Pain in the Brain ...

Rating: Null/10 (24 May 2009)

I didn't read the book that this movie is based on, so I had no idea what to expect going in. What I found was a movie with a great opening and ending, but with a painful experience for all the time in between.
For me, most of the movie consisted of Tom Hanks motor-mouthing a barrage of historical references and connections I had no understanding of. It was too fast and detailed to make any sense of.
Of course, I understood the overall plot: the race to find 4 Vatican cardinals before they are executed, as well as an antimatter bomb before it explodes in Vatican City.
But again, the convoluted "aha" moments of the lead character (Hanks) were so incomprehensible that all I could do was to watch as he went from one place to another. At that level of viewing, the movie was formulaic and boring.
The only saving grace of this movie was the brief opening sequence and the ending segment. My recommendation: you'll probably be better off reading the book (which I hear is very good), then watching this movie. Otherwise, the critics have this one right (see Rotten Tomatoes); the approval rating from critics is under 40%.