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Eastern Promises (film)
Encyclopedia
Eastern Promises is a 2007 thriller film directed by David Cronenberg
, from a screenplay written by Steven Knight
. The film tells of a British
midwife's interactions with the Russian Mafia
in London
and stars Viggo Mortensen
, Naomi Watts
and Vincent Cassel
. Principal photography
began November 2006, in locations in and around London. The film has been noted for its plot twist
, the subject of sex trafficking, and for its violence and realistic depiction of Russian career criminals, which includes detailed portrayal of the tattoo
s commonly worn by them.
Eastern Promises received positive critical reception, appearing on several US critics' "top ten films" lists for 2007. The film has won several awards, including the Audience Prize for best film at the Toronto International Film Festival
and the Best Actor award for Mortensen at the British Independent Film Awards
. The film received twelve Genie Award
nominations and three Golden Globe Award
nominations. Mortensen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
.
), a British-Russian midwife at a London hospital, finds a Russian-language diary on the body of Tatiana, a 14-year-old girl who dies in childbirth. She also finds a card for the Trans-Siberian restaurant, which is owned by Semyon (Armin Mueller-Stahl
), a boss in the Russian Mafia or vory v zakone ("thieves in law")
. Anna thus sets out to track down the girl's family so that she can find a home for the dead mother's baby girl. Anna's mother Helen (Sinéad Cusack
) does not discourage her, but Anna's Ukrainian uncle and self-described former KGB worker, Stepan (Jerzy Skolimowski
), whom Anna asks for help with the translation of the diary, urges caution. Through Semyon and her uncle, Anna comes to learn that Semyon and his unstable son, Kirill (Vincent Cassel
), had abused the girl, addicted her to heroin, forced her into prostitution, and raped her.
Semyon's driver is Russian Nikolai Luzhin (Viggo Mortensen
), who also serves as the family "cleaner", dumping bodies in the River Thames. Through Nikolai, Semyon promises to give the location of the girl's family to Anna if she hands back the diary, fearing prosecution. Nikolai takes the diary from Anna and her family but does not give a location, instead urging Anna to keep the baby in the UK as the girl's home is a bad village to grow up in. Semyon distrusts Anna's uncle Stepan due to his former position and ethnicity, ordering a hit on him. Nikolai accepts and soon Stepan goes missing. As Nikolai's star rises within the vory, an impressed Semyon sponsors him as a full member, due in part to Nikolai's protection of Semyon's bumbling son who authorized a hit on a rival Chechen vory
leader. The hit was not approved by Semyon and was ill-advised; the Chechen gang are now coming to London to seek vengeance. Semyon hatches a plan to trick Nikolai into temporarily taking Kirill's place during a meeting with a kurd named Azim, who carried out Kirill's hit, at the baths. As the Chechens attack Nikolai thinking he is Kirill, Nikolai kills them both, ending up in the hospital with severe wounds as a result.
It is then revealed that Nikolai is actually an FSB agent who has infiltrated the gang, working under license by the British Government. As part of his undercover duties, Nikolai was able to read Tatiana's diary before Semyon had it destroyed and hatched a plan to have Semyon arrested for statutory rape. Stepan is also safe, staying in a 5-star hotel up north for protection. Semyon orders Kirill to kidnap the baby girl and kill her but as Kirill sits by the Thames, almost unable to throw the little girl into the river, Nikolai and Anna find him and persuade him to give the baby back. Nikolai and Kirill embrace as Nikolai tells him that his father is finished and they are now the bosses. Nikolai and Anna then kiss as they part for the last time. Nikolai then takes Semyon's place as boss of the organization and Anna gains custody of Tatiana's baby, whom she names Christine.
. Filming also took place in Broadway Market
, Hackney
and in Brompton Cemetery
in the London Borough of Kensington & Chelsea
.
The "Trans-Siberian Restaurant" is located in The Farmiloe Building, 34 St John Street, next to Smithfield Market
. This is the 6th most popular film and TV location in London, having also been used for Spooks
, Penelope, and Batman Begins
.
The entrance to the "Ankara Social Club" of the film is actually the front door of a residential flat. The Broadway Market hair dresser known as "Broadway Gents Hairstylist" was changed to "Azim's Hair Salon", where in the film one of the Russians is murdered. The owner Mr. Ismail Yesiloglu decided to keep most of the shop front after filming. In the original script, the name was "Ozim's Hair Salon", but it was later changed to "Azim's" as there is no such name as Ozim in Turkish
.
The "Trafalgar Hospital" is actually the Middlesex Hospital
, a hospital in the Fitzrovia
area of London, which closed to patients in December 2005. The building in central London, which was knocked down in 2008, had the inscription 'Trafalgar Hospital', matching the style and apparent age of the old Middlesex Hospital, inserted into the legend above the main door.
The fight scene in the Turkish Baths is filmed at the Ironmonger Row Baths
in Islington
.
