Código de Traição

I am a big fan of both Charlie Sheen and Mark Dacascos but I'm sorry to say that this is a terrible movie. The director Brett Michaels just didn't have a clue and succeeded in making everybody involved with this movie look bad. Make no mistakes this is not only a B-movie but it is an almost unwatchable one. It is hard to believe the poor standard of acting from a jumpy looking Charlie Sheen. I just hope that this is as low as Charlie sinks. I'm off to watch "Drive" and "The Arrival" DVD's to redeem my faith.

This should have been a good film. Fine actors, a fair story line, violence and guns a plenty.

I hope no-one in Law Enforcement sees this one.

How did the Sheens get their police jobs? Incompetent doesn't describe their performances. I'm a big fan of shootouts, especially the John Woo style with vast expenditure of ammunition, but these were insultingly bad.

Charlie does justify his appalling aim in a scene with his wife where he tells her that he is coming home to his family rather than spending time at the firing range. (He should have spent half the film there if you ask me)

There is a scene where it occurs to me that someone had reduced the powder loads in their ammunition to the point that they bounce off car body panels at 5 metres. (This also explains why the guns jam, there isn't enough power to work the action)

I could have done better. Even I could hit a van at 5 metres!

Watching this will have you squirming with embarrassment for the Sheens, and wanting to help them shorten the film by an hour by actually aiming at things.

I was impressed that director Michaels cast against the grain. Really impressed with the work of habitually nice guys Joe Lando (Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman) and Ron Masak (murder, She Wrote)as the baddies...Masak's low key approach to the role was refreshing and menacing. Also liked the work of Newcomer Tina Nguyen. Charlie Sheen should watch his Dad more and see what good acting is...Kudos for Brett Michaels.

I had heard about this movie a few years ago, yet I was never able to find it on video. After all but giving up on seeing it, I found it on PPV one day. Without hesitation, I purchased it. I wasn't expecting much from the movie, but being a Charlie Sheen fan, I thought that it was at least worth a viewing.

I was pleasantly surprised while I was watching it. Now, make no bones about it, this movie won't win any awards and Charlie Sheen is certainly no Tom Hanks, but the material and the stars are a good match. (Although Mark Dacascos is sadly underused.)

Some good action sequences and a strong subplot involving Sheen's relationship with his estranged wife and daughter as well as his father make for a well rounded "B" action film. This is the movie that redeemed Sheen in my eyes after the debacle that was "Free Money".

At just over an hour and a half, the film doesn't overstay it's welcome, and a few comical moments spread throughout the movie are welcome. Overall, on a scale of 1 - 10 (1 being "Hanging Up" and 10 being "Gone in Sixty Seconds), "No Code of Conduct" rates an 8.

SPOILERS (maybe)

It may have sounded like an interesting idea at the time to pair up 'The Two Sheen's', but let's face it, the result is not really worth the effort. Believe it or not, the two of them actually look very uncomfortable together and are very mismatched.

As you'd expect, the film churns out flipped over cars, exploding buildings, lesbian Chinese-American psycho's etc. etc., but what cannot be excused is the 'man not spending enough time with his family' routine (hasn't that been done before somewhere?!!).

The highlight of the film for me was probably the sound effect of the stomach stabbing near the beginning - very impressive and dramatically OTT. Good stuff. Those 'whoosh' cuts on the other hand...

But as ever with action films, one important question arises from the experience, and here it is: why do police officers insist on taking their own polished cars out on dangerous police work when they know they're gonna be rained with bullets?