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CODE UNKNOWN tracks a series of events that unfold in like a chain reaction, all stemming from a minor event that brings the film's five characters together. Set in Paris, France, Anne (Juliette Binoche) is an actress whose boyfriend Georges (Thierry Neuvic) photographs the war in Kosovo. Georges' brother, Jean (Alexandre Hamidi), is looking for the entry code to Georges' apartment because he has decided he no longer wants work on his father's farm in the country and he is moving to Paris. The lives of these characters haphazardly interconnect with those of a Romanian immigrant begging on the street, Maria (Luminita Gheorghiu), and a deaf teacher of West African descent, Amadou (Ona Lu Yenke). With many twists and turns that draw the viewer into webs of family, nationality, culture, economics, and politics, CODE UNKNOWN is a splendidly complex drama with a nonsequential chronology from Austrian director Michael Haneke.DVD Features:Region 1Keep CaseLetterboxed - 1.85:1Audio: Stereo - FrenchInteractive Features: Scene Access Interactive Menus
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
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Another gem from the world of Iranian cinema, UNDER THE MOONLIGHT is a thought provoking look at religious mores from director Seyyed Reza Mir-Karimi. Seyyed Hassan is a student who is deeply emerged in his religious studies; he hopes to become a cleric after sitting the necessary exams. But a run-in with a thief, who steals Seyyed's vestments, leads him into a whole new world that challenges all the teachings that he has absorbed over the years. Following the thief, he enters into a poverty-stricken world that is in direct contrast to the lessons he's learnt in class. Suddenly feeling at odds with the religion he has slavishly poured over for years, Seyyed finds himself faced with a tough decision about whether to continue. A hugely affecting film, UNDER THE MOONLIGHT opens up an important discourse on matters that affect Iranian citizens on a daily basis, but are too frequently swept under the carpet in an attempt to shy away from the failings of a society that all too often clouds its true problems via religious dogma that no longer has relevance to many of its citizens.
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
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This melancholic, brooding romantic thriller stars Zhang Ziyi (HERO; CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON) as Ding Hui, a Chinese woman who is part of a secret anti-Japanese terrorist organization in 1931 Shanghai. Three years earlier, under her real name, Cynthia, she was a factory worker in Manchuria carrying on a romance with a Japanese man named Itami (Toru Nakamura) who has since become head of Japan's Shanghai branch of the secret service. As Japan and China prepare to go to war, Itami and Cynthia are doomed to face off against each other. Meanwhile, an innocent couple gets caught in the crossfire during a train station shootout, and the grief-stricken survivor, Szeto (Ye Liu), becomes a double agent in the war between the Chinese and Japanese spy groups.PURPLE BUTTERFLY is all about mood: lots of lingering close-ups of characters sulking in the rain, smoking lots of cigarettes in squalid rooms, or dying slowly from bullets lodged near the heart. The film's dreamy romance, restless handheld camerawork, and nonlinear plot recall the films of Wong Kar Wai, and fans of that director's work should be similarly seduced by this elegant Asian period film noir. A mesmerizing score by Jorg Lemberg helps the disparate pieces of the puzzle fall into place.DVD Features:Region (unknown)Keep CaseFull Frame - 1.33Audio: Surround Sound 5.1 EnglishAdditional Release Material: Theatrical Trailer PreviewsDVD Rom Features: Weblinks
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
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Set against the gritty urban scenescape of Berlin and a pounding techno soundtrack, RUN LOLA RUN is a frenetic, inventive existential thriller that explores the life-altering impact of seemingly inconsequential actions. Beautiful, hip, and young, poor Lola has but 20 minutes to locate a missing bag containing 100,000 Deutsche marks or come up with the money some other way--if she can't, gangsters are going to kill her boyfriend. A pulse-raising race against time, the film employs a startling array of innovative techniques to present three separate scenarios, all departing from a single split-second decision Lola makes. Franka Patente, who also sings on the soundtrack, is mesmerizing as Lola. Winner of the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival; Best Film, Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Director at the German Film Awards; 1998 Bambi Award; and the Golden Space Needle Award for Best Film at the Seattle International Film Festival.
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
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Acclaimed Russian director Alexei Balabanov (THE BROTHER) is the brains behind this award-winning film about the dark side of the late Victorian upper classes. Dark and subversive, OF FREAKS AND MEN is the story of a seedy man named Johann and his equally sinister assistant, who together take pictures of half-naked women being flogged. After sneaking their way into the homes of the wealthy, they shrewdly managed to engage their victims in some pornographic situations. Black comedy at its bravest, OF FREAKS AND MEN is a ground-breaking Russian film.DVD Features:Region 1Keep CaseWidescreen - 1.66Audio: Dolby Digital Stereo - Russian
Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005.
For personal use only.
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