moments in another person’s life. It was earthy and beautiful and poetic. What midwives do is pretty extraordinary. It requires a huge amount of trust." Playing Anna meant learning to ride a Russian Motor Bike. "400 pounds of steel, and almost that many people standing by. There I was, riding through the streets of London; I couldn’t believe it. But I came to like it and, I’m pleased to say, can now put it on my list of skills." French actor Vincent Cassel was the next to sign on, as the volatile Kirill. "Think of Kirill like Saddam Hussein’s son; too much power, too little depth, and a lot of insecurities," says Cronenberg, "a very dangerous combination. Unlike Nikolai, Kirill is passionate and emotional, so they’re an odd couple." "Kirill is like a firework going off," says Knight. "He’s capable of great violence and great affection. His sheer energy and enthusiasm make him, in spite of everything he does, sympathetic." "I found this character to be multi-dimensional," Cassel explained. "Kirill is a victim of a very tough childhood. Yes, he’s violent and dangerous, but at the same time it’s touching because 'the family business' and a very dark father are all he knows." 1997 Golden Satellite Award winner Armin Mueller-Stahl ("Shine") was cast as mob boss Semyon. "Armin is somebody that I’ve taken note of for years; fantastic voice, fantastic face," says Cronenberg. "It’s a black piece of work, this story. Semyon is a very brutal man, and the world is full of those people. A monster is not visible, but is deep inside. The Vory stays secret because they are not visible. But it’s very important to show both sides of these monsters. Semyon has a very warm sentimental relationship with his granddaughter, and the same attitude to Russian music. There’s a certain tradition to playing a crime boss on-screen. Hopefully, I was able to do it my own way," Mueller-Stahl said. Anna's mother is played by Irish-born actress Sinéad Cusack, wife of actor Jeremy Irons. Cusack says she "found this script to be grown-up; the characters very well-drawn, and anyone who has been reading the newspapers in recent years is very aware of what is going on with this human trafficking from Russia." Anna's Uncle Stepan is played by award winning filmmaker Jerzy Skolimowski, whom Cronenberg has long admired. Cronenberg reflects, "I was knocked out by the films Jerzy made in the Polish New Wave of the 1960s. During pre-production, I remembered that Jerzy had played a KGB agent in "White Nights" [1985] and that he was terrific in the role." While the cast, setting, and subject are indeed unique for a David Cronenberg film, the crew that convened to help bring the story to the screen is characterized by longtime creative collaborators whose associations with the director began years ago and are still going strong. One such person is his longtime costume designer and sister, Denise Cronenberg, who examined dozens of photos of Russians, from prostitutes to waiters. While visiting Russian restaurants, she noted that turtlenecks and black leather were prevalent. "“Black denotes power," she explained. "We had Russian extras who came on the set, and they would be wearing black leather and we would take theirs off and put ours on because ours had a specific look. The Russian émigrés that I met told me that I was just like a Russian, because I paid in cash!" Three voice coaches were brought in to ensure speech authenticity. Russian dialect coach Olegar Fedoro, dialogue coach Andrew Jack and Esin Harvey a Turkish dialogue advisor. "We had to make a demarcation on this particular movie as to who was dealing with dialect and who was dealing with dialogue. Olegar and Esin dealt more with language. We all aimed for a lot of subtleties that kept these characters believable," says Jack. Synopsis

Russian-born Nikolai Luzhin is a driver for one of London’s most notorious organized crime families of Eastern European origin. The family itself is part of the Vory V Zakone criminal brotherhood. Headed by Semyon, whose courtly charm as the welcoming proprietor of the plush Trans-Siberian Restaurant impeccably masks a cold and brutal core, the family’s fortunes are tested by Semyon’s volatile son and enforcer Kirill, who is more tightly bound to Nikolai than to his own father. But Nikolai’s carefully maintained existence is jarred once he crosses paths at Christmastime with Anna Khitrova, a midwife at a North London hospital. Anna is deeply affected by the desperate situation of young teenager Tatiana, who died while giving birth to a baby girl. Anna resolves to try to trace the baby’s lineage and relatives. Tatiana’s personal diary and a business card for the Trans-Siberian Restaurant also survives her. It is written in Russian, and Anna seeks answers in it. Naïvely, Anna approaches Semyon for help.

