As Trite As Religion Itself. A Bland, Overlong & Convoluted Conspiracy Theory.

Rating: Null/10 (13 June 2017)

As tripe as religion itself, Ron Howard's The Da Vinci Code manages to create a sense of interest in its opening moments and is involving to a certain extent but the longer it goes on, the more absurd it becomes. Convoluted, inflated & packed with provocative Christian allegories, it's simply a series of nonsensical twists & turns that goes on for far too long.
The story of The Da Vinci Code follows an American symbologist & a French cryptographer as they team up to investigate a grisly murder the former is suspected of. With the help of clues present in Leonardo da Vinci's works, the two attempt to connect the dots and end up discovering a religious mystery that could shake the very foundations of Christianity.
Directed by Ron Howard (best known for Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind & Rush), The Da Vinci Code is intriguing at first, opening with the event that sets its story into motion, but it starts getting more n more confusing as the story progresses and its endless barrage of exposition crosses that fine line after which you just don't care where it's headed and wait for it to end.
While the storytelling aspect suffers from multitudes of issues, the technical aspects make the ride a little less frustrating. Set pieces are meticulously detailed, camera-work is fluid and captures each moment in a clear, concise fashion, and Hans Zimmer further enriches everything with an excellent score. Editing, however, is messed up and is unable to provide the level of transparency the picture required.
Coming to the acting department, the film features an impressive ensemble in Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Ian McKellen, Alfred Molina, Jean Reno & Paul Bettany but their respective characters lack the required depth. Hanks is in as Robert Langdon and is surprisingly wooden in the role, Tautou is often clueless & confused, not to mention that there's virtually no chemistry between the two. And the only good performance comes from McKellen.
On an overall scale, The Da Vinci Code garnered as much controversy as its source material at its time of release but it's one overlong, boring & bewildering conspiracy theory that isn't even worth the time or money. Whatever interest was generated within its first act goes out the window in the next, following which the story heads into the pretentious zone and unleashes one laughable twist after another before finally concluding on an unrewarding & forgettable note.