Eastern Promises, A Canadian Exploration of London's Russian Mafia Starring an Australian

Well, it is 2009, so this fall should be our biannual appearance by director David Cronenberg. Unfortunately, the 66 year-old is passing up on a chance to further build his resume by possibly withdrawing from public light for too long. Perhaps, he considers himself to be too fringe or he is just waiting for his "Lifetime Achievement" Oscar, but I really would like to hear his name more frequently in the general discussion of film.

As for directorial style, he maybe over appreciated by some, but for being daring, no one has taken more chances. With the rise of Viggo Mortensen marketability, some would say his last two films may have held something back in challenging subject matter, but on the other hand those seemed to be turned off by titles like "The Fly", "Shivers", "Naked Lunch", etc. the opportunity to give his talents a chance. I have yet to see "A History of Violence", but if it is as good "Eastern Promises", David Cronenberg seemly has a grand and new vision of what gangster cinema should be like.

A 14 year-old Russian dies during birth in a London hospital. Hoping to find the girls family to avoid putting the child in foster care, the half Russian midwife, Anna (Naomi Watts of "I Heart Huckabees", "Mulholland Dr.", "Tank Girl"), wants to translate the diary she found among the girl's personal effects. Not wanting to deal with her racist Russian uncle, she decides to approach a Russian restaurant owner to translate it. Soon he and the shady chauffeur, Nikolai (Viggo Mortensen of "The Lord of the Rings", and "Texas Chainsaw Massacre III") seem overly interested in her activities, but for the child's sake, Anna will try to weather the storm of criminal innuendo no matter the cost.

The actors are great, and you have to appreciate any director who can pull of a nude, shower fight scene without it looking tacky. Cronenberg also makes it a point to show that every shot has its own meaning, and does it so the audience realizes that every part of the story is important and not a bit pretentious. This may actually show the flaws in his fringe work like "Scanners" or "Shivers", but that maybe because how much can you or do you need to write about exploding heads or horny parasites.

Cronenberg was not a writer on his last two films which shows he may have learned that subject matter needs to be restrained no matter how much you adore it. These films are probably his most critically acclaimed works, so that only supports this argument. Eastern Promises did not receive an Oscar nomination for its script like A History of Violence which allows me the comfort of not being overly impressed by the film's story.

The writing is not bad by any means, since the new crime drama (especially in this technological age) has to be more cloak and dagger like. It is all about covering up the secrets that something bad is going on then to consider the immensity of how bad the bad guys truly are. Once all is revealed, no matter how brutal some of the imagery maybe, the climax can be nothing more than the boss goes down.

Also some of the secrets that are revealed could be declared tacky, if not so brilliantly portrayed that is. Mortensen's gives this mysterious character a personality that prevents you from hating him, and also makes you believe he is seriously troubled with his life style. When you find out his secret, you want to get up and cheer because in a film this dark, you are rewarded with a true hero. The hidden nature of his is also delivered correctly, so no one will left feeling like it is his role from "American Yakuza", all over again.

Since I have not seen A History of Violence, I cannot call Eastern Promises a must see, but this is definitely a great step in allowing crime drama to still be relevant. Great acting and directing with an acceptable story may serve as a great introduction to the abilities and potential of David Cronenberg. With his vast library of work, there is no way that you will leave this film without wanting to see at least one more of his classics.

For the screamish, I hope that ends up being A History of Violence. Yes, I'm sure there is brutal imagery, but it has got to be less brutal than what car crashes, giant insects, and the telepathic can offer.