Primed for a world premiere at the imminent Toronto International Film Festival, we now have our first true look at The Promise, Terry George’s awards-tipped drama that orders Christian Bale, Oscar Isaac and Charlotte Le Bon to The Great War.
Arriving by way of Empire, the stills feature that trio in period garb, teeing up something of a love triangle as Bale’s american photojournalist journeys to Paris to be with his Armenian (Le Bon) amid the final days of the Ottoman Empire. Isaac, meanwhile, plays Michael, a brilliant medical student who woos Le Bon’s Ana. Sparks begin to fly. This dynamic, coupled with the promise of intriguing historical drama, ought to ensure The Promise is a shoo-in come awards season.
Also starring Jean Reno, Ozman Sirgood and Scott Greenlees, The Promise represents the first feature film in almost five years for Terry George, though the Irish filmmaker is no stranger to high-profile drama. In 2004, for instance, he guided Don Cheadle to the big time with Hotel Rwanda, nabbing an Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay in the process. Beyond that, George’s credits also include an Oscar win for live-action short, The Stone.
As for The Promise, it’s currently on the hunt for both a distributor and a release window, though we expect more information to come to light during TIFF 2016. It gets underway on September 8, and recently capped off its lineup with the addition of Terrence Malick’s Voyage of Time and many, many more.