Viggo Mortensen studied Russian gangsters and their tattoos, and also consulted a documentary on the subject called The Mark of Cain
(2000). The tattoos that he wore were, according to the New York Daily News
, so realistic, that diners in a Russian restaurant in London fell silent out of fear until Mortensen revealed his identity and admitted the tattoos were for a film. From that day on he washed off his tattoos whenever he went off the set. Mortensen said of the significance of the tattoos:
. When asked in an interview about the difference between "gun violence
" and "knife violence," Cronenberg replied, "We have no guns in this movie. There were no guns in the script. The choice of those curved knives we use in the steam bath was mine. They’re not some kind of exotic Turkish knives, they’re linoleum knives. I felt that these guys could walk around in the streets with these knives, and if they were ever caught, they could say 'we’re linoleum cutters'."
reported that director David Cronenberg said "Just don't give the plot away" and Nayman wrote "His request is understandable." Nayman said, "There is one scene – the in-depth discussion of which prompted the director's anti-spoiler request referenced at the top of this story – that should rank not only in his personal pantheon of spectacularly deployed gore but among the most exhilaratingly visceral patches of cinema, period, full stop." Chicago Sun-Times
critic Roger Ebert
noted Cronenberg's quote and agreed, saying "He is correct that it would be fatal, because this is not a movie of what or how, but of why. And for a long time you don't see the why coming."
where it won the Audience Prize for best film on September 15, 2007. Eastern Promises opened in limited release
in Russia
on September 13, 2007.
In the United States
and Canada
, the film opened in limited release in 15 theaters on September 14, 2007 and grossed $547,092 — averaging $36,472 per theater. The film opened in wide release in the United States and Canada on September 21, 2007 (expanding to 1,404 theaters) and ranked #5 at the box office, grossing $5,659,133 — an average of $4,030 per theater. The film has grossed $51,202,291 worldwide as of January 31, 2008 — $17,266,000 in the United States and Canada and $33,936,291 in other territories.
The film took part in competition at the San Sebastian Film Festival September 20, 2007.
The film was shown at the London Film Festival
on October 17, 2007 and was released in the United Kingdom
on October 26, 2007.
reported that 89% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 186 reviews. On Metacritic
, the film had an average score of 82/100, based on 35 reviews. Todd McCarthy of Variety
, David Elliott of The San Diego Union-Tribune
, and film critic Tony Medley noted the twists in the film.
Roger Ebert
of the Chicago Sun-Times
gave the film four out of four stars and wrote "Eastern Promises is no ordinary crime thriller, just as Cronenberg is no ordinary director", and said "Cronenberg has moved film by film into the top rank of directors, and here he wisely reunites with Mortensen" who "digs so deeply into the role you may not recognize him at first." Ebert said the film has a fight scene that "sets the same kind of standard that The French Connection
set for chases. Years from now, it will be referred to as a benchmark."
J. Hoberman
of The Village Voice
said "I've said it before and hope to again: David Cronenberg
is the most provocative, original, and consistently excellent North American director of his generation." Hoberman said the film is "directed with considerable formal intelligence and brooding power" and continues the trend of "murderous family dramas" seen in Spider
and A History of Violence
. Hoberman called the film "graphic but never gratuitous in its violence", "garish yet restrained", "a masterful mood piece", "deceptively generic" and said the film "suggests a naturalized version of the recent Russian horror flick Night Watch
." When describing the cast, Hoberman said "Mueller-Stahl may be perfunctory...but Vincent Cassel
literally flings himself into [his role]" and "Mortensen is even more electrifying as Nikolai than in A History of Violence
".
Chris Vognar of The Dallas Morning News
gave the film a "B+" and said "The film's genius performance belongs to the venerable Armin Mueller-Stahl
, who plays the family head with a twinkling eye and an air of avuncular, Old World charm." Vognar wrote "Where some may see melodrama, Mr. Cronenberg locates timeless, elemental struggles between good and evil, right and wrong. But he makes sure to place a mysterious gray area front and center, personified here by Mr. Mortensen's Nikolai", writing "Nikolai Luzhin is...like Ray Bradbury
's Illustrated Man
...only more dangerous" and "scarily enigmatic." Vognar wrote that Eastern Promises shares themes of "ambiguous identity and rage-soaked duality" with A History of Violence and said both films "have a lock-step precision and both take a sly kind of joy in subverting genre expectations." Vognar said Eastern Promises "is a little too mechanical for its own good...but the mechanics also produce an admirable crispness and sense of purpose, a sense that the man behind the camera knows exactly what he's doing at all times."
Film Journal International
critic Doris Toumarkine said the film is a "highly entertaining but sometimes revolting look at a particularly venal branch of the Russian mob
." Toumarkine wrote that Mortensen and Watts "are intriguing moral counterpoints. They are also the key ingredients that make Eastern Promises a highly delectable and cinematically rich borsht
that upscale film fans will devour." She described Mortensen's performance as "startling," called Watts "touching," Cassel "particularly delicious," but said "Mueller-Stahl, Cusack
, and Skolimowski
don’t have as much to chew on." She said the film "is also blessed by Howard Shore
's restrained score, which lets the film’s other estimable elements breathe through." Toumarkine also said the film is "essentially a character-driven crime thriller but is also a bloody tour de force laced with considerable nudity and sexually bold content that will rattle the squeamish."
Bruce Westbrook of the Houston Chronicle
gave the film one star out of four and said it had a "contrived plot" and wrote "what it's really about, more than sensitivity for displaced people or social analyses, is violence — hideous, gruesome, over-the-top violence." Westbrook said "For Cronenberg, such cheap sensationalism is business as usual, and this far into his career, that business has slipped into artistic bankruptcy." Westbrook wrote the film "isn't about Russian gangs so much as Cronenberg's own dark passions not just for violence but excruciating carnage, which he brandishes mercilessly" and that the film was "a stifling descent into grim shock and disturbing awe."
.
The film received three Golden Globe
nominations for the 65th Golden Globe Awards
, winning none. Eastern Promises was nominated for Best Motion Picture - Drama. Viggo Mortensen
was nominated for Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture - Drama. And Howard Shore was nominated for Best Original Score for a Motion Picture.
