Universal Story, American Writer, International Cast

Rating: 9/10 (20 May 2006)

It took more than one year after I read The Da Vinci Code, the most popular and controversial novels of our time and just 2nd best sold after The Bible, more than one year until the adaptation was finally released.
The movie has an international cast headed by two time Academy Award winner Tom Hanks supported by Sir Ian McKellen, Alfred Molina and Jean Reno, every one of them a mega star. Audrey Tautou brings freshness to it in a "jolie" kind of way and Paul Bettany and Jurgen Prochnow are also not to be missed. Ron Howard is a great filmmaker, following Brown's formula (exotic setting, astonishing disclosures, a frenetic search for the truth and also the chase to cover it all). With the help of his crew he elevates it into a greater entertainment full of style and an aura of mystery that is undeniable.
I had VERY high expectations when I went to watch the movie. I already had my own image of the whole story and the characters and was mostly wondering how Tom Hanks / Robert Langdon will fit into it. He did! Maybe the fact that I am an European helped me enjoy this movie from a different perspective as well. Langdon (Hanks) is a Harvard Professor who brings the young American spirit into this who's who mystery network of french police-mens, Italian Clerc and English noblemen. He is trapped and drawn into solving a mystery as old as the world.
I think that beyond the story of the novel Hanks and the entire European part of the crew managed in a brilliant way to reveal this inter-cultural mixture. Wonderful! Another nice surprise was that, except for a few details left out, the movie follows the book religiously. The novel is quite dense and i suppose the director had only this much time on his hands. Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou and Jean Reno do a good job of not overplaying their roles, and Sir Ian McKellen (you might have seen him in The Lord of the Rings, X-Men and quite a few TV productions of Shakespeare's) overplays his in just the right way. Young Paul Bettany portrays a convincing Silas. Jurgen Prochnow, a leading man and strong character of the German stage and screen does a wonderful job during his short part as Andre Vernet. Sauniere himself is portrayed by one of the key stones of French cinematography, Jean-Pierre Marielle.
It has also been wonderful to me to so see the Louvre again - even if the Grand Gallery was build out of scratch in the studio. The paintings, the spectacular wooden floors - everything, even the window sole are part of the studio decor, but build identical to the real thing to millimeter. Bottom line, this is a movie not to be missed.
If you liked the book, like a good riddle, are a history lover or an art lover or you just want to enjoy a good cast, go and see it. In the theaters. Now.