Code Unknown(Code inconnu: Récit incomplet de divers voyages)

A stylistic continuation of 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance, Haneke’s first French production – notably more polished in style and production value – turns towards an exploration of miscommunication and modern human’s refusal to empathise with one another. Opening with a minor collision between a wayward youth and an aggressive do-gooder, the narrative branches out to chronicle the intersecting lives of those involved, including an actress, the do-gooder’s family, and a homeless Romanian woman. Even though Haneke dubs this his ‘mildest’ film, its statement about xenophobia and the seemingly futile search for compassion in a cynical world makes it one of his most sympathetic works.

Cannes Film Festival: Prize of the Ecumenical Jury

28/11(Sat): Speaker: Dr. Derek Lam (Lecturer in Comparative Literature at the University of Hong Kong)