Tss5078 When used properly, John Malkovich is the best of the best when it comes to playing the bad guy. In his latest film, Deadly Code, Malkovich is playing the Grandfather of a Siberian crime syndicate and much like Brando in the Godfather, is used sparely to impart words of wisdom on his young decedents. Siberia is one of the coldest and most desolate places on the planet. When a criminal is too dangerous to even be put in the jail of a major Russian city, they are dumped into Siberia. Crime is rampant and everything is run by organized crime families, who's strict code of loyalty and honor puts even the Italians to shame. Kolyma (Vilius Turnalavicius) is the grandson and the film is split between Kolyma in the army, hunting down a wanted man, and his time growing up in a crime family under his Grandfathers guidance. Mafia movies traditionally follow a format and this film was no different, with the except of the setting, so when I heard it was the Godfather of Russian organized crime and started John Malkovich, I wondered how it was possible that I'd never heard of it, well now I know. There are these crazy rules and code of honor that these guys live by, making them gangsters who aren't really violent. They simply steal from the government to help their community. In a real sense, it's about sophisticated, responsible criminals, helping people, and avoiding the police. While honorable, it makes for an extremely slow moving film, add to that all the Russian actors trying to speak English, and you have a film that's somewhat hard to even understand. Subtitles and some more action would have helped, but so would have a more experienced cast. Most of these guys have no other listings on IMDb and the inexperience shows. The story of Deadly Code seems like a good idea, but when you have a lack of action, mixed with inexperienced actors, speaking in a way that is barely understandable, you have a very uninteresting movie that is more than somewhat hard to watch.

sidneywhitaker-1 If the gratuitous violence, bestowing of treasured flick-knives (for use), elaborate but inexplicable tattooing, accompanied by barely intelligible dialogue (in Siberian English?) creates a film for you, good luck! in isolation, there are striking, almost self-indulgent, dramatically lit and contrasty shots. The Italian makers have deceived themselves if they thought they had made a film. It will make the viewer keep clear of Siberia, and value his own education, wherever else obtained. The disruption and lack of continuity incline the poor viewer to fast-forward in search of a coherent scene, or... the End.Only the printed lines of a short Preface give any coherent account of the situation. Jump-cuts, wilful lack of continuity, and the odd extraneous clip (e.g. Fall of the Berlin Wall), added to the trivial dialogue, increase the incoherence.

Tcarts76 Every once in awhile a person has to be in a certain mood to watch certain movies. Does that make sense? "Educazione siberana" or Siberian Education is a mood movie. It is a somewhat slow drama about a small group of boys growing up as members of a ethnic Siberian community. If you don't know a little about these people, it's much like the mob and it was created by the Soviet penal system. It's a slow movie but it is a human drama. DOn't let the title fool you this is an English speaking movie. Although it takes place in the Soviet Union it is a very relateble tale. A story about how people change and grow apart especially in the face serving time in prison. John Malkovich plays the part of an old, wise grandfather in it. He is his usual great acting self, but his role is limited.I do have a problem with this movie though. There are somethings I felt needed a little explaining, and could have made this movie from good to great. The main character, at some point leaves the community, and joins the Russian Military. There are scenes interspersed in the movie with him in uniform as the story of the past is unfolding. But it stops short of giving us a good clear picture of if this effected his family, or the community. It is just an odd way to get him to the end he is seeking. He could have taken care of the problem, right then and there, without all the years passing by.I give it a seven. I usually have to be in a mood to watch a long, unfolding drama such as this one, and I was. A few problems don't ruin it too much but would have went a long way.

siderite I thought it was average, with acting ranging from bad to good and similar fluctuations of the script. I did not read the book, nor did I know it was biographical. It was recommended to me, I watched it and I liked it. My wife loved it, though.Somewhere in a punishment town in Transnistria the law has little power and the clans are dividing territory, each with their own tradition and rules. The protagonist is part of the Siberian clan, which in almost all intent and purposes is a version of the old Cosa Nostra. After all, it was an Italian movie, right? :)But let's not be bad. The thing that hurt the film most had to be the title. The main title is in Italian, even if the people are speaking English. I actually got it first in Italian, only to see that people were speaking something else underneath.The story itself seems a bit too complex for a film and so it becomes clear that it is based on a book. Being a biographical book I can hardly blame the story and having not read the original material I can similarly not fault the script. The acting is reasonable, especially considering most of the actors did not play in many other films. The direction is good.I don't know if one gets to learn anything from this other than what certain criminal clans think like. The film does speak of character, but when that character makes you live in a dump town, spend some time in jail, lose your love, get to join the Russian army, then kill a friend, it is hard to see the value in it. Bottom line: watchable, but not memorable.