DVD Comparison "Code Unknown" Artificial Eye - Region 2

(aka "Code Inconnu" or "Code Unknown: Incomplete Tales of Several Journeys")

directed by Michael Haneke
France 1990

Aptly subtitled "Incomplete Tales of Several Journeys," the fifth feature by Austrian director Michael Haneke (2000, 117 min.), his best to date, is a procession of long virtuoso takes that typically begin and end in the middle of actions or sentences, constituting not only an interactive jigsaw puzzle but a thrilling narrative experiment comparable to Alain Resnais' Je t'aime, je t'aime, Jacques Rivette's Out 1, and Rob Tregenza's Talking to Strangers. The film's second episode is a nine-minute street scene involving an altercation between an actress (Juliette Binoche in a powerful performance), her boyfriend's younger brother, an African music teacher who works with deaf-mute students, and a woman beggar from Romania; the other episodes effect a kind of narrative dispersal of these characters and some of their relatives across time and space.

- Excerpt of Jonathan Rosenbaum's review from the Chicago Reader, full review HERE

On the TOP 100 List of DVDs.

Poster

Theatrical Release: May 19, 2000 - France

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DVD Review: Artificial Eye - Region 2 - PAL

Big thanks to Donald Brown for the Review!

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Distribution	Artificial Eye Region 2 - PAL
Runtime	1:52:00 (4% PAL speedup)
Video	1.85:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 6.51 mb/s PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s
Bitrate: NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Audio	French - Dolby Digital 2.0
Subtitles	English, none
Features	Release Information: Studio: Artificial Eye Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.85:1 Edition Details: • Trailer (2:55) • Making of documentary (27:25) • Introduction by Michael Haneke (4:27) • Filming the Boulevard (11:29) • Filmographies • Director's statement (text) DVD Release Date: November 19, 2001 Keepcase Chapters 46
Comments	This is a port of the French mk2 DVD. It's a crisp anamorphic transfer with moderate film grain and slightly cool colors; there are no blemishes to the print apart from rare instances of dust spots. The extras are very good, especially the Making Of documentary, which reveals the care and attention to detail put into the film. This is no doubt better than the Region 1 edition by Kino, reviews of which indicate it's non-anamorphic, suffers from print damage, and is a PAL-to-NTSC transfer. - Donald Brown

Recommended Reading in French Cinema (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)


The Films in My Life by Francois Truffaut, Leonard Mayhew	French Cinema: A Student's Guide by Philip Powrie, Keith Reader	Agnes Varda by Alison Smith	Godard on Godard : Critical Writings by Jean-Luc Godard	Notes on the Cinematographer by Robert Bresson	Robert Bresson (Cinematheque Ontario Monographs, No. 2) by James Quandt	The Art of Cinema by Jean Cocteau	French New Wave by Jean Douchet, Robert Bonnono, Cedric Anger, Robert Bononno	French Cinema: From Its Beginnings to the Present by Remi Fournier Lanzoni	Truffaut: A Biography by Antoine do Baecque and Serge Toubiana