Detto questo, sono rimasto alquanto soddisfatto dall'ultimo film di Cronenberg.
Una ragazza dell'est muore di parto; quel cuore d'oro di Naomi Watts cerca di farsi tradurre il diario della giovane, nella speranza di rintracciarne i parenti.
Si imbatterà in una famiglia della mafia russa nella quale zio Viggo si sta facendo strada: partito come autista, punta a conquistarsi la fiducia del capo.
Film potente, pur con un passo lento (ma la tensione non viene mai meno) che si regge su una sceneggiatura davvero ottima. Crudo al limite della brutalità, non ci si fa mancare proprio nulla: violenza sessuale, prostituzione, sgozzamenti, accoltellamenti, omicidi a mani nude e tutto il repertorio.
Brava la Watts e Cassel buono giusto per il ruolo di depravato ubriacone; bravi gli altri, anche se tutti scompaiono di fronte al più forte Viggo Mortensen di tutti i tempi: sono certo che potrebbe sconfiggere a rutti financo il ben più acculturato Dolph Lundgren.
Il vero guaio è che se Viggo fa ripetutamente intravedere il Piccolo Viggo®, la Watts sta tutto il tempo in maglione.
Dopo la delusione di A History of Violence, ed un film pesante (pure non brutto) come Spider, mi sento in parte riconciliato con Cronenberg.
Certo, non è più il regista della carnaccia che abbiamo adorato.
È un Cronenberg ripulito, con più soldi, una ottima fotografia ed una regia precisa e misurata; lo si amava di più prima, ma va bene anche così.
Voto: 8+. Avercene.
Tags: drammatico, thriller, crimine, mafia russa, Russia, Londra, sgozzamento, vendetta, stupro, minorenne, parto, morte, morte di parto, abbandono, autista, omicidio, occultamento di cadavere, amputazione, droga, alcol, cena, compleanno, infermiera, zio, ubriacone, infiltrato, figlio, tatuaggi, sauna, accoltellamento, FSB, polizia, moto, nudo maschile, nudo femminile, prostituzione, lotta.
Eastern Promises (2007)
Promessa dell'assassino, La
Regista: David Cronenberg
Scrittore: Steven Knight
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller, Crime
Valutazione: 8.0/10 (19076 voti)
Durata: 100 min
Paese: UK, Canada, USA
Lingua: English, Russian, Turkish
Cast:
- Josef Altin .... Ekrem
- Mina E. Mina .... Azim
- Aleksandar Mikic .... Soyka
- Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse .... Tatiana
- Lalita Ahmed .... Customer
- Badi Uzzaman .... Chemist
- Naomi Watts .... Anna
- Doña Croll .... Nurse (as Dona Croll)
- Raza Jaffrey .... Doctor Aziz
- Sinéad Cusack .... Helen
Trama:
The mysterious and charismatic Russian-born Nikolai Luzhin is a driver for one of London's most notorious organized crime families of Eastern European origin. The family itself is part of the Vory V Zakone criminal brotherhood. Headed by Semyon, whose courtly charm as the welcoming proprietor of the plush Trans-Siberian restaurant impeccably masks a cold and brutal core, the family's fortunes are tested by Semyon's volatile son and enforcer, Kirill, who is more tightly bound to Nikolai than to his own father. But Nikolai's carefully maintained existence is jarred once he crosses paths at Christmastime with Anna Khitrova, a midwife at a North London hospital. Anna is deeply affected by the desperate situation of a young teenager who dies while giving birth to a baby. Anna resolves to try to trace the baby's lineage and relatives. The girl's personal diary also survives her; it is written in Russian, and Anna seeks answers in it. Anna's mother Helen does not discourage her, but Anna's irascible Russian-born uncle Stepan urges caution. He is right to do so; by delving into the diary, Anna has accidentally unleashed the full fury of the Vory. With Semyon and Kirill closing ranks and Anna pressing her inquiries, Nikolai unexpectedly finds his loyalties divided. The family tightens its grip on him; who can, or should, he trust? Several lives - including his own - hang in the balance as a harrowing chain of murder, deceit, and retribution reverberates through the darkest corners of both the family and London itself.
