Eastern Promises (Blu-ray) (US Version) Blu-ray Region A

David Cronenberg and Viggo Mortensen follow up 2005's A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE with another joint effort in EASTERN PROMISES. The film takes place in rainswept London, with Mortensen effortlessly inhabiting the role of a chauffeur (named Nikolai) for the Russian Mafia. The stoic Nikolai works for restaurant owner and powerful Mafia kingpin Semyon (Armin Mueller-Stahl) and his out-of-control son Kirill (Vincent Cassel). Cronenberg adds a few generous splashes of blood-red to his otherwise deeply grey cinematic palette as the movie begins, then allows his central storyline to unfold. Midwife Anna (Naomi Watts) comes crashing into Nikolai's life after discovering the diary of a young Russian woman who dies while giving birth, and her dealings with Semyon, and a subsequent translation of the diary, provide some horrific discoveries. Anna soon finds herself floundering in an alien world full of brutal and bloody violence, and it's not long before her own life hangs perilously in the balance. Fans of A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE will find much to enjoy here, as will longstanding Cronenberg fans who have stuck with the director since his early low-budget horror days. Plenty of themes, ideas, and obsessions that have run right through the director's body of work are present, and he appears to have found a very effective muse in Mortensen. The chief talking points of the film will almost certainly revolve around Mortensen's extended nude sequence and the graphic killings and fight sequences, but EASTERN PROMISES is a weighty piece of work that will undoubtedly attract fans of intelligent, well-crafted thrillers.

3.5 stars out of 4 -- "Brilliant film. Brilliant director....Cronenberg brings us face to face with the horror of self." - Peter, Travers (Rolling Stone Critic), Rolling Stone, 09/20/2007

3 stars out of 4 -- "EASTERN PROMISES has a compelling story and strong performances....Provocative and engrossing, with an intriguing twist near the conclusion." - Claudia, Puig (USA TODAY CRITIC), USA Today, 09/14/2007

"Mr. Cronenberg insists on getting under your skin. The result is a movie whose images and implications are likely to stay in your head for a long time." - A. O., Scott (New York Times Critic), New York Times, 09/14/2007

"[I]ntriguing....EASTERN PROMISES unpeels like an onion of corruption, with double crosses and deceptions, and ordinary do-gooders in way over their heads. Cronenberg's craftsmanship is seductive." -- Grade: B - Owen, Gleiberman (Entertainment Weekly Critic), Entertainment Weekly, 10/01/2007

4 stars out of 5 -- "[H]ynotic and queasy, it delivers the director's trademark traumas in abundance." - Chris, Roberts (Uncut Critic), Uncut, 11/01/2007

4 stars out of 5 -- "[A] distinctive new spin on the London crime yarn: a bleak, unsettling thriller that's nightmare made flesh." - Neil, Smith (Total Film Critic), Uncut, 11/01/2007

3 stars out of 5 -- "[Cronenberg] revels in the detail, fascinated by conflicted nostalgia for the old country and the tattoos that ensure a Russian gangster's past is permanently etched into his body..." - Dorian, Lynskey (Total Film Critic), Empire, 11/01/2007

"The continuity between EASTERN PROMISES and Cronenberg's early works is maintained through two themes: violence and the body. The violence in EASTERN PROMISES is at times breathtakingly brutal..." - Sight and Sound Critic (Sight and Sound Critic), Sight and Sound, 11/01/2007

4 stars out of 5 -- "The excellent Mortensen is utterly mesmeric....A darkly unforgettable crime thriller..." - Chris, Prince (Ultimate DVD Critic), Ultimate DVD, 12/01/2007

"Expertly realized and gummetal slick, EASTERN PROMISES whirs along with perfect efficiency..." - Carina, Chocano (Los Angeles Times Critic), Los Angeles Times, 09/14/2007

Ranked #4 in Rolling Stone's "10 Best Movies Of 2007" -- "[A] brutally mesmeric tale of the Russian mob in London." - Peter, Travers (Rolling Stone Critic), Rolling Stone, 12/27/2007

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Product Title:	Eastern Promises (Blu-ray) (US Version) Eastern Promises (Blu-ray) (US Version) Eastern Promises (Blu-ray) (US Version) Eastern Promises (Blu-ray) (US Version) Eastern Promises (Blu-ray) (US Version)
Artist Name(s):	Laurie MacDonald (Actor) | Amanda Plummer (Actor) | Christopher Tellefsen (Actor) | Armin Mueller-Stahl (Actor) | Eric Gautier (Actor) | Sabrina Matthews Laurie MacDonald (Actor) | 亞曼達白蘭美 (Actor) | Christopher Tellefsen (Actor) | Armin Mueller-Stahl (Actor) | Eric Gautier (Actor) | Sabrina Matthews Laurie MacDonald (Actor) | Amanda Plummer (Actor) | Christopher Tellefsen (Actor) | Armin Mueller-Stahl (Actor) | Eric Gautier (Actor) | Sabrina Matthews Ｌａｕｒｉｅ ＭａｃＤｏｎａｌｄ (Actor) | Amanda Plummer (Actor) | Christopher Tellefsen (Actor) | Armin Mueller-Stahl (Actor) | Eric Gautier (Actor) | Sabrina Matthews Laurie MacDonald (Actor) | Amanda Plummer (Actor) | Christopher Tellefsen (Actor) | Armin Mueller-Stahl (Actor) | Eric Gautier (Actor) | Sabrina Matthews
Director:	David Cronenberg David Cronenberg David Cronenberg David Cronenberg David Cronenberg
Producer:	Israel Horovitz | Christopher Tellefsen | Eric Gautier Israel Horovitz | Christopher Tellefsen | Eric Gautier Israel Horovitz | Christopher Tellefsen | Eric Gautier Ｉｓｒａｅｌ Ｈｏｒｏｖｉｔｚ | Christopher Tellefsen | Eric Gautier Israel Horovitz | Christopher Tellefsen | Eric Gautier
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Blu-ray Region Code:	A - Americas (North, Central and South except French Guiana), Korea, Japan, South East Asia (including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan) What is it?
Release Date:	2008-10-14
UPC Code:	025195045698
Country of Origin:	United States
Color Information:	Color
Disc Format(s):	Blu-ray
Rating:	R (MPAA)
Publisher:	Universal Studios Home Video
Package Weight:	180 (g)
Shipment Unit:	1 What is it?
YesAsia Catalog No.:	1011854080

Director: David Cronenberg

Blu-ray Disc Features:

Full Frame - 1.33
Widescreen - 1.85
Audio:
DTS 5.1 Surround - French, Spanish
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 - English
Subtitles - English (SDH), French, Spanish - Optional
Additional Release Material:
Featurette:
1. Secrets and Stories
2. Marked for Life
3. Two Guys Walk into a Bath House
4. Watts on Wheels