Eastern Promises is one unstable animal. Captivating at times, the movie unhinges itself with glaring inconsistencies that I would guess are a result of budget issues. As a mob drama, the whackings have an inherited importance. But while half of the action scenes look like the polished American History X, the other half made me think of the Kung Fu satire Kung Pow: Enter the Fist.
A take on Russian organized crime, the movie looks in on a powerful family whose forte is fixing the problems that it usually creates itself. The family members are all stereotypes of Russians, led by the boss Semyon (Armin Mueller-Stahl) and his son Krill (Vincent Cassel), who both take vodka with their chess. Their issue de jour is taking care of the accidental pregnancy of a prostitute, whose baby has fallen into the hands of an estrogenic midwife (Naomi Watts).
Nikolai (Viggo Mortensen), the family’s right hand man, is sent off to do the dirty work. Always the one for thought before action, Nikolai is somehow able to schmooze his way into Watts’ heart with an accent that sounds like a non-comical Borat. But before the baby is sent down the river, Nikolai experiences a change of heart that I would’ve thought incapable for a former KGB Agent to have. He is also able to convince Krill to join him and turn against his father.
And then, when the time is right for a coup against the manipulative Semyon. . .it ends. No surreptitious lamb chop poisoning or a gathering up of the reserves to help rush the mansion in what would be a brilliant tour de force victory for righteousness. Just the credits. Such an awkward ending after only 100 minutes further suggests that director David Cronenberg ran out of money. For us, a logical ending is just another promise that Eastern Promises can’t keep.
Four stars
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