Trivia random: To prepare for his role, Viggo Mortensen traveled alone to Moscow, St. Petersburg and the Ural Mountain region of Siberia, spending weeks driving around without a translator. He studied the gangs of the vory v zakone (thieves in law), read books on Russian prison culture and the importance of prison tattoos as criminal résumés, and perfected his character's Siberian accent and learned lines in Russian, Ukrainian and English. During filming, he used worry beads made in prison from melted-down plastic cigarette lighters and decorated his trailer with copies of Russian icons.
Citazione random: Semyon: Soyka had brothers.::Nikolai Luzhin: Kirill has me.
Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.
Watts, Naomi
Nome di battesimo: Watts, Naomi Ellen
Data di nascita: 28 September 1968
Altezza: 5' 5" (1.65 m)
Ultimi lavori:
- The Birds (2009) .... Melanie Daniels (rumored) [attrice]
- Kicked, Bitten and Scratched (2009) .... [attrice]
- Need (2009) .... [attrice]
- Angels & Demons (2008) .... Vittoria Vetra [attrice]
- The International (2008) .... [attrice]
- Eastern Promises (2007) .... Anna [attrice]
- Funny Games U.S. (2007) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
- Inland Empire (2006) .... Suzie Rabbit (voice) [attrice]
- The Painted Veil (2006) .... (producer) [produttore]
- Ellie Parker (2005) .... (producer) [produttore]
Biografia:
Born in Shoreham, England and raised in Australia, Naomi Watts has been working actively in the film industry for 15 years. After she moved to Hollywood, she worked regularly, acting in small roles in film projects she was less than enthusiastic about. Finally, her big break came when she was contacted to audition for a coveted spot in David Lynch's Mulholland Dr. (2001). Her star-turning performance in the dual role of Betty Elms/Diane Selwyn has garnered an array of critic's awards and the attention of some major players in Hollywood and beyond. Watts is now enjoying greater choice of film roles and played (with great success)the lead in Gore Verbinski's remake of the Japanese horror classic The Ring (2002). She also starred opposite Kate Hudson in Merchant/Ivory's adaptation of the Diane Johnson novel Divorce, Le (2003). Subsequently, Watts' creative acting abilities have continued to grow and deepen. She has been cast in an array of films with only the best directors and actors and continues to stun critics and amaze filmgoers with her versatility and range.
Trivia random: Her brother Ben Watts is a well-known photographer. He's been living in the US since 1994.
Citazione random: When I had dark hair I definitely felt that I was more anonymous.
Salario massimo: $5,000,000, per King Kong (2005)
Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.
Cassel, Vincent
Nome di battesimo: Crochon, Vincent
Data di nascita: 23 November 1966
Altezza: 6' 2" (1.88 m)
Coniuge: Monica Bellucci::(1999 - present) 1 child
Ultimi lavori:
- L'Ennemi public n° 1 (2008) .... Jacques Mesrine [attore]
- L'Instinct de mort (2008) .... Jacques Mesrine [attore]
- À Deriva (2008) .... [attore]
- Eastern Promises (2007) .... Kirill [attore]
- Ocean's Thirteen (2007) .... François Toulour [attore]
- Sa majesté Minor (2007) .... Satyre [attore]
- FBI Zoo (2006) .... Walt le sexy (voice) [attore]
- Sheitan (2006) .... (producer) [produttore]
- Derailed (2005/I) .... LaRoche [attore]
- Agents secrets (2004) .... Brisseau [attore]
Biografia:
Blue-eyed Vincent Cassel was born in Paris to a leading French actor father, Jean-Pierre Cassel and a journalist mother. Often labeled as a tough guy because of his roles, eclectic choices and talent have made of him a star of European cinema. First in Haine, La (1995), the young actor, actually coming from upper classes, succeeded to express the despair of a social class living in the suburbs of towns, breaking totally with his personal life. Then the success of The crimson rivers, where he plays a young French cop alongside Jean Reno, made of him "the man to count on." He never hid his taste for rap music, break dance, Capoeira, Brasil and his endless energy, but Vincent is also a family man, married to Monica Bellucci, his Italian co-star from Appartement, L' (1996) (aka The Apartment); and recently a father. Now a rising international star, Cassel could easily become the idol of many.
