Eastern Promises (2007)

[unclejack]

Hey yall, I wanted to get you're thoughts on this one. I've seen the trailer for the new Cronenburg film, Eastern Promises several times and I'm not too sure what to think of it. I've only recently become a more devoted Croneneburg fan (although I haven't seen everything he's made) so I think I have kind of a feel for his style of filmmaking but I don't really see how this is a typical Cronenburg film. I mean, his movies are usually so gritty and have such an edge to them and this one looks like just a crime/underworld movie. I'm not sayin it doesn't look good, but from my perspective it looks like such a break from what he normally does. Any thoughts?

 

[TK-421]

Just a clarification unclejack, and I wouldn't do this normally but he is probably the greatest Canadian director of all time (along with Jewison, Egoyan and Arcand).

You mispelled his name 3 times in your post. It's David Cronenberg

David Cronenberg

And, yes the movie does seem very promising.

 

[unclejack]

sorry bout that, wasn't intentional.

 

[TK-421]

The Cronenberg and Viggo combination worked very well in A History of Violence (although William Hurt and Ed Harris steal the show).

I'm hoping it will happen again and the trailers look very good.

 

[unclejack]

Yeah, I never saw A History of Violence, maybe this movie would make more sense to me if I had seen that. Based on the Cronenberg films I've seen so far, this latest one just looks so out of place. I've seen scanners, the fly, videodrome, and dead ringers, and now this...so you can understand my confusion and how it seems to be a break from his normal stuff to me. But maybe I just haven't had enough cronenberg exposure.

 

[TK-421]

Well, nothing that Cronenberg directs is "normal". Existenz a case in point. But, do watch A History of Violence. It is very different from his "normal stuff". Watch for the point in the movie when the main character, played by Viggo, changes. It's quite well made.

It just shows that he is a Director that can adapt well to films that are outside the realm of what people expect him to direct.

Crash is another excellent Cronenberg film (and I don't mean that other crappy film with the same title directed by Paul Haggis that actually won the best movie Oscar 2 years ago): Crash (1996/I)

 

[unclejack]

I was actually pretty dissapointed with Existenz, it bombed at the box office too if I remember correctly. I don't think I ever made it all the way through it.