The Da Vinci Code
—1. Overview
—2. Cast and Crew
—3. Photo Pages
—4. Trailers, Clips, DVDs, Books, Soundtrack
—5. Posters (Tom Hanks)
—6. Production Notes (pdf)
—7. Spiritual Connections
—8. Presentation Downloads
Why did I like this book? I mean, I’m pretty sure I remember enjoying this story when I read the book. It wasn’t a literary masterpiece or anything, but it was a brisk adventure with some thrilling moments. Sure the overall story was pretty silly, but still, I had fun following the clues and seeing the characters solve the puzzles. But here I am, sitting in this darkened theater, watching a movie that follows pretty closely to what took place in the book, and somehow I’m finding it all a bit...dull. Where are thrills? Where’s the intrigue? The adventure? The mystery? The awe of discovery? Somehow from book to screen it’s all been lost, and now I can’t quite remember, why did I like this book in the first place?
These are thoughts that crossed my perplexed mind as I watched Ron Howard’s screen version of the mega best-selling book The DaVinci Code. After all the hype and controversy, I find it ironic that the one thing no one anticipated from this movie is that it would turn out to be so bad. Of course, how could it? It has such a high caliber of talent; Oscar winners both behind the camera and on the screen. There’s even an Oscar in the closet of the screenwriter, so surely this would be the summer event movie of the year, right? Well...not so much, and perhaps the real mystery of The DaVinci Code is how a story that seem to be perfect for the big screen, put together by some of the best in Hollywood, could turn out be such a dud.
There’s no denying that Tom Hanks is one of the best actors today, and perhaps in movie history. However, in The DaVinci Code, he just seems lost. Some critics have said that he seems bored or uninterested or asleep in his role, but to me he seemed confused. It was like he didn’t quite know what to do with the material he was given, like he was unsure of exactly how to deliver his lines. The movie itself seems to believe it’s a very serious and profound look at the fundamentals of Church and history, but Hanks seemed unsure of just how serious or profound he should act. In the end, I don’t think it was boredom that contributed to his wooden performance; it was uncertainty.
Another problem was the fact that Hanks’ character was changed. In the book, Robert Langdon firmly believes in the whole Grail/Magdalene/conspiracy story and therefore was truly motivated to pursue the clues and puzzles to find the Grail. In the movie, however, Langdon is a skeptic who isn’t quite sure what to believe about the events he’s caught up into. This uncertainty of the character almost undoubtedly contributed to the uncertainty with which Hanks portrayed him; and the results is a muddled mess. Add in the fact that he has zero chemistry with his co-star Audrey Tautuo (you almost wonder if they even liked each other, which I’m sure they did because everyone says Tom Hanks is such a nice guy), and the core component of the film, our two protagonists, become the most uninteresting part to watch. In fact, the only ones who really seem to be putting in any effort are Paul Bettany and Ian McKellen. The only interesting parts of the film were when they were on screen, but even then, I was hard pressed to follow along with McKellen’s verbose expository soliloquies; they made me feel like I was in school again and I was actually relieved when Bettany’s character jumped out on screen and attacked Hanks. Finally, I thought, someone got punched in the face. No really, I was that bored. How Ron Howard was able to take something that was fun to read and turn it into something you find hard to watch is quite an accomplishment. Perhaps this is because his heart wasn’t really in it, or at least that’s the way it feels as you watch. While Dan Brown enjoys a good conspiracy and while his characters had a passion for their pursuits in the book, all such passion is missing from the film version.
There have been entire books, several in fact, published on all the inaccuracies both historical and scriptural when it comes to The DaVinci Code, so I will not waste the time here to cover that which has been covered ad infinitum. The film and the book are about the search for the truth of who Jesus Christ is, and this is a quest that we all take part in, whether we realize it or not. We all have an opinion about Jesus Christ, and a film like The DaVinci Code will either confirm or confound those opinions. The question is; why do you believe what you believe? Have your opinions about Jesus been formed by the opinions of others; such as authors like Dan Brown and filmmakers like Ron Howard? Or are your opinions about Jesus the result of your own careful investigation into His story? Whether or not you agree with the claims of the book and/or film, let me suggest that you at least take the time to investigate these claims for yourself. There is no more important question in all of humanity than that of "Who do you say Jesus is?" Begin your own quest for truth and see where it leads you. If you truly follow the clues, I think you’ll find that it will lead you to surprisingly different conclusions than those of The DaVinci Code.
The DaVinci Code is a movie full of lofty ideas wrapped in the excitement and intrigue of a spy thriller...or at least it wants to be. As I watched, I felt as though this movie was desperately crying out for me to see just how seriously profound, deep, insightful and enlightening it was. My response however was, "...zzzzttt...what’s that? Oh, I’m sorry, I nodded off again. You were saying something you thought was important? Go ahead I’m listeni...zzzzz?"