Trivia random: Half-brother of Cécile Cassel. Vincent also had a sister named Olivia.
Citazione random: The day after I had my licence to drive I made Paris/Nice at 230 km/hour.
Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.
Lundgren, Dolph
Nome di battesimo: Lundgren, Hans Dolph
Data di nascita: 3 November 1957
Altezza: 6' 5¼" (1.96 m)
Coniuge: Anette Qviberg::(27 February 1994 - present) 2 children
Ultimi lavori:
- Tokyo Suckerpunch (2008) .... Chaka (rumored) [attore]
- Tumbling Dice (2008) .... (attached) [regista]
- Diamond Dogs (2007) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
- Missionary Man (2007) .... (producer) [produttore]
- L'Inchiesta (2006) .... Brixos [attore]
- The Mechanik (2005) .... (story) [scrittore]
- The Defender (2004) .... [regista]
- Direct Action (2004) .... Frank Gannon [attore]
- Fat Slags (2004) .... Randy [attore]
- Retrograde (2004) .... John Foster [attore]
Biografia:
Dolph Lundgren attended the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. He received a master's degree in chemical engineering from the University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, in 1982, and the next year was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to MIT. In New York City, he met drama coach Warren Robertson and decided to try his luck as an actor in action movies. His film The Shooter (1995) was shot mainly in Prague, Czech Republic. Lundgren has a second-degree black belt in karate and is aiming for his third-degree black belt.
Trivia random: He was the first actor cast for the 1987 cult sci-fi film Masters of the Universe (1987).
Citazione random: I was turned down at my first audition for Rocky IV for being too tall. I was 6ft 5in and you were supposed to be 6ft 3in maximum. I didn't know what the casting call was for and I just showed up, they asked me how tall I was, I said 6ft 5in and they said NEXT!
Salario massimo: FRF 15,000,000, per The Shooter (1995)
Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.
Mortensen, Viggo
Nome di battesimo: Jr., Viggo Peter Mortensen
Data di nascita: 20 October 1958
Altezza: 5' 11" (1.80 m)
Coniuge: Exene Cervenka::(8 July 1987 - 13 March 1998) (divorced) 1 child
Ultimi lavori:
- Poe (2009) .... Edgar Allan Poe (rumored) [attore]
- Appaloosa (2008) .... Everett Hitch [attore]
- Good (2008) .... Halder [attore]
- The Road (2008) .... Father (rumored) [attore]
- Eastern Promises (2007) .... Nikolai [attore]
- Alatriste (2006) .... Diego Alatriste y Tenorio [attore]
- A History of Violence (2005) .... Tom Stall [attore]
- Hidalgo (2004) .... Frank Hopkins [attore]
- The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) .... Aragorn [attore]
- The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) .... Aragorn [attore]
Biografia:
Since his screen debut as a young Amish Farmer in Peter Weir's Witness (1985), Viggo Mortensen's career has been marked by a steady string of well-rounded performances. Critics have continually recognized his work in over thirty movies, including such diverse projects as Jane Campion's The Portrait of a Lady (1996), Sean Penn's The Indian Runner (1991), Brian De Palma's Carlito's Way (1993), Ridley Scott's G.I. Jane (1997), Tony Scott's Crimson Tide (1995), Andrew Davis's A Perfect Murder (1998), Ray Loriga's Pistola de mi hermano, La (1997), and Tony Goldwyn's A Walk on the Moon (1999). Born in New York to a Danish father and an American mother, Mortensen spent the early part of his childhood in Manhattan. His family traveled a great deal and he spent several years living in Venezuela, Argentina and Denmark. He began acting in New York, studying with Warren Robertson. He appeared in several plays and movies, and eventually moved to Los Angeles, where his performance in "Bent" at the Coast Playhouse earned him a Drama-logue Critic's Award. Mortensen is also an accomplished poet, photographer and painter.
