The Da Vinci Code (19 May 2006)
directed by Ron Howard
starring Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Ian McKellen, Jean Reno, Paul Bettany, Alfred Molina, Jürgen Prochnow, Jean-Yves Berteloot, Etienne Chicot, Jean-Pierre Marielle
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MPAA rating: Studio: Columbia Pictures, Imagine Entertainment, Sony Pictures Script: Akiva Goldsman Based on the book by: Dan Brown Music: Hans Zimmer Running time: 149 minutes Tags: albinos; art; Catholic church; Drama; Holy Grail; Leonardo da Vinci; Masons; Mona Lisa; Mystery; novel adaptation; Opus Dei; priests; religion; Thriller Tactical strength: [5/10]
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for disturbing images, violence, some nudity, thematic material, brief drug references and sexual content
Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks), Harvard professor of symbology, goes to Paris to give a lecture and ends up on a quest for the holy grail. The French police suspect Langdon of murdering a senior curator (Jean-Pierre Marielle) of the Louvre, but Sophie Neveu (Audrey Tautou), a police cryptologist and granddaughter of the curator, helps Langdon escape police custody. Neveu's grandfather served as the head of a secret society, the Priori of Sion, that has protected the Holy Grail and kept it hidden for centuries. Supposedly such notable persons as Leonardo da Vinci and Isaac Newton once once served as heads of the Priori. Langdon and Neveu follow the clues left by her grandfather in his dying moments. Looking for help with some of the clues, Langon turns to noted grail scholar Sir Leigh Teabing (Ian McKellen). Teabing helps fill in some missing information and secures the entire group's escape to England, legendary home of the grail. Both the French police and the Catholic church have agents hot on Langdon's trail. Captain Bezu Fache (Jean Reno) has an "always gets his man" reputation to uphold, and Silas (Paul Bettany) an albino monk wants to protect the Church's version of history by destroying the grail.
Only rarely can the movie adaptation of a book surpass the book's quality. I know that millions have read and liked Dan Brown's book, but the book has interesting ideas hung on a weak plot. A mediocre book usually makes for a mediocre screenplay, and only the major talent and a big budget save the film from self-destruction. For example, much of the book relies on a particular interpretation of historical events, which requires long pages of historical narrative from Langdon and Teabing. The movie does much of the same thing, but usually the narrative gets delivered during a high-speed chases. Only highly skilled actors such as Hanks and McKellen could deliver such dry historical facts and still keep our interest, and director Ron Howard manages to keep up the movie's pace while still giving enough historical detail for most audience members to keep up. (Although, I have heard a lot of complaints from people who hadn't read the book that they couldn't make any sense of the plot.)
I have to say The Da Vince Code has way more acting talent than necessary. Jean Reno easily portrays the police captain Bezu Fache, and Reno seems to always want to put more into the character but is held back either by direction or the script. Paul Bettany also easily fills the role of Silas, the albino hit man for the Catholic church. Although Bettany plays the role with ease, the makeup department doesn't seem to have the ability to make a convincing albino character. Albinos have no skin pigment, so they have all white skin and pink eyes. In several scenes, Bettany appears naked in a candlelit room, and except for his face he looks to have a healthy tan, rather than colorless skin.
The Da Vinci Code has some better than average chase scenes and a few tense moments, but doesn't deliver the major punch at the end one would expect from all the hype. I recommend reading the book first, then see the movie if you like the work of the cast in other efforts.
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The Da Vinci Code written by Dan Brown
