Metacritic Movie Ratings
Eastern Promises Reviews

A sample of reviews from critics across the country.

• 100

  out of 100

  Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert

  The actors and the characters merge and form a reality above and apart from the story, and the result is a film that takes us beyond crime and London and the Russian mafia and into the mystifying realms of human nature.

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• 90

  out of 100

  VarietyTodd McCarthy

  A superbly wrought yarn set in the milieu of first-generation Russian mobsters in London that is simultaneously tough-minded and compassionate about the human condition, Eastern Promises instantly takes its place among David Cronenberg's very best films.

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• 90

  out of 100

  The New York TimesA.O. Scott

  The rigor of Mr. Cronenberg's direction sometimes seems at odds with the humanism of Mr. Knight's script, but more often the director's ruthless formal command rescues the story from its maudlin impulses. Mr. Knight aims earnestly for your heartstrings, but Mr. Cronenberg insists on getting under your skin. The result is a movie whose images and implications are likely to stay in your head for a long time.

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• 90

  out of 100

  The Hollywood Reporter

  Cronenberg and screenwriter Steve Knight masterfully orchestrate an atmosphere of danger and dread for a descent into an underworld inhabited by the Russian mafia in London.

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• 80

  out of 100

  Los Angeles TimesCarina Chocano

  Expertly realized and gunmetal slick, Eastern Promises whirs along with perfect efficiency, but doesn't stir much in the way of visceral horror despite its penchant for treating the human body like a chicken carcass on a block. (Squeamishness, yes.)

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• 75

  out of 100

  Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman

  It's an academic meditation in underworld-thriller drag -- a movie that looks about as close to a straight-ahead, down-and-dirty genre entertainment as anything the director has made since his exploding-head horror days.

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• 75

  out of 100

  USA TodayClaudia Puig

  Eastern Promises has a compelling story and strong performances to back up what may seem excessive or sensationalistic.

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