A fine movie that remains true to the book

Rating: 9/10 (29 May 2006)

I just got back from watching 'The Da Vinci Code' and I think Ron Howard has made a brilliant movie. He has been so true to the book that no Dan Brown fans can complain. Other than 'The Da Vinci Code', I have also enjoyed reading 'Angels and Demons' and 'Digital Fortress', and I am definitely a fan. I think Dan Brown is a gifted storyteller and achieves what any writer aspires for - people to obviously first buy his books(!), then think about them and discuss them. My companions at the movie had not read the book, so my initial thought was that they were brave to watch the movie first. Yes, things happen at such a fast pace that sometimes you are left reeling! But all three of them loved the movie as well, and are off to read the book now!
Let me warn you here that I am an Indian and have grown up watching movies that are, on an average, three and a half hours long! So two and a half hours is child's play :-), but if the movie does seem a tad too long at the end, I think that is a direct consequence of the book - I thought that Dan Brown outdid himself with the cryptex breaking scene, and anything after that had too much to compete with!
Ian McKellan is delightful (as always). Just listening to his voice asking Langdon the three questions to gain entry makes you realize you are in for a treat! And I feel that Teabing's last scene as he is driven away in the car is longer than necessary to allow for applause!!
For the first part of the movie, I thought other than being very French - avec accent and petite form - Audrey Tatou was very weak and contributed little else, but she kind of gets more involved in her role as the movie goes on, and I think her final scene where she dips her shoe into the pond and gives Tom Hanks a winning smile with a twinkle in her eye was a touch of genius at the end - it relieved both the built-up tension at that point in the movie and elicited the most appreciative laughter from the audience in my theater.
I thought Paul Bettany was fantastic - what a talented actor. After seeing what a likable guy he is (on a talk show), I can now appreciate his acting abilities - the disturbing portrayal of a troubled soul - all the more.
Tom Hanks seemed a bit wooden - for Tom Hanks, that is... I think being such a fine actor, he makes it look so easy - too easy sometimes, almost like he is less than completely involved. Although, to be fair to him, I think he was true to Dan Brown's Robert Langdon, and other than spontaneously morphing into a young Harrison Ford, Tom Hanks could really have done little else to improve on his character!
Technically brilliant, with the past and present woven together with magnificent special effects, and an appropriately haunting musical score to boot. All in all, definitely an enjoyable afternoon's viewing!