Eastern Promises

Eastern Promises
Theatrical release poster
Directed byDavid Cronenberg
Screenplay bySteven Knight
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyPeter Suschitzky
Edited byRonald Sanders
Music byHoward Shore
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • September 8, 2007 (2007-09-08) (Toronto)
  • September 14, 2007 (2007-09-14) (North America)
  • October 26, 2007 (2007-10-26) (United Kingdom)
Running time
101 minutes[3]
CountriesUnited Kingdom
Canada[4]
LanguagesEnglish
Russian
Ukrainian
Budget$50 million[5]
Box office$56.1 million[1]

Eastern Promises is a 2007 British-Canadian gangster film directed by David Cronenberg from a screenplay by Steven Knight. The film tells the story of Anna (Naomi Watts), a Russian-British midwife who delivers the baby of a drug-addicted 14-year-old trafficked Ukrainian girl who dies in childbirth. After Anna learns that the teen was forced into prostitution by the Russian Mafia in London, the leader of the Russian gangsters (Armin Mueller-Stahl) threatens the baby's life, and Anna is warned off by his menacing henchman (Viggo Mortensen).

Principal photography began in November 2006, in locations in and around London. The film has been noted for its treatment of the subject of sex trafficking, and for its violence and realistic depiction of Russian career criminals, which includes the detailed portrayal of the tattoos which indicate their crimes and criminal status. Eastern Promises received critical acclaim, appearing on several critics' "top 10 films" lists for 2007 and has since become a cult film. The film has won several awards, including the Audience Prize for best film at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Best Actor award for Mortensen at the British Independent Film Awards. The film received twelve Genie Award nominations and three Golden Globe Award nominations. Mortensen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor.

  1. ^ a b "Eastern Promises (2007)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  2. ^ Mitchell, Wendy (November 20, 2006). "Cronenberg starts London shoot for Eastern Promises". Screen International. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
  3. ^ "Eastern Promises". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved November 9, 2014.
  4. ^ "EASTERN PROMISES". BFI.org.uk. Archived from the original on September 25, 2013. Retrieved April 11, 2012.
  5. ^ "Eastern Promises". The-Numbers.com. Retrieved June 23, 2013.