Branded

Writer-directors Jamie Bradshaw and Alexander Doulerain's would-be anti-capitalist screed gets off to a bad start by identifying Lenin, of all people, as the founder of advertising. In the Russian-made Branded, after fast-food chains find their burger sales dwindling, they turn to the supposed world marketing guru (Max von Sydow), who suggests an outrageous scheme to change public attitudes about beauty by convincing society that thin is ugly and fat is beautiful. As part of the plot, the hero—an ad agency hack named Misha (Ed Stoppard), who is fingered as a villain—undergoes a weird ritual, after which he can see the desires implanted by marketing gurus as taking the form of, uh, bulbous creatures protruding from consumers' backs. Misha ostensibly attempts to destroy the entities driving hamburger consumption by convincing the populace that beef is unhealthful, but his true aim is to wipe out advertising-driven desires—and their related brands—by engineering a ban on all advertising. Wait, did I mention that the film is narrated by a constellation taking the form of an animated cow? Itself advertised as a Matrix-like tale of individualism versus authority, Branded is not recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by filmmakers Jamie Bradshaw and Alexander Doulerain, and trailers. Bottom line: a decent extras package for a cinematic dud.] (F. Swietek)