The film was nominated in five different categories in the British Independent Film Awards
for 2007, and won in one category, gaining a Best Performance by an Actor in a British Independent Film award for Mortensen.
Mortensen was also nominated for Best Actor
at the 80th Academy Awards
, but told the Associated Press, "If there's a strike I will not go." — a reference to the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike
. On February 12, 2008 the strike
ended, and he attended the ceremony, although he lost the Academy Award to Daniel Day-Lewis
for There Will Be Blood
.
, tying with the film Shake Hands with the Devil for most nominations, and won 7.
Nominations
. Cassel suggested that the sequel will be filmed in Russia with Cassel and Mortensen reprising their roles.
David Cronenberg
David Paul Cronenberg, OC, FRSC is a Canadian filmmaker, screenwriter and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror or venereal horror genre. This style of filmmaking explores people's fears of bodily transformation and infection. In his films, the...
, from a screenplay written by Steven Knight
Steven Knight
Steven Knight is a British screenwriter. Knight has written scripts for numerous British television programmes such as the British version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, BBC's Commercial Breakdown, The Detectives and others. However, he is best known for screenplays he wrote for films Dirty...
. The film tells of a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
midwife's interactions with the Russian Mafia
Russian Mafia
The Russian Mafia is a name applied to organized crime syndicates in Russia and Ukraine. The mafia in various countries take the name of the country, as for example the Ukrainian mafia....
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and stars Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Peter Mortensen, Jr. is a Danish-American actor, poet, musician, photographer and painter. He made his film debut in Peter Weir's 1985 thriller Witness, and subsequently appeared in many notable films of the 1990s, including The Indian Runner , Carlito's Way , Crimson Tide , Daylight , The...
, Naomi Watts
Naomi Watts
Naomi Ellen Watts is a British actress. Watts began her career in Australian television, where she appeared in series such as Hey Dad..! , Brides of Christ , and Home and Away . Her film debut was the 1986 drama For Love Alone...
and Vincent Cassel
Vincent Cassel
Vincent Cassel is a Cesar award winning French actor probably best known to English-speaking audiences through his performances in the Ocean's Trilogy of films and Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan.-Personal life:...
. Principal photography
Principal photography
thumb|300px|Film production on location in [[Newark, New Jersey]].Principal photography is the phase of film production in which the movie is filmed, with actors on set and cameras rolling, as distinct from pre-production and post-production....
began November 2006, in locations in and around London. The film has been noted for its plot twist
Plot twist
A plot twist is a change in the expected direction or outcome of the plot of a film, television series, video game, novel, comic or other fictional work. It is a common practice in narration used to keep the interest of an audience, usually surprising them with a revelation...
, the subject of sex trafficking, and for its violence and realistic depiction of Russian career criminals, which includes detailed portrayal of the tattoo
Tattoo
A tattoo is made by inserting indelible ink into the dermis layer of the skin to change the pigment. Tattoos on humans are a type of body modification, and tattoos on other animals are most commonly used for identification purposes...
s commonly worn by them.
Eastern Promises received positive critical reception, appearing on several US critics' "top ten films" lists for 2007. The film has won several awards, including the Audience Prize for best film at the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
and the Best Actor award for Mortensen at the British Independent Film Awards
British Independent Film Awards
The Moët British Independent Film Awards is an annual award ceremony celebrating achievement in independently funded British film and cinema. Nominations and jury are announced at the beginning of November with the award ceremony taking place in late November or early December.-History:The British...
. The film received twelve Genie Award
Genie Award
Genie Awards are given out to recognize the best of Canadian cinema by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television. From 1949-1979, the awards were named the Canadian Film Awards...
nominations and three Golden Globe Award
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
nominations. Mortensen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
.
Plot
Anna Khitrova (Naomi WattsNaomi Watts
Naomi Ellen Watts is a British actress. Watts began her career in Australian television, where she appeared in series such as Hey Dad..! , Brides of Christ , and Home and Away . Her film debut was the 1986 drama For Love Alone...
), a British-Russian midwife at a London hospital, finds a Russian-language diary on the body of Tatiana, a 14-year-old girl who dies in childbirth. She also finds a card for the Trans-Siberian restaurant, which is owned by Semyon (Armin Mueller-Stahl
Armin Mueller-Stahl
Armin Mueller-Stahl is a German film actor, painter, writer and musician.-Early life:Mueller-Stahl was born in Tilsit, East Prussia...
), a boss in the Russian Mafia or vory v zakone ("thieves in law")
Thief in law
Thief in law is a criminal who is respected, has authority and a high ranking status within the...
. Anna thus sets out to track down the girl's family so that she can find a home for the dead mother's baby girl. Anna's mother Helen (Sinéad Cusack
Sinéad Cusack
Sinéad Moira Cusack is an Irish stage, television and film actress. She has received two Tony Award nominations: once for Best Leading Actress in Much Ado About Nothing , and again for Best Featured Actress in Rock 'n' Roll .-Background:...
) does not discourage her, but Anna's Ukrainian uncle and self-described former KGB worker, Stepan (Jerzy Skolimowski
Jerzy Skolimowski
Jerzy Skolimowski is a Polish film director, screenwriter, dramatist and actor. A graduate of the prestigious National Film School in Łódź, Skolimowski has directed more than twenty films since his 1960 début Oko wykol...
