Code Unknown (2001)

Michael Haneke creates a multiple character, multiple plot-line film that film lovers have seen time and again. Amores Perros, Babel, Short Cuts, Magnolia. You know that the essence of a great filmmaker is one who can juggle multiple stories and characters at once, and even more so, whether or not he can intertwine these stories at the very end. It's confusing whether or not Code Unknown does that, but it attempts it successfully at the very least. A lot of the talking scenes didn't resonate with me. Although the ADR scene blew me away. At first I was in the midst of a shocking scene where a child almost falls off of a building, to reveal that it was part of a filmed scene-within-the-movie of which the actress is in the process of re-recording. That is awesome stuff. Also, take a look at the unbearable tension in the subway scenes. It's nail biting stuff.

There is a lot of this film that I just didn't get. Is that because it is for me a foreign film? Or is the film just too personal,a director's project. The film is either about alienation, situations in which people cannot empathize with one another, or it is about modern society being inherently alienating. Take your pick. I wish that the director was more clear about what was his point-of-view. I know my opinion when it comes to impersonal, modern society, but I never could understand what he was trying to say. Still, the film is visually very attractive and the acting, especially Binoche's, is outstanding. I would recommend seeing this film because it is a film experience that is not common. If you get the message of this film let me know what it is. Unless the message is the alienation of modern society. That would be too trite and unsatisfying.

Everyone has a turkey, and Code Unknown is Michael Haneke's. Don't get me wrong I like his films but I had the misfortune of seeing Code Unknown after watching Hidden (Cache), Haneke's best film to date. In some ways Code Unknown is like a rough draft to the polished, finished product that was Cache, but Haneke would probably deny this. Why is it so bad? It just doesn't work as cinema, but this is probably what Haneke intended. However, it works as anti-bourgeoisie political propaganda but Haneke doesn't want us to identify with anyone in this film; they might as well be strangers, whose motivations remain as obscure as Haneke's direction. It's difficult to relate to what is seen; the air of detachment and ennui is inescapable and watching the disjointed narrative and self-referential scenes of Binoche in her film within a film become tedious. Hanke has zero respect for the audience; conversely, his pompous, authoritarian style destroys any sense of empathy. There are some powerful scenes but these are diminished by other plodding vignettes that reveal very little. Too many scenes linger for no apparent reason. Haneke could be projecting the lack of communication between people or it could be padding – you decide. Binoche does the best she can but you sense she is just a cog in Haneke's anti-cinema wheel. She does rise above the material at times but this happens too little to merit any empathy for her. In his drive to render cinema as combination of pure art and political comment, Haneke has misfired badly here – luckily Cache redeems his status.

Apart from Juliet Binoche, there was nothing else to look at in this film. The rest of the cast appeared to be unknowns and amateur actors literally dragged off the street. Binoche herself seemed in a daze. What was the point of the ironing scene ? I was truly nauseated by the murder room scene. Were we supposed to think it was a fake audition set by a sicko murderer. Was her fear real ? This bordered on a snuff film at this point. This was too close to Suzy Lamplugh for comfort and I doubt the director would have gotten away with it in the UK. This unwelcome voyeuristic excitement apart the rest of the film sent me to sleep. I couldn't care less what the unknown code was linking all these bores together. I sat through all nine hours of Red, White, and Blue but this drivel left me cold.