I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again...Tom Hanks is incapable of making a bad movie and “DaVinci Code” just further proves my point.
Fans of Dan Brown can all rejoice now because it’s official, "The DaVinci Code" is a box office sensation. Being a fan of the book, and some of his other work I was more than excited to see this movie this past weekend. When I heard this film was being made over a year ago I was a bit skeptical because let’s face it, very rarely do movies ever live up to the books they are based on (Lord of the Rings being the exception). However, once I heard that Ron Howard was directing Tom Hanks (one of my all time favorite actors), Ian McKellan, Paul Bettany, and Alfred Molina my reservations slowly began to slip away.
Having just seen the movie I can honestly say that fans of the book (the reasonable ones, not the hardcore nerds that don’t think any book should ever be turned into a movie) will be pleased with the final result.
For those of you that haven’t read the book (shame on you) I’m going to post a brief synopsis of the story to help bring you all up to speed...
While in Paris on business, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) receives an urgent late-night phone call: the elderly curator of the Louvre has been murdered inside the museum. Near the body, police have found a baffling cipher. Solving the enigmatic riddle, Langdon is stunned to discover it leads to a trail of clues hidden in the works of Da Vinci - clues visible for all to see, and yet ingeniously disguised by the painter. Langdon joins forces with a gifted French cryptologist, Sophie Neveu (Audrey Tautou), and learns the late curator was involved in the Priory of Sion - an actual secret society. In a breathless race through Paris, London and beyond, Langdon and Neveu match wits with a faceless powerbroker who appears to work for Opus Dei - a clandestine, Vatican-sanctioned Catholic organization believed to have long plotted to seize the Priory’s secret. Unless Langdon and Neveu can decipher the labyrinthine puzzle in time, the Priory’s secret - and a stunning historical truth - will be lost forever.
The movie does have it’s flaws such as some slow-paced scenes, stiff dialogue and moments where you’re asking the person next to you “what just happened?”, but as a whole I really do think this movie has been treated unfairly by critics. As I’ve said before, very rarely do movies ever live up to the books they are based on...in fact the “LOTR” trilogy is probably the only movies I can think of that manage to do so. Having said that you sort of have to go into those movie knowing that it’s not going to be AS GOOD as the original novel. Despite their best efforts no Hollywood studio can ever compete with the power of the human imagination, therefore I can easily see how some people would be turned off to this film because it’s not how THEY envisioned it.
When I go to see movies like this I try to tell myself “ok just go in with an open mind” and usually (not always) I find myself pleasantly surprised by the final product--this was true when I want to see "Chronicles of Narnia".
Personally, I liked the movie, in fact I may go see it again just to make sure I didn’t miss anything the first time around. As I’ve said before, Tom Hanks is one of the greatest actors of all time and just adding his name to any film instantly lends it a level of credibility that is hard to achieve otherwise. Everyone in the cast delivers solid performances, especially Paul Bettany who plays an albino-assassin-monk named “Silas” who can make your skin crawl with just a glance.
Does the movie have it’s flaws? yes it does, specifically how it seems to either skip over certain parts or just blow thru them quickly. Is the movie a bit long? depends, do you think 2hrs 45min is long? Is it as good as the book? No--BUT it is an enjoyable film made by a very talented director (why Cinderella Man tanked is beyond me) featuring an all-star cast that is really second to none.
Despite this film not being for everyone, it will appeal to those people who are able to keep an open mind going in, and I actually think that those people who have NOT read the book (yeah all 10 of them) will find it the most enjoyable.