Branded (2012)

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)

Writers:

Jamie Bradshaw, Alexander Dulerayn

Stars:

Ed Stoppard, Leelee Sobieski, Jeffrey Tambor

Cast

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

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...

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Plot Keywords:

advertising agency | fast food | hamburger | hallucination | constellation | 

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Taglines:

Crack the code. Take back your mind.

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA Russia

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

7 September 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Mad Cow

Filming Locations:

Bulgaria

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$240,565, 9 September 2012, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$353,468, 30 September 2012

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mirumir,Telekanal TNT,Bomar OOD

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

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

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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.

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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

Spoofs Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)

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Soundtracks

Don't Tell
Written by David Minnick
Performed by Eve Modern

User Reviews

A bold move

This movie brings to light the undeniable fact that we are ALL hugely and subconsciously affected by advertising. We think we are in full control of our likes, dislikes - and purchases. But we are not. For a bit of a lark take a look at Derren Brown on Youtube to see just HOW susceptible we are. I am SICK of aggressive and jarring advertising blaring me in the ears and eyes on a daily basis and this is a movie that tries to bring this to the fore. Personally I am getting seriously bothered by the fact that I cannot go anywhere without being bombarded with a visual message of BUY MEEEEE!!! I have to ask myself, is it fair that I, in my public space am forced to be subjected to advertising just about everywhere I look? NO, it is not. It's bloody rude! Finally a movie that tries to remove the veil we have over our eyes, that tries to expose the manipulation we are all subjected to on a daily basis. It's food for thought and I sincerely hope somebody chews on it. I give it top marks for the message.