Trivia random: Although their divorce only became final in 1998, he and his former wife, Exene Cervenka, separated in late 1990/early 1991 after less than 3 years of marriage but remain close friends often working together and co-parenting their son.
Citazione random: On the role of an actor in film: "It comes down to the fact that you supply the blue, and they supply the other colors and mix them with your blue, and maybe there's some blue left in the painting and maybe there isn't. Maybe there wasn't supposed to be any there in the first place. So have some fun and make a good blue and walk away."
Salario massimo: $2,000,000, per Hidalgo (2004)
Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.
Cronenberg, David
Nome di battesimo: Cronenberg, David Paul
Data di nascita: 15 March 1943
Altezza: 5' 9" (1.75 m)
Coniuge: Carolyn Zeifman::(1979 - present) 2 children, Margaret Hindson::(1970 - 1977) (divorced) 1 child
Ultimi lavori:
- Drone (2008) .... (executive producer) [produttore]
- Chacun son cinéma ou Ce petit coup au coeur quand la lumière s'éteint et que le film commence (2007) .... (segment "At the Suicide of the Last Jew in the World in the Last Cinema in the World") [regista]
- Eastern Promises (2007) .... [regista]
- A History of Violence (2005) .... [regista]
- Spider (2002) .... (producer) [produttore]
- Jason X (2001) .... Dr. Wimmer [attore]
- The Judge (2001) (TV) .... Det. Stobel [attore]
- Camera (2000/III) .... [scrittore]
- Resurrection (1999) .... Father Rousell [attore]
- eXistenZ (1999) .... (producer) [produttore]
Biografia:
David Cronenberg, also known as the King of Venereal Horror or the Baron of blood, was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in 1943. His father was a journalist, and his mother was a piano player. After showing an inclination for literature at an early age (he wrote and published eerie short stories, thus following his father's path) and for music (playing classical guitar until he was 12), Cronenberg graduated from the University of Toronto with a degree in Literature after switching from the science department. He reached the cult status of horror-meister with the gore-filled, modern-vampire variations of Shivers (1975) and Rabid (1977), following an experimental apprenticeship in independent filmmaking and in Canadian television programs. Cronenberg gained popularity with the head-exploding, telepathy-based Scanners (1981) after the release of the much underrated, controversial, and autobiographical The Brood (1979). Cronenberg become a sort of a mass media guru with Videodrome (1983), a shocking investigation of the hazards of reality-morphing television and a prophetic critique of contemporary aesthetics. The issues of tech-induced mutation of the human body and topics of the prominent dichotomy between body and mind were back again in The Dead Zone (1983) and The Fly (1986), both bright examples of a personal filmmaking identity, even if both films are based on mass-entertainment materials: the first being a rendition of a Stephen King best-seller, the latter a remake of famous American horror movie. With Dead Ringers (1988) and Naked Lunch (1991), the Canadian director, no more a mere genre movie-maker but a fully realized auteur, got the acclaim of international critics. Such profound statements on modern humanity and ever-changing society are prominent in the provocative Crash (1996/I) and in the virtual reality essay of eXistenZ (1999), both of which well fared at the Cannes and Berlin Film Festivals. In the last two filmic projects Spider (2002) and A History of Violence (2005), Cronenberg avoids expressing his teratologic and oniric expressionism in favour of a more psycological exploration of human contradictions and idiosyncrasies.
Trivia random: Brother of costume designer Denise Cronenberg.
Citazione random: We've all got the disease - the disease of being finite. Death is the basis of all horror.
Filmography links and data courtesy of IMDb.
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