Le clan des gangsters

I enjoyed this little fictional piece because it's a story about an imaginary clan of criminals in a fictitious province in the USSR that was supposed to have been an open air prison for criminal families from all over the USSR. It isn't meant to be true or true-to-life.

Before seeing this film, I had never liked John Malkovich's characters in any of his films. This character of his was likable. I also liked Peter Stormare's character , Ink, the tattoo artist. The rest of the characters weren't really memorable, but the film was humorous in spots and entertaining on other levels.

Most of the 1 and 2 star reviews attack the story for not being an accurate depiction of life in Siberia. It isn't set in Siberia, it just focuses on a fictitious clan of criminals who were said to have been sent there from Siberia. I'm sure that all of those reviewers feel very self righteous and self satisfied for having set the record straight. Reviewers like those would probably write an entry for the Goofs section that reads: "The guy who is called Grandfather Kuzya is John Malkovich, not Grandfather Kuzya." Enough.

I have been on imdb for over 5 years and never felt the need of writing a review. However, Deadly Code has gotten bashed for all the wrong reasons and couldn't help myself writing this one as the authors deserve more credit for coming up with this gritty story. Folks, this movie is NOT set in Siberia. Gagarin and Kolyma are NOT real names, they are obviously nicknames. Please research before criticizing a movie. This has a solid script and very good character development. Malkovich performance is absolutely hypnotic and brilliantly stands out. Personally, I also found the photography and editing compelling. I would recommend this movie to anyone interested in a crime story but tired of the average Hollywood scripts.

I love John Malkovich and every time he is on screen the movie lights up. The way he portrays the character makes you almost forget about the characters talking English for no good reason (with an accent but still). It would have made sense if they talked in their native language. Obviously something Malkovich wouldn't be able to do. Still the movie has to say something about "education" and life itself. Boys will be boys ... until they grow up.

They can take different roads though, depending on the path they choose. It's obvious where this leads, though you have a distraction or two along the way (plus a time jumping theme all over the movie). That will either confuse some people (not me and a lot of others here on IMDb) or make them big fans of the movie itself. So it sets high goals, but doesn't achieve all of them. Life lessons for some, a nice story for others.

I've been a member here for years. And i never wrote a review. But after watching this movie, even though there are bad reviews, I've just had to do a short review.

This movie surprised me extremely. Its not perfect. But there's so much love to detail, its just art. Im not a big fan of movies about Russia nor do i like john malkowich very much. I've always thought of him as a pretty weird actor. In this movie: he was just perfect!

Lower your expectations, watch this movie and i hope you will be positively surprised like i was. Somehow i hope there will be a sequel to this movie :) I got tired of the Italian mafia movies, Chinese marshal arts movies or American movies with big special effects... This was a welcome refreshment!

P.S Im sorry for my weird English, it has been years since I've talked to anyone or written in English. I just watch movies with English audio a lot. :)

Every once in awhile a person has to be in a certain mood to watch certain movies. Does that make sense? "Educazione siberana" or Siberian Education is a mood movie. It is a somewhat slow drama about a small group of boys growing up as members of a ethnic Siberian community. If you don't know a little about these people, it's much like the mob and it was created by the Soviet penal system.

It's a slow movie but it is a human drama. DOn't let the title fool you this is an English speaking movie. Although it takes place in the Soviet Union it is a very relateble tale. A story about how people change and grow apart especially in the face serving time in prison. John Malkovich plays the part of an old, wise grandfather in it. He is his usual great acting self, but his role is limited.

I do have a problem with this movie though. There are somethings I felt needed a little explaining, and could have made this movie from good to great. The main character, at some point leaves the community, and joins the Russian Military. There are scenes interspersed in the movie with him in uniform as the story of the past is unfolding. But it stops short of giving us a good clear picture of if this effected his family, or the community. It is just an odd way to get him to the end he is seeking. He could have taken care of the problem, right then and there, without all the years passing by.

I give it a seven. I usually have to be in a mood to watch a long, unfolding drama such as this one, and I was. A few problems don't ruin it too much but would have went a long way.