Code Unknown

2000, Drama, 1h 58m

51 Reviews 5,000+ Ratings

What to know

critics consensus

Though challengingly cryptic at times, Code Unknown still manages to resonate. Read critic reviews

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Code Unknown Photos

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Movie Info

In Paris, one incident is seen through the eyes of several people -- Anne (Juliette Binoche), a stressed actress thirsty for success; her boyfriend Georges (Thierry Neuvic), who is a photographer; Romanian immigrant Maria (Luminita Gheorghiu), who is not legally allowed to work in France and Amadou, (Ona Lu Yenke), a caring teacher who is sympathetic to marginalized people. All become swept up in racial tensions and legal issues that stem from a single, careless act of littering.
  • Genre:
    Drama
  • Original Language:
    Romanian
  • Director:
    Michael Haneke
  • Producer:
    Marin Karmitz, Alain Sarde
  • Writer:
    Michael Haneke
  • Release Date (Theaters):
     limited
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Box Office (Gross USA):
    $95.2K
  • Runtime:
  • Distributor:
    Miramax Films
  • Sound Mix:
    Surround

Cast & Crew

Juliette Binoche
Anne Laurent
Thierry Neuvic
Georges
Luminita Gheorghiu
Maria
Ona Lu Yenke
Amadou
Helene Diarra
Aminate
Sepp Bierbechler
The Farmer
Alexandre Hamidi
Jean
Michael Haneke
Director
Marin Karmitz
Producer
Alain Sarde
Producer
Yvon Crenn
Executive Producer
Michael Haneke
Writer
Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for Code Unknown

All Critics (51) | Top Critics (21) | Fresh (38) | Rotten (13)
Full Review… Anthony Lane New Yorker Full Review… Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader Full Review… Scott Tobias AV Club Full Review… Peter Bradshaw Guardian Full Review… David Rooney Variety Full Review… Nick Schager Lessons of Darkness Full Review… Nicholas Bell IONCINEMA.com Full Review… Valeriy Kolyadych PopMatters Full Review… Daniel Etherington Film4 Full Review… David Parkinson Radio Times Full Review… David Sterritt Christian Science Monitor Full Review… Ken Fox TV Guide
View All Critic Reviews (51)

Audience Reviews for Code Unknown

  • Aug 07, 2015
    An intriguing experiment that is sadly too bleak and dull to retain interest.
    Marcus W Super Reviewer
  • Jun 11, 2014
    An intelligent and post-structuralist narrative exercise that, shot in a series of single-take fragments, plays with the structural codes that form the basis of storytelling to reflect how people can't understand each other in this society with their very own signs (languages, gestures, cultures, moral values).
    Carlos M Super Reviewer
  • Aug 02, 2010
    a michael haneke film, before his funny games, juliet binoche is a good watch as we watch her deal with various things in her life, as we begin with her encounter with 2 other people, we then follow the three, admittinly one isnt seen much while other is interesting, its binoches story whisch is draw, there are some good dramatic moments and keeps story interesting
    scott g Super Reviewer
  • Jun 02, 2010
    A strange tale, if indeed it can be called that. The subtitle, "Incomplete Tales of Several Journeys" sums it up pretty well. Juliette Binoche was lovely and carried the film. The rest was just window dressing and had no obvious connecting narrative, or meaning, beyond each individual scene. The use of jarring jump cuts from one scene to the next emphasized the discontinuity and left one somewhat bewildered as to how it all fit together. That obviously was the director's intention, but it just didn't work for this viewer. If this was supposed to spotlight the way the various characters interconnected, then it succeeded on only a most superficial level. Their lives may have intersected briefly, but one could hardly call it any more than that. Quite disappointing overall.
    Mark A Super Reviewer
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