Eastern Promises

[Tom Lowe]

 

Two words: Sauna Scene. OMFG... this movie is brutal and brilliant.

 

Would have liked to have seen a little more Godfather-style stuff at the very end, but I left the theater satisfied.

[Adam Frisch FSF]

Saw it tonight.

 

I've never been gaga over Suschitzky like some die hard Star Wars fans have been, but I've always enjoyed and rated his work. He has definitely shot the best looking Star Wars film, that's for sure.

 

And in Eastern Promises he shows once again what an elder statesman he is - the lighting is note perfect. Never to hard, never to soft, never to old school, never to gimicky and new. Just right - all the time. And that takes skill and years of practice.

 

I especially enjoyed his night work, which is perfect. I like how he doesn't shy away from colours and sometimes adds a sodium vapor wash as a side or rim if it's practically motivated. He often uses soft toplights at night, which I love. Still contained, letting pools extend into backgrounds - it's never got that Musco-just-above-frameline-wash to it.

 

Another thing - as a transplanted Londoner it always annoys me how people shoot this town. It's always approached in the wrong way and in a picture postcard fashion - red buses, Parliament type thing. Here it's done right - bit of that New York grit has crept into it, which is how real London looks - it's full of dirty little newsagents and off licence shops that are open all night. I particularly like the rainy night stuff.

 

See it.

[Remi Adefarasin]

Peter is a master and did very well with this film despite a small budget. Very intelligent all round.

Don't read IMDB or any review before you see it as it will spoil the movie.

One of the best looking films this year IMO.

[John Holland]

Your being very modest there i will add for you apart from " Elizabeth Golden Age "

[Joe Taylor]

I thought it started off very well with a twist, al least I, didn't see coming.

 

Very dissapointed with the "just got there in the nick of time" moment at the end. I groaned to myself.

[Alex Hall]

Loved the way the film was shot. The interior of the resturant was very well done.

[Tom Lowe]

Yes. Top notch photography in every sense, as far as I am concerned.

[Mariano Nante]

I thought it was a good movie, but I was a bit underwhelmed because it came from Cronenberg. I feel that he has become a bit to... mainstream (I can't find a better word) if I may say so. I miss the times when he was truly provocative and revulsive, when he faced our society with our deepest fears and our darkest thoughts. Now it seems you can't hardly tell him apart from the average gangster filmmaker. Except for the ending of the film and maybe for the sauna sequence...