EASTERN PROMISES

When you are invading Normandy or burning Atlanta, you need 3 hours. Wisely, this European gangster film took only one hour and 40 minutes.
Viggo Mortensen is getting up there with Denzel and Russell; his name almost insures a quality film. This movie ends with two scenes that demonstrate a belief in the intelligence of the audience - they don't show you, that which they assume you can envision on your own.

There is a lot of "Road to Perdition," in this film AND A TOUCH OF "A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE." Seeing a movie that has a real plot and is both compelling and meaningful, was a rare pleasure. The theatres could raise the ticket price for this production and very few would complain.
It is the best drama of the year, by a wide margin.