), whom Anna asks for help with the translation of the diary, urges caution. Through Semyon and her uncle, Anna comes to learn that Semyon and his unstable son, Kirill (Vincent Cassel
Vincent Cassel
Vincent Cassel is a Cesar award winning French actor probably best known to English-speaking audiences through his performances in the Ocean's Trilogy of films and Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan.-Personal life:...
), had abused the girl, addicted her to heroin, forced her into prostitution, and raped her.
Semyon's driver is Russian Nikolai Luzhin (Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Peter Mortensen, Jr. is a Danish-American actor, poet, musician, photographer and painter. He made his film debut in Peter Weir's 1985 thriller Witness, and subsequently appeared in many notable films of the 1990s, including The Indian Runner , Carlito's Way , Crimson Tide , Daylight , The...
), who also serves as the family "cleaner", dumping bodies in the River Thames. Through Nikolai, Semyon promises to give the location of the girl's family to Anna if she hands back the diary, fearing prosecution. Nikolai takes the diary from Anna and her family but does not give a location, instead urging Anna to keep the baby in the UK as the girl's home is a bad village to grow up in. Semyon distrusts Anna's uncle Stepan due to his former position and ethnicity, ordering a hit on him. Nikolai accepts and soon Stepan goes missing. As Nikolai's star rises within the vory, an impressed Semyon sponsors him as a full member, due in part to Nikolai's protection of Semyon's bumbling son who authorized a hit on a rival Chechen vory
Thief in law
Thief in law is a criminal who is respected, has authority and a high ranking status within the...
leader. The hit was not approved by Semyon and was ill-advised; the Chechen gang are now coming to London to seek vengeance. Semyon hatches a plan to trick Nikolai into temporarily taking Kirill's place during a meeting with a kurd named Azim, who carried out Kirill's hit, at the baths. As the Chechens attack Nikolai thinking he is Kirill, Nikolai kills them both, ending up in the hospital with severe wounds as a result.
It is then revealed that Nikolai is actually an FSB agent who has infiltrated the gang, working under license by the British Government. As part of his undercover duties, Nikolai was able to read Tatiana's diary before Semyon had it destroyed and hatched a plan to have Semyon arrested for statutory rape. Stepan is also safe, staying in a 5-star hotel up north for protection. Semyon orders Kirill to kidnap the baby girl and kill her but as Kirill sits by the Thames, almost unable to throw the little girl into the river, Nikolai and Anna find him and persuade him to give the baby back. Nikolai and Kirill embrace as Nikolai tells him that his father is finished and they are now the bosses. Nikolai and Anna then kiss as they part for the last time. Nikolai then takes Semyon's place as boss of the organization and Anna gains custody of Tatiana's baby, whom she names Christine.
Cast
- Viggo MortensenViggo MortensenViggo Peter Mortensen, Jr. is a Danish-American actor, poet, musician, photographer and painter. He made his film debut in Peter Weir's 1985 thriller Witness, and subsequently appeared in many notable films of the 1990s, including The Indian Runner , Carlito's Way , Crimson Tide , Daylight , The...
as Nikolai Luzhin - Naomi WattsNaomi WattsNaomi Ellen Watts is a British actress. Watts began her career in Australian television, where she appeared in series such as Hey Dad..! , Brides of Christ , and Home and Away . Her film debut was the 1986 drama For Love Alone...
as Anna Khitrova - Vincent CasselVincent CasselVincent Cassel is a Cesar award winning French actor probably best known to English-speaking audiences through his performances in the Ocean's Trilogy of films and Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan.-Personal life:...
as Kirill - Armin Mueller-StahlArmin Mueller-StahlArmin Mueller-Stahl is a German film actor, painter, writer and musician.-Early life:Mueller-Stahl was born in Tilsit, East Prussia...
as Semyon - Jerzy SkolimowskiJerzy SkolimowskiJerzy Skolimowski is a Polish film director, screenwriter, dramatist and actor. A graduate of the prestigious National Film School in Łódź, Skolimowski has directed more than twenty films since his 1960 début Oko wykol...
as Stepan - Sinéad CusackSinéad CusackSinéad Moira Cusack is an Irish stage, television and film actress. She has received two Tony Award nominations: once for Best Leading Actress in Much Ado About Nothing , and again for Best Featured Actress in Rock 'n' Roll .-Background:...
as Helen - Mina E. Mina as Azim
- Josef AltinJosef AltinJosef Altin is a British TV series and movie actor. Altin had small roles in various TV shows and movies including The Bill, Peep Show and Babyfather...
as Ekrem - Donald SumpterDonald SumpterDonald Sumpter is a British actor. He has appeared in film and television since the mid 1960s.-Life and work:One of his early television appearances was the 1968 Doctor Who serial The Wheel in Space with Patrick Troughton as the Doctor. He appeared in Doctor Who again in the 1972 serial The Sea...
as Yuri - Raza JaffreyRaza JaffreyRaza Jaffrey is a British actor, most notable for playing the character of Zafar Younis in the BBC1 television spy drama Spooks / MI-5.-Early life:...
as Dr. Aziz - Sarah-Jeanne LabrosseSarah-Jeanne LabrosseSarah-Jeanne Labrosse is a Canadian actress.- Filmographie :* 1997 : Le Volcan tranquille * 2003 : Summer with the Ghosts : Caroline* 2004 : 15/Love : Sunny Capuduca...
as Tatiana - Tatiana MaslanyTatiana Maslany-Acting career:Maslany is one of the stars of the Canadian TV series 2030 CE and is best known in her role as the character Ghost in Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed...
as Tatiana (Voice Only) - Tamer HassanTamer HassanTamer Hassan is a British actor of Turkish Cypriot descent.-Early life:Hassan was born in London, England into a Turkish Cypriot family. Having sustained an injury in boxing, Hassan started to run nightclubs and restaurants and is now the owner, chairman and player/coach of Greenwich Borough and...
as Chechen - Olegar FedoroOlegar FedoroOlegar Fedoro is a Ukrainian-born former Soviet performer who later became a Spanish and then English actor.He started with a work for Andrei Tarkovsky's Stalker...
as Tattooist - Igor OutkineIgor OutkineIgor Outkine is an accordionist and vocalist. His vocal and instrumental repertoire covers an extremely wide range of music such as classical and opera, Neapolitan song, Argentine and Russian tango, jazz and pop....
