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4.7/10
8,359
86 user 41 critic
Trailer
2:30 | Trailer
In future Moscow, where corporate brands have created a disillusioned population, one man's effort to unlock the truth behind the conspiracy will lead to an epic battle with hidden forces that control the world.

Directors:

Jamie Bradshaw, Alexander Dulerayn (as Alexander Doulerain)

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ed Stoppard ... Misha
Leelee Sobieski ... Abby
Jeffrey Tambor ... Bob
Max von Sydow ... Marketing Guru
Mariya Ignatova Mariya Ignatova ... Master of Ceremony (as Maria Ignatova)
Roman Petrenko Roman Petrenko ... Fast Food Executive #1
Anastasiya Nefedova Anastasiya Nefedova ... Fast Food Executive #2 (as Anastasia Nefedova)
Nick Harvey Nick Harvey ... Fast Food Executive #3
John Laskowski John Laskowski ... Fast Food Executive #4
Douglas A. Reno Douglas A. Reno ... Fast Food Executive #5 (as Douglas Reno)
Gary Brierley Gary Brierley ... Fast Food Executive #6
Andrey Kaykov ... Pavel (as Andrei Kaikov)
Viktoriya Popova Viktoriya Popova ... Screaming Woman (as Viktoria Popova)
Jamie Bradshaw Jamie Bradshaw ... Mr. Johnson
Viktor Verzhbitskiy ... Yuri Nikolaevich (scenes deleted) (as Viktor Verzhbitsky)
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Storyline

The film starts with documentary-style flashbacks showing Misha's rise to a powerful marketing executive. Now in Moscow 2017, Misha is a powerful marketing executive working to spread Western brands, and like the businesses he works for nothing will stop him in his greed, until the imprisonment and death of an overweight girl undergoing extensive plastic surgery to become skinny. Following a vision in which Misha sacrifices a heifer to God, he begins to receive strange visions depicting the brands control over people. He returns to work and guided by these visions, Misha attempts to stop the growth of the brands in post-Communist Russia by encouraging the brand to attack each other in their advertising campaigns. There is some debate whether Misha believes that the worship of global brands is Idolatry and his visions depicting the brands are controlling people causing them to sin, or whether his belief is that monopoly is evil and his intention is to create a Western style free-market...

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

Crack the code. Take back your mind.


Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some sexual content | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
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Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook | Official site

Country:

USA | Russia

Language:

English | Russian

Release Date:

7 September 2012 (USA) See more »

Also Known As:

The Mad Cow See more »

Filming Locations:

Bulgaria See more »

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Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$240,565, 9 September 2012, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$353,468, 30 September 2012
See more on IMDbPro »

Company Credits

Show more on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1
See full technical specs »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

The advertising campaign for the movie included 100 QR codes, four of which can be found on the movie poster. See more »

Goofs

In two shots we see the list of brands that Misha is crossing out, he crosses out "Burger" with two lines. Later, when he is crossing out other brands, "Burger" has only one line through it. See more »

Quotes

Bob: [getting drunk] It's not a real burger, Misha, if I can't have extra ketchup. It's just a fucking... it's a fucking façade. This whole country is just like one Hollywood back lot, fucking, façade. And it's a really shitty made one, at that.
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Connections

Edited into BadComedian: Moskva 2017 - Review (2012) See more »

Soundtracks

Lakme: Lakme: Dome epais, Flower Duet
Written by Léo Delibes
Performed by Adriana Kohutkova
Arranged by Jim Long
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User Reviews

 
Hmm, why all the bad reviews? This is a rare story told well and should be appreciated as such
6 November 2012 | by JackHoffeSee all my reviews

It seems that a lot of people are threatened by simple truths in this film. Fat people don't want to be told that their food choices are being influenced by advertising. The negative ratings come from the mirror held in front of the faces of the audience, the negativity is a reflection of the shame of being overweight or the reflection of their own brands that they are wearing and the value they put in them.

This is an original film that doesn't fit the current Hollywood blockbuster mold, but rather it requires self-examination of what influences human choices.

There are a lot of word salad reviews on this movie already, no need for another. Go in with no expectations, come out with a cleaner view of the world and start to understand why you're craving your McDonalds/Coke/Idevice.

Check it out and be pleasantly rewarded - unless your own reflection reflects something too unpleasant to accept....


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