Everything but gripping or interesting

Rating: 3/10 (21 December 2007)

After being a long time admirer of both Tom Hanks and Ron Howard, I was personally disappointed that they would both be involved in the film version of a book that, as the Christian I am, I would disapprove. Either way, I was tempted enough to watch the movie. Well, besides the ever so present religious content, I was still left disappointed. It does have some good production values and good performances, average choral music and the classic chase sequences, one after the other. Being left horrified after watching Tom Hanks' incredibly disgusting hair do, and his notorious miscast from the entire film (I haven't read the book, but from what I have known, Robert Langdon was supposed to be way more younger)I pretty much was left speechless. Not because of the shock or the amazement that was the oh, so incredible secret (Jesus being married, which I oh, so incredibly didn't buy for a second) but because of the amazingly boring, pointless and anti-climatic middle and final acts, specially the way Langdon figures out the password. It was completely rushed, cheesy and pretentious, and in no way logical or explainable.
Funny, though. The film's title is "The Da Vinci Code", however, there was no real Da Vinci code in the whole story. The "Apple" password for the codex was what could almost pass as the title's reference, but, come on, you know that wasn't the story's center.
The whole crew was focused on the controversy around the idea of Jesus Christ being married and having kin (which, if you read your own Bible, doesn't make any sense), and the producers spent more time trying to make it more of an impact, that they totally left everything else unattended.
Ian McKellen's so called "Explanation" was more paranoid and confusing than accurate. So what if Holy Gail in french means the same as Royal Blood? What does that have to do with anything?
I thought the movie was pretentious and not very smart. I mean "You could be the descendant of Jesus Christ" doesn't sound like a real or likely dialog to be said, or written. Besides, WE ARE ALL SONS OF GOD, if you didn't hear the preacher's latest sermon.
My general recommendation for any reader is to avoid this movie. And not because of the religious aspect, I couldn't care less whether the viewer was life changed about it or not. It is really a boring, anti-climatic and self indulgent work, and a not very good adaptation from its source material. It's just an excuse from Hollywood to capitalize for a sensitive and popular theme.
National Treasure was much, much better than this.