, accordionist and singer in the birthday party scene
Locations
Shooting began in November 2006, and various scenes were filmed in St John Street, Farringdon, LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Filming also took place in Broadway Market
Broadway Market
Broadway Market is a street running from London Fieldsto the Regent's Canal in Haggerston in the London Borough of Hackney, east London.Before the late 20th century it was the site of a busy fruit and vegetable market, but this slowly dwindled over time - in the early 2000s, market activity was...
, Hackney
London Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough of North/North East London, and forms part of inner London. The local authority is Hackney London Borough Council....
and in Brompton Cemetery
Brompton Cemetery
Brompton Cemetery is located near Earl's Court in South West London, England . It is managed by The Royal Parks and is one of the Magnificent Seven...
in the London Borough of Kensington & Chelsea
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is a central London borough of Royal borough status. After the City of Westminster, it is the wealthiest borough in England....
.
The "Trans-Siberian Restaurant" is located in The Farmiloe Building, 34 St John Street, next to Smithfield Market
Smithfield, London
Smithfield is an area of the City of London, in the ward of Farringdon Without. It is located in the north-west part of the City, and is mostly known for its centuries-old meat market, today the last surviving historical wholesale market in Central London...
. This is the 6th most popular film and TV location in London, having also been used for Spooks
Spooks
Spooks is a British television drama series that originally aired on BBC One from 13 May 2002 – 23 October 2011, consisting of 10 series. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, as the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a...
, Penelope, and Batman Begins
Batman Begins
Batman Begins is a 2005 American superhero action film based on the fictional DC Comics character Batman, directed by Christopher Nolan. It stars Christian Bale as Batman, along with Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Cillian Murphy, Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe, Tom Wilkinson,...
.
The entrance to the "Ankara Social Club" of the film is actually the front door of a residential flat. The Broadway Market hair dresser known as "Broadway Gents Hairstylist" was changed to "Azim's Hair Salon", where in the film one of the Russians is murdered. The owner Mr. Ismail Yesiloglu decided to keep most of the shop front after filming. In the original script, the name was "Ozim's Hair Salon", but it was later changed to "Azim's" as there is no such name as Ozim in Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
.
The "Trafalgar Hospital" is actually the Middlesex Hospital
Middlesex Hospital
The Middlesex Hospital was a teaching hospital located in the Fitzrovia area of London, United Kingdom. First opened in 1745 on Windmill Street, it was moved in 1757 to Mortimer Street where it remained until it was finally closed in 2005. Its staff and services were transferred to various sites...
, a hospital in the Fitzrovia
Fitzrovia
Fitzrovia is a neighbourhood in central London, near London's West End lying partly in the London Borough of Camden and partly in the City of Westminster ; and situated between Marylebone and Bloomsbury and north of Soho. It is characterised by its mixed-use of residential, business, retail,...
area of London, which closed to patients in December 2005. The building in central London, which was knocked down in 2008, had the inscription 'Trafalgar Hospital', matching the style and apparent age of the old Middlesex Hospital, inserted into the legend above the main door.
The fight scene in the Turkish Baths is filmed at the Ironmonger Row Baths
Ironmonger Row Baths
-Archival records:Islington Local History Centre holds plans, photographs and commemorative material related to Ironmonger Row Baths.-External links:*...
in Islington
Islington
Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...
.
Tattoos
The Mark of Cain (2000 film)
The Mark of Cain is a 2000 documentary film on Russian criminal tattoos directed by Alix Lambert.-Content:The Mark of Cain documents the fading art form and “language” of Russian criminal tattoos, formerly a forbidden topic in Russia. The now vanishing practice is seen as reflecting the transition...
(2000). The tattoos that he wore were, according to the New York Daily News
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
, so realistic, that diners in a Russian restaurant in London fell silent out of fear until Mortensen revealed his identity and admitted the tattoos were for a film. From that day on he washed off his tattoos whenever he went off the set. Mortensen said of the significance of the tattoos:
"I talked to...(authentic gangsters)...about what they meant and where they were on the body, what that said about where they'd been, what their specialties were, what their ethnic and geographical affiliations were," Mortensen says. "Basically their history, their calling card, is their body."
Violence
Consistent with the trademark violence in much of Cronenberg's work, Eastern Promises features a graphically violent fight scene in a steam bath where the combatants wield linoleum knivesLinoleum knife
A linoleum knife is a small knife that has a short, stiff blade with a curved point and a handle and is used to cut linoleum or other sheet materials such as wood panelling and veneer and sheet mica. The knife is similar in design to the sickle...
. When asked in an interview about the difference between "gun violence
Gun violence
Gun violence defined literally means the use of a firearm to threaten or inflict violence or harm. Gun violence may be broadly defined as a category of violence and crime committed with the use of a firearm; it may or may not include actions ruled as self-defense, actions for law enforcement, or...
