...one of the better pictures of 2007...
This is a highly entertaining picture and I enjoyed every moment of it. I´ve enjoyed older films from Cronenberg such as "Scanners" and "eXistenZ." "Crash" has grown on me over the years and I appreciate his stark and unflinching look at a side of human nature we would rather ignore. I´ve also enjoyed some of Viggo Mortensen´s older roles that have often been ignored by the masses. He is a tough actor that puts a handsome face on gritty roles. I feel that "Eastern Promises" is the best work from either man and although it is violent and dark in nature, it is entertaining. This is a well acted film that only disappointed me in the fact that it ended the way it did. I wanted to see more of Nikolai and his efforts to infiltrate the Russian mafia. I wanted to see more of the well acted and written characters. This is easily one of the better films of the year and is as such for good reason.
Video:
"Eastern Promises" is presented with a very strong 1.85:1 presentation. Mastered at 1080p resolution and with the VC-1 codec, the HD-DVD side of this HD-DVD/DVD combo release is one of Universal´s best efforts to date and considering the usual high quality of their releases; that is saying something. Most ´art house´ films cannot compete with the far bigger and costlier Hollywood releases when it comes to visual presentation, but "Eastern Promises" is as detailed and colorful as any other HD-DVD release you will find in your collection. Had it not been for the subdued London sets and numerous dark sequences, "Eastern Promises" would rank among the most spectacular titles yet to see life on the format. It is about as perfect as I´ve seen on the format. It is just a shame that "Eastern Promises" didn´t offer something other than Naomi Watts to revel in the beauty provided by the high definition format and comparing the HD-DVD side to the DVD flipside shows how superior this high definition transfer is.
The streets of London, the expensive interior of the Trans-Siberian and the dark seedy underground world of the Russian mafia all look incredible. Detail is as strong as anything you will find. The tattoos found on Mortensen´s body show the level of detail present. The letters written in the diary show paper texture under their print. Building details, facial imperfections and other small details are easy to pinpoint while watching the film. Colors are equally strong and the blues, greens and reds present throughout the film all look spectacular. There are a lot of black and white contrasts present in "Eastern Promises" and they all look very good with strong black levels, shadow detail and ultra-clean whites. Shadow detail is strong and holds up during even the darkest sequences. Source materials were perfect. I cannot recall a single imperfection in this film and "Eastern Promises" shows what HD-DVD is all about.
Sound:
The sound quality of "Eastern Promises" matches up nicely with its spectacular visuals. The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack sounds incredible. English and French Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 soundtrack are also included with "Eastern Promises" for both the HD-DVD and DVD side of the Combo Format release. The TrueHD mix is easily the superior way to listen to the film and presents the busy London street life convincingly. This isn´t a film that will reach out and grab the listener with aggressive behavior. The sound design is relatively calm, with only a few scenes that spring to life. However, both the .1 LFE channel and the rear surrounds are used when they are needed. This is an extremely clean sounding film and an example of how definition is improved with a TrueHD soundtrack. Dialogue is crystal clear and you will never miss a word because of louder sound effects or unclear dialogue. The musical score by veteran composer Howard Shore is warm and effectively builds tension in this mafia drama. "Eastern Promises" is not a movie that will be called reference material. It lacks the aggressive nature to truly drive any home theater system, but it is technically perfect.
Extras:
Only a small number of bonus materials are contained on the HD-DVD release of "Eastern Promises." The HD-DVD disc contains Web Enabled features, which are promotional trailers for other Universal releases. Two short vignettes are contained on either side of the release. Secrets and Stories (10:30) is an EPK style featurette that features cast and crew interviews. It briefly discusses the true existence of the Russian mafia and the making of the film. It is short, but the brief discussion on prostitution and mafia was interesting enough. Marked for Life (6:41) is much of the same as the first vignette but looks more at the tattooing of the Russian mafia and features Mortensen and Cronenberg talking about the tattoos sported by Viggo Mortensen in the film.
Closing Comments:
I thoroughly enjoyed "Eastern Promises" and feel it is the best film from either director David Cronenberg and star Viggo Mortensen. I also believe that "Eastern Promises" is one of the better pictures of 2007 and should deserve some praise when it comes time for the Academy Awards. The film´s climactic steam bath fight sequence is poetic violence at its finest. It is something you will want to watch again and again. With its convincing and well-written story, "Eastern Promises" excels in every aspect of filmmaking. Acting is top shelf, cinematography is solid and the aforementioned directing is Cronenberg at his best. The HD-DVD release of this fine film shows technically perfect visuals and sound. If "Eastern Promises" would have been a little more aggressive in the sound design department, this would easily be reference material. It is easily one of the best looking films you will see visually on HD-DVD. The features are thin and that is my only complaint towards this HD-DVD release. This is a film that was successful in box office returns considering the marketing and number of prints released, but it should find further success on home video and HD-DVD is the best way to watch this fine film.
