Don't bother with this movie if you liked the book

Rating: 3/10 (1 January 2007)

Terrible adaptation of the well known book. The script just could not figure out a way to translate the book into a story that makes sense on the screen. The intricate details of the book were either skipped or rattled off glibly as badly written dialog. Bad casting of Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou and Jean Reno in the lead roles led to acting that range from average to dismal. Hanks looks nothing like the character described in the book and was obviously chosen only to boost ticket sales. He simply falters in this role despite how talented an actor he is. Ian McKellen was the only actor that managed to make his role believable. Ron Howard's self-conscious and clumsy direction weighs the movie down further. Skip it and just read the book.