" and "knife violence," Cronenberg replied, "We have no guns in this movie. There were no guns in the script. The choice of those curved knives we use in the steam bath was mine. They’re not some kind of exotic Turkish knives, they’re linoleum knives. I felt that these guys could walk around in the streets with these knives, and if they were ever caught, they could say 'we’re linoleum cutters'."
Director's commentary
Adam Nayman of Eye WeeklyEye Weekly
Eye Weekly was a free weekly newspaper published in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was owned by Torstar, the parent company of the Toronto Star, and was published by their Star Media Group until its final issue on May 5, 2011. The following week, Torstar launched a successor publication, The Grid.-...
reported that director David Cronenberg said "Just don't give the plot away" and Nayman wrote "His request is understandable." Nayman said, "There is one scene – the in-depth discussion of which prompted the director's anti-spoiler request referenced at the top of this story – that should rank not only in his personal pantheon of spectacularly deployed gore but among the most exhilaratingly visceral patches of cinema, period, full stop." Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
critic Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
noted Cronenberg's quote and agreed, saying "He is correct that it would be fatal, because this is not a movie of what or how, but of why. And for a long time you don't see the why coming."
Release
The film premiered September 8, 2007 at the Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
where it won the Audience Prize for best film on September 15, 2007. Eastern Promises opened in limited release
Limited release
Limited release is a term in the American motion picture industry for a motion picture that is playing in a select few theaters across the country ....
in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
on September 13, 2007.
In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, the film opened in limited release in 15 theaters on September 14, 2007 and grossed $547,092 — averaging $36,472 per theater. The film opened in wide release in the United States and Canada on September 21, 2007 (expanding to 1,404 theaters) and ranked #5 at the box office, grossing $5,659,133 — an average of $4,030 per theater. The film has grossed $51,202,291 worldwide as of January 31, 2008 — $17,266,000 in the United States and Canada and $33,936,291 in other territories.
The film took part in competition at the San Sebastian Film Festival September 20, 2007.
The film was shown at the London Film Festival
London Film Festival
The BFI London Film Festival is the UK's largest public film event, screening more than 300 features, documentaries and shorts from almost 50 countries. The festival, , currently in its 54th year, is run every year in the second half of October under the umbrella of the British Film Institute...
on October 17, 2007 and was released in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on October 26, 2007.
Reception
The film received widespread positive reviews from critics. As of June 5, 2010, the review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 89% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 186 reviews. On Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, the film had an average score of 82/100, based on 35 reviews. Todd McCarthy of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, David Elliott of The San Diego Union-Tribune
The San Diego Union-Tribune
-Predecessors:The predecessor newspapers of the Union-Tribune were:* San Diego Sun, founded 1861 and merged with the Evening Tribune in 1939.* San Diego Union, founded October 10, 1868.* Evening Tribune, founded December 2, 1895.-Ownership:...
, and film critic Tony Medley noted the twists in the film.
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
of the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
gave the film four out of four stars and wrote "Eastern Promises is no ordinary crime thriller, just as Cronenberg is no ordinary director", and said "Cronenberg has moved film by film into the top rank of directors, and here he wisely reunites with Mortensen" who "digs so deeply into the role you may not recognize him at first." Ebert said the film has a fight scene that "sets the same kind of standard that The French Connection
The French Connection (film)
This article is about the 1971 film. For the British fashion label, see French Connection .The French Connection is a 1971 American crime film directed by William Friedkin. The film was adapted and fictionalized by Ernest Tidyman from the non-fiction book by Robin Moore...
set for chases. Years from now, it will be referred to as a benchmark."
J. Hoberman
J. Hoberman
James Lewis Hoberman , also known as J. Hoberman, is an American film critic. He is currently the senior film critic for The Village Voice, a post he has held since 1988.-Education:...
of The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
said "I've said it before and hope to again: David Cronenberg
David Cronenberg
David Paul Cronenberg, OC, FRSC is a Canadian filmmaker, screenwriter and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror or venereal horror genre. This style of filmmaking explores people's fears of bodily transformation and infection. In his films, the...
is the most provocative, original, and consistently excellent North American director of his generation." Hoberman said the film is "directed with considerable formal intelligence and brooding power" and continues the trend of "murderous family dramas" seen in Spider
Spider (film)
Spider is a 2002 Canadian/British drama film produced and directed by David Cronenberg and based on the novel of the same name by Patrick McGrath, who also wrote the screenplay....
and A History of Violence
A History of Violence (film)
A History of Violence is a 2005 American crime thriller film directed by David Cronenberg and written by Josh Olson. It is an adaptation of the 1997 graphic novel of the same name by John Wagner and Vince Locke...
. Hoberman called the film "graphic but never gratuitous in its violence", "garish yet restrained", "a masterful mood piece", "deceptively generic" and said the film "suggests a naturalized version of the recent Russian horror flick Night Watch
Night Watch (2004 film)
Night Watch is a 2004 Russian supernatural thriller film directed by Timur Bekmambetov. It is loosely based on the novel The Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko, and is the first part of a trilogy, followed by Day Watch and ending supposedly with Twilight Watch .-Plot:In the prologue, which...