Video:
"Eastern Promises" is presented with a very strong 1.85:1 presentation. Mastered at 1080p resolution and with the VC-1 codec, the HD-DVD side of this HD-DVD/DVD combo release is one of Universal´s best efforts to date and considering the usual high quality of their releases; that is saying something. Most ´art house´ films cannot compete with the far bigger and costlier Hollywood releases when it comes to visual presentation, but "Eastern Promises" is as detailed and colorful as any other HD-DVD release you will find in your collection. Had it not been for the subdued London sets and numerous dark sequences, "Eastern Promises" would rank among the most spectacular titles yet to see life on the format. It is about as perfect as I´ve seen on the format. It is just a shame that "Eastern Promises" didn´t offer something other than Naomi Watts to revel in the beauty provided by the high definition format and comparing the HD-DVD side to the DVD flipside shows how superior this high definition transfer is.
The streets of London, the expensive interior of the Trans-Siberian and the dark seedy underground world of the Russian mafia all look incredible. Detail is as strong as anything you will find. The tattoos found on Mortensen´s body show the level of detail present. The letters written in the diary show paper texture under their print. Building details, facial imperfections and other small details are easy to pinpoint while watching the film. Colors are equally strong and the blues, greens and reds present throughout the film all look spectacular. There are a lot of black and white contrasts present in "Eastern Promises" and they all look very good with strong black levels, shadow detail and ultra-clean whites. Shadow detail is strong and holds up during even the darkest sequences. Source materials were perfect. I cannot recall a single imperfection in this film and "Eastern Promises" shows what HD-DVD is all about.
Sound:
The sound quality of "Eastern Promises" matches up nicely with its spectacular visuals. The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack sounds incredible. English and French Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 soundtrack are also included with "Eastern Promises" for both the HD-DVD and DVD side of the Combo Format release. The TrueHD mix is easily the superior way to listen to the film and presents the busy London street life convincingly. This isn´t a film that will reach out and grab the listener with aggressive behavior. The sound design is relatively calm, with only a few scenes that spring to life. However, both the .1 LFE channel and the rear surrounds are used when they are needed. This is an extremely clean sounding film and an example of how definition is improved with a TrueHD soundtrack. Dialogue is crystal clear and you will never miss a word because of louder sound effects or unclear dialogue. The musical score by veteran composer Howard Shore is warm and effectively builds tension in this mafia drama. "Eastern Promises" is not a movie that will be called reference material. It lacks the aggressive nature to truly drive any home theater system, but it is technically perfect.
Extras:
Only a small number of bonus materials are contained on the HD-DVD release of "Eastern Promises." The HD-DVD disc contains Web Enabled features, which are promotional trailers for other Universal releases. Two short vignettes are contained on either side of the release. Secrets and Stories (10:30) is an EPK style featurette that features cast and crew interviews. It briefly discusses the true existence of the Russian mafia and the making of the film. It is short, but the brief discussion on prostitution and mafia was interesting enough. Marked for Life (6:41) is much of the same as the first vignette but looks more at the tattooing of the Russian mafia and features Mortensen and Cronenberg talking about the tattoos sported by Viggo Mortensen in the film.
Closing Comments:
I thoroughly enjoyed "Eastern Promises" and feel it is the best film from either director David Cronenberg and star Viggo Mortensen. I also believe that "Eastern Promises" is one of the better pictures of 2007 and should deserve some praise when it comes time for the Academy Awards. The film´s climactic steam bath fight sequence is poetic violence at its finest. It is something you will want to watch again and again. With its convincing and well-written story, "Eastern Promises" excels in every aspect of filmmaking. Acting is top shelf, cinematography is solid and the aforementioned directing is Cronenberg at his best. The HD-DVD release of this fine film shows technically perfect visuals and sound. If "Eastern Promises" would have been a little more aggressive in the sound design department, this would easily be reference material. It is easily one of the best looking films you will see visually on HD-DVD. The features are thin and that is my only complaint towards this HD-DVD release. This is a film that was successful in box office returns considering the marketing and number of prints released, but it should find further success on home video and HD-DVD is the best way to watch this fine film.
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Average user rating (1-5):
[release]22531[/release]