The Promise

Running time: 134 mins

Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis), Christian Bale (Batman Begins), Charlotte Le Bon (The Walk), Shohreh Aghdashloo (House of Sand and Fog), and director Terry George (Hotel Rwanda) create an epic romance during a time of upheaval. Michael (Isaac) is off to study medicine, leaving his village in southern Anatolia. Although betrothed to a girl in his village—the girl to whom he has promised his heart—that does not stop Michael from falling in love with the woman he’s always dreamed about, Ana (Le Bon). Unfortunately, Ana is in a relationship with Chris (Bale), a photojournalist there to capture the effects of the war. Soon, these three souls are completely swept up in a triangle, while the boiling drama of war looms around them. Director Terry George brilliantly balances the matters of the heart with the swirling political turmoil that surrounds his tragic figures—who are all caught up in an ordeal that forces them to choose which promises to keep. – Michael Rabehl