Eastern Promises (2007)

Synopsis

Thriller set among the Russian mafia in London from Canadian director David Cronenberg. Nikolai Luzhin (Viggo Mortensen) is a driver for one of London's organized crime families who are part of the notorious Vory V Zakone criminal brotherhood.
See more Thriller set among the Russian mafia in London from Canadian director David Cronenberg. Nikolai Luzhin (Viggo Mortensen) is a driver for one of London's organized crime families who are part of the notorious Vory V Zakone criminal brotherhood. The family is headed by Semyon (Armin Mueller-Stahl), a cold and brutal man who hides his true nature behind his public role as a charming restaurateur and his volatile son and enforcer, Kirill (Vincent Cassell), is Nikolai's closest friend. Nikolai's carefully maintained existence is threatened when he meets Anna Khitrova (Naomi Watts), a midwife at a North London hospital who has been deeply affected by the plight of a teenager (Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse) who died giving birth. The girl left behind a diary written in Russian in which Anna seeks the answers to the baby's lineage. 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 finds his loyalties divided. Lives hang in the balance as a disturbing chain of murder and revenge reverberates through the darkest corners of both the family and London itself.
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Our review

"Cronenberg's compelling London-set Russian mob drama isn't quite as sharp as A History of Violence, but the onscreen prowess of a brilliant Mortensen, the strong screenplay and outstanding cinematography, capturing the capital at its dirtiest, still put this up there as one of Cronenberg's best."

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