Code 46 Review

The future as seen in Michael Winterbottom’s “Code 46″ appears eerily similar to the present- there are no flying cars, no robots. In fact the only surface changes seem to be slightly more advanced technology. But the world of the film is oddly cold and the images appear sterile.

We soon learn that in the near future, there are no countries, only cities, and one needs papers to travel from one city to another. Criminals and undesirables are exiled to “the outside” which is a desert. The world is controlled by one government called the Sphinx. William (Tim Robbins) , our main character is an investigator for the Sphinx, and is sent to Shanghai to look into a series of travel papers that are being forged. William discovers that the forger is a young woman named Maria (Samantha Morton, in a great performance), but he falls in love with her and covers her crime. William’s travel papers for Shanghai last for only twenty four hours, and so he and Maria have only a brief time together. When William returns home to his wife and son, he cannot forget Maria, or their short but passionate affair. A few days after his return, William’s boss informs him that he must return to Shanghai- several people have died due to the fake papers, and he must reinvestigate. William goes, excited at the prospect of seeing Maria again, but when he arrives he learns that Maria is missing. His affair with Maria had been a violation of Code 46 , one of the Sphinx’s most important laws ( I can’t reveal what it is without giving too much away), and now his marriage and his government are no longer the strongest obstacles to a life with Maria; their love is genetically doomed.

“Code 46″ can be looked at as a tragic love story, a warning against cloning and genetic manipulation, or a criticism of globalization. And a number of other interpretation for it can doubtlessly be found for it as well. Ultimately, I believe it is a story about intimacy. The only scenes of warmth in the sterile world of the film are those that William and Maria share. These scene have a disturbing quality of desperation to them, but they are what the viewer clings to as evidence of humanity in this futuristic world.

Not everyone will like “Code 46″. Some may find it too slow moving, or slightly convoluted. Yet it may appeal to a wide demographic audience as it recalls elements of “Minority Report”, “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”, and “Brave New World”. Even if some people don’t like this film, it will undoubtably provoke thought and conversation after seeing it.