— Overview
—2. Cast and Crew
—3. Photo Pages
—4. Trailers, Clips, DVDs, Books, Soundtrack
—5. Posters (Tom Hanks)
—6. Production Notes (pdf)
—7. Spiritual Connections
—8. Presentation Downloads
Why did I like this book? I mean, I’m pretty sure I remember enjoying this story when I read the book. It wasn’t a literary masterpiece or anything, but it was a brisk adventure with some thrilling moments. Sure the overall story was pretty silly, but still, I had fun following the clues and seeing the characters solve the puzzles. But here I am, sitting in this darkened theater, watching a movie that follows pretty closely to what took place in the book, and somehow I’m finding it all a bit...dull. Where are thrills? Where’s the intrigue? The adventure? The mystery? The awe of discovery? Somehow from book to screen it’s all been lost, and now I can’t quite remember, why did I like this book in the first place?These are thoughts that crossed my perplexed mind as I watched Ron Howard’s screen version of the mega best-selling book The DaVinci Code. After all the hype and controversy, I find it ironic that the one thing no one anticipated from this movie is that it would turn out to be so bad. Of course, how could it? It has such a high caliber of talent; Oscar winners both behind the camera and on the screen. There’s even an Oscar in the closet of the screenwriter, so surely this would be the summer event movie of the year, right? Well...not so much, and perhaps the real mystery of The DaVinci Code is how a story that seem to be perfect for the big screen, put together by some of the best in Hollywood, could turn out be such a dud.
There’s no denying that Tom Hanks is one of the best actors today, and perhaps in movie history. However, in The DaVinci Code, he just seems lost. Some critics have said that he seems bored or uninterested or asleep in his role, but to me he seemed confused. It was like he didn’t quite know what to do with the material he was given, like he was unsure of exactly how to deliver his lines. The movie itself seems to believe it’s a very serious and profound look at the fundamentals of Church and history, but Hanks seemed unsure of just how serious or profound he should act. In the end, I don’t think it was boredom that contributed to his wooden performance; it was uncertainty.
Another problem was the fact that Hanks’ character was changed. In the book, Robert Langdon firmly believes in the whole Grail/Magdalene/conspiracy story and therefore was truly motivated to pursue the clues and puzzles to find the Grail. In the movie, however, Langdon is a skeptic who isn’t quite sure what to believe about the events he’s caught up into. This uncertainty of the character almost undoubtedly contributed to the uncertainty with which Hanks portrayed him; and the results is a muddled mess. Add in the fact that he has zero chemistry with his co-star Audrey Tautuo (you almost wonder if they even liked each other, which I’m sure they did because everyone says Tom Hanks is such a nice guy), and the core component of the film, our two protagonists, become the most uninteresting part to watch. In fact, the only ones who really seem to be putting in any effort are Paul Bettany and Ian McKellen. The only interesting parts of the film were when they were on screen, but even then, I was hard pressed to follow along with McKellen’s verbose expository soliloquies; they made me feel like I was in school again and I was actually relieved when Bettany’s character jumped out on screen and attacked Hanks. Finally, I thought, someone got punched in the face. No really, I was that bored. How Ron Howard was able to take something that was fun to read and turn it into something you find hard to watch is quite an accomplishment. Perhaps this is because his heart wasn’t really in it, or at least that’s the way it feels as you watch. While Dan Brown enjoys a good conspiracy and while his characters had a passion for their pursuits in the book, all such passion is missing from the film version.
There have been entire books, several in fact, published on all the inaccuracies both historical and scriptural when it comes to The DaVinci Code, so I will not waste the time here to cover that which has been covered ad infinitum. The film and the book are about the search for the truth of who Jesus Christ is, and this is a quest that we all take part in, whether we realize it or not. We all have an opinion about Jesus Christ, and a film like The DaVinci Code will either confirm or confound those opinions. The question is; why do you believe what you believe? Have your opinions about Jesus been formed by the opinions of others; such as authors like Dan Brown and filmmakers like Ron Howard? Or are your opinions about Jesus the result of your own careful investigation into His story? Whether or not you agree with the claims of the book and/or film, let me suggest that you at least take the time to investigate these claims for yourself. There is no more important question in all of humanity than that of "Who do you say Jesus is?" Begin your own quest for truth and see where it leads you. If you truly follow the clues, I think you’ll find that it will lead you to surprisingly different conclusions than those of The DaVinci Code.
The DaVinci Code is a movie full of lofty ideas wrapped in the excitement and intrigue of a spy thriller...or at least it wants to be. As I watched, I felt as though this movie was desperately crying out for me to see just how seriously profound, deep, insightful and enlightening it was. My response however was, "...zzzzttt...what’s that? Oh, I’m sorry, I nodded off again. You were saying something you thought was important? Go ahead I’m listeni...zzzzz?"
— Overview
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