I'm Just The Driver

Viggo Mortensen as Nikolai
New look, new accent but same killer performance we have all come to expect. The much talked about scene of full-frontal nudity is, IHMO, one of the best scenes in movie history. Exceptionally staged fighting meets even better acting in a tight, tense sequence that will make you want to turn away. But you won't. You can't.



Eastern Promises is a terrific action/drama film but it is not for the delicate, there is a heaping mound of violence - implied and explicit.

The film centers around a Russian mafia family and the rather unsavory activities they engage in to remain in power in present-day London. Mortensen stars as the family's driver (just the driver) who has aspirations of reaching the inner circle. But all is not as it seems.

And all is not as it seems from the beginning when a pregnant teenage Russian girl steps into corner drugstore asking for help. The track marks on her arm speak to her habit and her hemorrhaging speaks to a gloomy future, which indeed turns out to be very short. Although the Russian girl dies in childbirth she gives birth to a girl and a diary. A diary that accuses. A diary that exposes secrets.

The acting is excellent from all but Mortensen as Nikolai dominates the screen. Throughout he walks the line between menacing and compassionate, as if he has as many secrets as the diary. Plot twists begin to form a cohesive story and the audience realizes the reason for his duality. What I liked the most about the film was the deadpan delivery of the plot twists - subtle yet powerful.

I liked David Cronenberg's last offering, A History Of Violence, but Eastern Promises shows maturity and confidence on a new level.

Eastern Promises
10/10