Disappointing big-budget adaptation of the Dan Brown bestseller.

Rating: 4/10 (30 July 2006)

I've read a couple of Dan Brown's books, finding them fun but ultimately disappointing due to their ridiculous plot twists and unbelievable conclusions; the author's prose is also less than sparkling.
But whatever you think of Dan Brown's writing skills, you've got to admire his ability to take an age old theme, thoroughly research it, weave a potboiler story around it and then sell the results to the masses. The Holy Grail has been the subject of countless books, but Brown's genius is to make it accessible to the average Joe. So, in THE DA VINCI CODE, he wraps the mystery of who or what is the Holy Grail in standard thriller clichés (murder, action, double-crosses), and serves up an easily digestible platter designed to appeal the widest possible market.
On paper, Ron Howard might seem like a reasonable choice for the job of bringing Brown's book to the silver screen; a popular Oscar-winning director, Howard specialises in film-making for the masses. But in tackling this tale of murderous zealots and religious conspiracies, Howard is, in fact, way over his head. Out of his usual territory (sappy dramas, family movies), he flounders with the mystery plot line and occasional action sequences. Poor old Ron just isn't made of the right stuff to tackle this controversial tale of murder and intrigue head on.
Brown's books tend to have complex and preposterous plots, and turning THE DA VINCI CODE into a convincing movie was always going to be a challenge. Howard gives it his best shot, but he ultimately fails to deliver a satisfying adaptation of the bestseller, ending up with a muddled effort which requires better structuring and more detail to be wholly satisfying (although with the film already running at a whopping two and a half hours, I can't imagine sitting through even more!).
The cast of the movie fare little better. With Howard at the helm, it was not at all surprising when lovable all-American Tom Hanks was chosen to play the hero of the story, famed symbologist Robert Langdon, and although Hanks is a versatile actor, this kind of role just doesn't seem to suit him; he spends most of the proceedings looking more than a little lost. The French contingent is equally unimpressive; Audrey Tatou, who plays his sidekick Sophie Neveu, struggles with the dreadful dialogue whilst Jean Reno plays his usual stock Frenchman with no enthusiasm. Only the Brits manage to give anything resembling a decent performance with Ian McKellen making the drivel he is forced to deliver sound plausible, and Paul Bettany stealing the show as albino assassin Silas.
The film glides through the contents of the book, sometimes glossing over certain points too quickly, and at other times labouring issues a little too much (Langdon's claustrophobia, for example, had no bearing on the plot yet was mentioned several times). Those uninitiated with the Grail mythosthe bloodline of Christ, the Merovingians, the Knights Templar, Mary Magdalene, the Priory of Sion et al.will probably find following proceedings a chore. After 150 minutes, even those with an interest in such things may have even had enough.