The Verdict "A glorious and rich follow-up to "A History Of Violence", Viggo Mortensen's last film with director David Cronenberg. Like a heady, bold, red wine, "Eastern Promises" is dark, highly palitable, totally intoxicating experience. The cast, led by Mortensen, is a very solid one. While Mortensen's Nikolai is the linch pin in this powerful tale of the Russian Mafia, much kudos should also be given to Vincent Cassel ("The Crimson Rivers") and Golden Satellite Award winner Armin Mueller-Stahl ("Shine") for their performances. Armin Mueller-Stahl's Semyon is a slippery customer indeed. At once smiling and charming, the next full of chilling menace. Cassel's performance as Semyon's troubled son Kirill, is a stunner, surpassing any of his previous work. 2003 & 2006 Saturn Award winning Australian actress Naomi Watts ("The Ring" & "King Kong") starpower is given a real boost thanks to a rock solid performance as the naïve midwife Anna. NSFC Award winning D.O.P Peter Suschitzky (1975's "The Rocky Horror Picture Show") and eleven time ASCAP Award winning composer Howard Shore ("The Aviator") combine to capture the tone and edgy mood of "Eastern Promise", superbly. David Cronenberg's direction is surgically precise, never faltering. Adults should not be put off by "Eastern Promises" R18+ rating. While the 'Bath House' scene is totally on the edge of your seat material, there's nothing in it that regular cinemagoers who enjoy this style of film, haven't seen before. Highly recommended. 4 1/2 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "EASTERN PROMISES" stars .......
Screen Actors Guild Award winner Viggo Mortensen ["Psycho", "28 Days", "The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy" and "A History of Violence"]; 2002 Patrick Dewaere Honorary Award winner Vincent Cassel ["Brotherhood of the Wolf", "Irréversible", "Derailed" and "Ocean's Thirteen"]; Naomi Watts ["Plots With A View", "Le Divorce", "21 Grams" and "The Assassination of Richard Nixon"]; Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse ["Summer with the Ghosts" and "Bon Cop, Bad Cop"]; Josef Altin ["My Other Wheelchair Is a Porsche", "Dirty Pretty Things" and "Ruby Blue"]; RTS Television Award winner Sinéad Cusack ["I Capture the Castle", "V for Vendetta" and "The Tiger's Tail"]; 1967 Berlin International Film Festival Golden Berlin Bear winner Jerzy Skolimowski ["Deep End", "White Nights" and "Before Night Falls"]; Cristina Catalina ["Almost Adult" and "Outlanders"] and 2004 World Cinematography Award winner Armin Mueller-Stahl ["Conversation with the Beast", "The Peacemaker", "The X Files" and "The Thirteenth Floor"] as Semyon.
"EASTERN PROMISES" was .......
directed by 2002 Cannes International Film Festival Golden Palm Award winner David Cronenberg ["The Dead Zone", "Dead Ringers", "Spider" and "A History of Violence"]; screenplay by 2004 Edgar Allan Poe 'Edgar' Award winner Steve Knight ["Gypsy Woman", "Dirty Pretty Things" and "Amazing Grace"]; art direction by Rebecca Holmes ["Madeline", "Birthday Girl" and "Dirty Pretty Things"]; costume design by Denise Cronenberg ["Naked Lunch", "Dracula 2000" and "Dawn of the Dead"]; production design by Carol Spier ["The Santa Clause", "Blade II" and "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen"]; edited by Ronald Sanders ["Johnny Mnemonic", "Dead by Monday" and "A History of Violence"]; director of photography Peter Suschitzky ["Lock Up Your Daughters!", "The Vanishing", "The Man In The Iron Mask" and "Shopgirl"]; original music by three time Academy Award and 2004 Golden Globe Award winner Howard Shore ["Mrs Doubtfire", "Se7en", "The Cell", "Panic Room", "Gangs of New York" and "The Last Mimzy"]. Who's Who?

Viggo Mortensen Vincent Cassel Armin Mueller-Stahl Naomi Watts Josef Altin Sinéad Cusack Jerzy Skolimowski Shannon-Fleur Roux Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse Tatiana Maslany Mina E Mina Aleksandar Mikic Lalita Ahmed Badi Uzzaman Raza Jaffrey Dona Croll Mia Soteriou Donald Sumpter

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Nikolai Kirill Semyon Anna Ekrem Helen Stepan Maria Tatiana Tatiana's Voice Azim Soyka Customer Chemist Doctor Aziz Nurse Azim’s Wife Yuri

Run Time 99 minutes Rated R18+ [AUST] Copyright ©2007 - Focus Features - All Rights Reserved ©2007 All Rights Reserved - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - Protected by Australian & International Copyright. Trademark Laws Apply.