." When describing the cast, Hoberman said "Mueller-Stahl may be perfunctory...but Vincent Cassel
Vincent Cassel
Vincent Cassel is a Cesar award winning French actor probably best known to English-speaking audiences through his performances in the Ocean's Trilogy of films and Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan.-Personal life:...
literally flings himself into [his role]" and "Mortensen is even more electrifying as Nikolai than in A History of Violence
A History of Violence (film)
A History of Violence is a 2005 American crime thriller film directed by David Cronenberg and written by Josh Olson. It is an adaptation of the 1997 graphic novel of the same name by John Wagner and Vince Locke...
".
Chris Vognar of The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News is the major daily newspaper serving the Dallas, Texas area, with a circulation of 264,459 subscribers, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported in September 2010...
gave the film a "B+" and said "The film's genius performance belongs to the venerable Armin Mueller-Stahl
Armin Mueller-Stahl
Armin Mueller-Stahl is a German film actor, painter, writer and musician.-Early life:Mueller-Stahl was born in Tilsit, East Prussia...
, who plays the family head with a twinkling eye and an air of avuncular, Old World charm." Vognar wrote "Where some may see melodrama, Mr. Cronenberg locates timeless, elemental struggles between good and evil, right and wrong. But he makes sure to place a mysterious gray area front and center, personified here by Mr. Mortensen's Nikolai", writing "Nikolai Luzhin is...like Ray Bradbury
Ray Bradbury
Ray Douglas Bradbury is an American fantasy, horror, science fiction, and mystery writer. Best known for his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 and for the science fiction stories gathered together as The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man , Bradbury is one of the most celebrated among 20th...
's Illustrated Man
The Illustrated Man
The Illustrated Man is a 1951 book of eighteen science fiction short stories by Ray Bradbury that explores the nature of mankind. While none of the stories has a plot or character connection with the next, a recurring theme is the conflict of the cold mechanics of technology and the psychology of...
...only more dangerous" and "scarily enigmatic." Vognar wrote that Eastern Promises shares themes of "ambiguous identity and rage-soaked duality" with A History of Violence and said both films "have a lock-step precision and both take a sly kind of joy in subverting genre expectations." Vognar said Eastern Promises "is a little too mechanical for its own good...but the mechanics also produce an admirable crispness and sense of purpose, a sense that the man behind the camera knows exactly what he's doing at all times."
Film Journal International
Film Journal International
Film Journal International is a motion-picture industry trade magazine published by the American company Prometheus Global Media. It is a sister publication of Adweek, Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, and other periodicals....
critic Doris Toumarkine said the film is a "highly entertaining but sometimes revolting look at a particularly venal branch of the Russian mob
Russian Mafia
The Russian Mafia is a name applied to organized crime syndicates in Russia and Ukraine. The mafia in various countries take the name of the country, as for example the Ukrainian mafia....
." Toumarkine wrote that Mortensen and Watts "are intriguing moral counterpoints. They are also the key ingredients that make Eastern Promises a highly delectable and cinematically rich borsht
Borscht
Borscht is a soup of Ukrainian origin that is popular in many Eastern and Central European countries. In most of these countries, it is made with beetroot as the main ingredient, giving it a deep reddish-purple color...
that upscale film fans will devour." She described Mortensen's performance as "startling," called Watts "touching," Cassel "particularly delicious," but said "Mueller-Stahl, Cusack
Sinéad Cusack
Sinéad Moira Cusack is an Irish stage, television and film actress. She has received two Tony Award nominations: once for Best Leading Actress in Much Ado About Nothing , and again for Best Featured Actress in Rock 'n' Roll .-Background:...
, and Skolimowski
Jerzy Skolimowski
Jerzy Skolimowski is a Polish film director, screenwriter, dramatist and actor. A graduate of the prestigious National Film School in Łódź, Skolimowski has directed more than twenty films since his 1960 début Oko wykol...
don’t have as much to chew on." She said the film "is also blessed by Howard Shore
Howard Shore
Howard Leslie Shore is a Canadian composer, notable for his film scores. He has composed the scores for over 80 films, most notably the scores for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, for which he won three Academy Awards. He is also a consistent collaborator with director David Cronenberg,...
's restrained score, which lets the film’s other estimable elements breathe through." Toumarkine also said the film is "essentially a character-driven crime thriller but is also a bloody tour de force laced with considerable nudity and sexually bold content that will rattle the squeamish."
Bruce Westbrook of the Houston Chronicle
Houston Chronicle
The Houston Chronicle is the largest daily newspaper in Texas, USA, headquartered in the Houston Chronicle Building in Downtown Houston. , it is the ninth-largest newspaper by circulation in the United States...
gave the film one star out of four and said it had a "contrived plot" and wrote "what it's really about, more than sensitivity for displaced people or social analyses, is violence — hideous, gruesome, over-the-top violence." Westbrook said "For Cronenberg, such cheap sensationalism is business as usual, and this far into his career, that business has slipped into artistic bankruptcy." Westbrook wrote the film "isn't about Russian gangs so much as Cronenberg's own dark passions not just for violence but excruciating carnage, which he brandishes mercilessly" and that the film was "a stifling descent into grim shock and disturbing awe."
Awards and nominations
Eastern Promises won the Audience Prize for best film on September 15, 2007 at the Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
.
The film received three Golden Globe
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
nominations for the 65th Golden Globe Awards
65th Golden Globe Awards
The 65th Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and television of 2007, were scheduled to be presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association on January 13, 2008...
