A flawed but still entertaining adaptation

Rating: 6/10 (20 May 2006)

Let me start by saying that I'm quite a fan of Dan Brown. His books, while often over the top and not very believable, do have a lot going for them: lots of suspense, high pace, interesting facts and theories, and fun characters.
Ron Howard's movie adaptation stays remarkably true to the book, so many of the things that apply to the novel apply to the film as well. That means that if you're looking for something really deep or thought-provoking, you should look elsewhere. But if you want to be entertained, you could do a whole lot worse than watching the "Da Vinci Code".
For the most part, I've found DVC a reasonably fast-paced and fun action thriller. After a somewhat slow start, it actually becomes fairly suspenseful roller-coaster ride full of twists and turns. The fast pacing and constant stream of information that is poured over the viewer almost hide the fact that the actual plot as such is even less believable than that of the book, though. The ease with which the main characters elude the police at every turn and solve the most complex riddles in mere seconds is really a bit hard to grasp.
That being said, having a 125 million dollar budget certainly helps the movie. For one, the budget really shines through in the production values: DVC is beautifully shot and very atmospheric.
Secondly, it allowed the makers to hire a very talented cast of actors who mostly do a good job. Ian McKellen is obviously having the time of his life and steals every scene he's in. Jean Reno does yet another cliché French cop part, but he's very good at that part so I don't mind. And Audrey Tautou is just as lovely as ever. Oddly enough, Tom Hanks is surprisingly disappointing. His Robert Langdon goes through the movie almost as a zombie, devoid of any kind of emotion. Paul Bettany as Silas didn't really work either...he wasn't nearly as frightening as he was supposed to be.
In the end, DVC is a reasonable adaptation of a good book. It's for the most part an beautiful, well-made and entertaining action thriller that contains some amusing theories. It might have been better with a director and script-writer who were willing to take a bit more risk and/or add a bit more of themselves into the movie instead of sticking so closely to the book, but it's still solid entertainment *** out of *****