Eastern Promises (David Cronenberg, 2007) Review

Spoiler Warning: This discussion contains some spoilers. It could be an entire gag from a comedy or in-depth conversation concerning events in the second act.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

"For poetic reasons, I suggest you take his blood."

David Cronenberg’s Eastern Promises is actually my first Cronenberg film. It’s not his specialist body horror occasion but is instead a British-set film about Soviet gangsters. I found it to be a delightfully violent crime thriller, with an airtight runtime and simple, effective storytelling.

Viggo Mortensen is the highlight, with easily the best performance I have seen him put in yet. His cold, calculated movements in the face of his Vory v Zakone brethren, but a human warmth the moment they turn their backs. He smashes it out of the park. I love his aesthetic and just the overall emphasis on the stories that every character’s tattoos tell. It’s a neat visual method of storytelling that filmmakers often don’t use at all or overuse to the point of parody. Eastern Promises nails the sweet spot just in between those two polarities. Watts is great, in a more secondary role with less demanding work asked of her. Regardless, without her, the film would struggle, and her consistent performance is worth mentioning. So too, Vincent Cassel and Armin Mueller-Stahl in the more recognisable antagonistic roles. The performances are all vital to making every mark land; I think they do that extremely well.

The narrative is framed exquisitely, lending well to late revelations and sensible narration. It helps to keep the runtime under control and deliver a strong story without dragging things out. The editing is clever, leaving much to the imagination and only offering answers at the precise moment you think your thoughts are confirmed. It’s a credit to the pacing and the filmmaking on display that nothing gets lost over the course of the film. Indeed, placed centrally amongst all of the mob family dynamics, is a killer action sequence. A naked knife fight in a steam room with multiple deep wounds and multiple gruelling punctures is the centrepiece of the film; masterfully shot and suspenseful with every angle change and cut, it will ring in my mind for days to come.

Eastern Promises is beautifully made. There’s a lot of space for different interpretations, some far more interesting than others when certain motivations are revealed. I prefer Cronenberg’s laid-back approach, only shooting what he deems totally necessary, and it’s all backed by rock-solid performances from actors you’d expect nothing less of. Sign me up for more.

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American Hustle (David O. Russell, 2013) Review

Spoiler Warning: This review features narrative spoilers throughout the text and goes into detail about the ending of the film.

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

"You know, sometimes in life, all you have are fucked up, poisonous choices."

It has been a long time since I first caught American Hustle when it hit the limelight in 2013. I looked back on it fondly, considering it a well-made film, with memorable performances and an entertaining story. I think I invented a new film because this is bland for much of its 140-minute runtime.

That is not to say that this is a bad film. The performances are entertaining, and it’s no surprise looking back on it that Bale and Adams were decorated with praise for the roles. I did find Cooper and Lawrence to both be significantly less charismatic than their leading counterparts, personally, but it’s hardly the text’s worst offence. What really stood out in this is actually the smaller elements; the hair, make-up, and costume are all outstanding. Bale’s hairpiece, Cooper’s perm, the flashy suits and velvet jackets are plucked right out of the late Carter early Reagan era. Easily the biggest MVP is Amy Adams’ many V-neck dresses with plunging necklines and her multiple hairstyles throughout. However, it is the soundtrack that really upsets me. Not because it was bad, in fact, quite the opposite. It’s that the soundtrack deserves a better film. The quality of song choices is envious, worthy of a Scorsese or Tarantino affair, rather than a David O. Russell picture.

The rest of the film is difficult to talk about, simply because I want to forget I watched it in many ways. Again, this was not an unpleasant experience; it’s just so arid. I don’t remember this attempting to copy Scorsese so blatantly, attempting to land a clever play on the narrator as in Goodfellas or The Departed, and achieving the total opposite. It lacks a clear perspective, one character who has established codes or motives to follow, right or wrong as they may be. Here, everybody’s out to con everyone else, and whilst that sounds like a momentous project, it’s actually a total chore. The cinematography and editing don’t lend the same rhythm and pace as the film’s it attempts to emulate, and as a result of that, it has no style of its own. The narrative becomes murky, requiring a fix-all-the-problems-we-didn’t-solve-epilogue. Whilst the central con is quite intelligent, satisfying even in its conclusion, it’s a cop-out Hollywood ending. In a story of mafia men, crooked politicians and egotistic FBI agents, it’s painfully shallow. If the credits weren’t about to roll afterwards, you’d turn it off.

The saving grace here is a strong cast, who despite all having better work under their belt, save American Hustle. Without that, you’d be left with a director thinking he’s crafted a masterpiece by reusing all of Scorsese’s old tricks. Sure, imitating one of the greatest filmmakers to ever live, will provide space for some tidy shots and fun dialogue, but it earns no points for creativity. I wish I hadn’t come back to this, as it has dropped right down in my estimations. It’s clear now why this got 10 Oscar nominations and proceeded to win none of them.

Check out the soundtrack here:

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