, winning none. Eastern Promises was nominated for Best Motion Picture - Drama. Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Peter Mortensen, Jr. is a Danish-American actor, poet, musician, photographer and painter. He made his film debut in Peter Weir's 1985 thriller Witness, and subsequently appeared in many notable films of the 1990s, including The Indian Runner , Carlito's Way , Crimson Tide , Daylight , The...
was nominated for Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture - Drama. And Howard Shore was nominated for Best Original Score for a Motion Picture.
The film was nominated in five different categories in the British Independent Film Awards
British Independent Film Awards
The Moët British Independent Film Awards is an annual award ceremony celebrating achievement in independently funded British film and cinema. Nominations and jury are announced at the beginning of November with the award ceremony taking place in late November or early December.-History:The British...
for 2007, and won in one category, gaining a Best Performance by an Actor in a British Independent Film award for Mortensen.
Mortensen was also nominated for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
at the 80th Academy Awards
80th Academy Awards
The 80th Academy Awards ceremony honored the best films in 2007 and was broadcast from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California on ABC beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST/8:30 p.m. EST, February 24, 2008 . During the ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented Academy Awards in 24...
, but told the Associated Press, "If there's a strike I will not go." — a reference to the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike
2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
The 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, more commonly referred to as simply the Writers' Strike, was a strike by the Writers Guild of America, East and the Writers Guild of America, West ....
. On February 12, 2008 the strike
2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
The 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, more commonly referred to as simply the Writers' Strike, was a strike by the Writers Guild of America, East and the Writers Guild of America, West ....
ended, and he attended the ceremony, although he lost the Academy Award to Daniel Day-Lewis
Daniel Day-Lewis
Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis is an English actor with both British and Irish citizenship. His portrayals of Christy Brown in My Left Foot and Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood won Academy and BAFTA Awards for Best Actor, and Screen Actors Guild as well as Golden Globe Awards for the latter...
for There Will Be Blood
There Will Be Blood
There Will Be Blood is a 2007 drama film written, co-produced, and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. The film is based on Upton Sinclair's 1927 novel Oil!. It tells the story of a silver miner-turned-oilman on a ruthless quest for wealth during Southern California's oil boom of the late 19th and...
.
Genie Awards
Eastern Promises received 12 nominations for the 28th Genie Awards28th Genie Awards
The 28th Genie Awards were held on March 3, 2008 to honour films released in 2007. The ceremony was held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
, tying with the film Shake Hands with the Devil for most nominations, and won 7.
Nominations
- Best Motion Picture
- Achievement in Art Direction/Production Design (Carol Spier)
- Achievement in Costume Design (Denise Cronenberg)
- Achievement in Cinematography (Peter Suschitzky)
- Achievement in Direction (David Cronenberg)
- Achievement in Editing (Ronald Sanders)
- Achievement in Music - Original Score (Howard Shore)
- Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (Viggo Mortensen)
- Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role (Armin Mueller-Stahl)
- Achievement in Overall Sound (Stuart Wilson, Christian Cooke, Orest Sushko, Mark Zsifkovits)
- Achievement in Sound Editing (Wayne Griffin, Robert Bertola, Tony Currie, Andy Malcolm, Michael O'Farrell)
- Original Screenplay (Steve Knight)
Top ten lists
The film appeared on many critics' top ten lists of the best films of 2007.- 1st - Marc Doyle, Metacritic.com
- 2nd - J. Hoberman, The Village VoiceThe Village VoiceThe Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
- 4th - Manohla Dargis, The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
(tied with Colossal YouthColossal Youth (film)Colossal Youth is a 2006 film directed by Portuguese director Pedro Costa. The film was shot on DV in long, static takes and mixes documentary and fiction storytelling...
) - 4th - Peter Travers, Rolling StoneRolling StoneRolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
- 4th - Steven Rea, The Philadelphia InquirerThe Philadelphia InquirerThe Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded by John R. Walker and John Norvell in June 1829 as The Pennsylvania Inquirer and is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the...
- 5th - Frank Scheck, The Hollywood ReporterThe Hollywood ReporterFormerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
- 7th - Liam Lacey & Rick Groen, The Globe and MailThe Globe and MailThe Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star...
- 7th - Scott Foundas, LA WeeklyLA WeeklyLA Weekly is a free weekly tabloid-sized "alternative weekly" in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Editor/Publisher Jay Levin and a board of directors that included actor-producer Michael Douglas...
(tied with Before the Devil Knows You're DeadBefore the Devil Knows You're DeadBefore the Devil Knows You're Dead is a 2007 crime drama directed by Sidney Lumet and written by Kelly Masterson. It stars Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei, and Albert Finney. The title comes from the Irish saying: "May you be in heaven a full half-hour before the devil knows...
) - 8th - Desson Thomson, The Washington PostThe Washington PostThe Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
- 9th - Nathan Lee, The Village VoiceThe Village VoiceThe Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
- 9th - Shawn Levy, The OregonianThe OregonianThe Oregonian is the major daily newspaper in Portland, Oregon, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 1850...
- 10th - Jack Mathews, New York Daily NewsNew York Daily NewsThe Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
- 10th - Marjorie Baumgarten, The Austin Chronicle
Sequel
Speaking in August 2010, Vincent Cassel who played Kirill said that a sequel was discussed with Cronenberg whilst they were filming A Dangerous MethodA Dangerous Method
A Dangerous Method is a 2011 historical film directed by David Cronenberg and starring Viggo Mortensen, Michael Fassbender, Keira Knightley and Vincent Cassel...
. Cassel suggested that the sequel will be filmed in Russia with Cassel and Mortensen reprising their roles.
External links
- David Cronenberg's Preparation for Directing Eastern Promises, an Amazon reference list