Director Howard (Cinderella Man) is a skilled, popularist filmmaker. The Da Vinci Code reminds us of A Beautiful Mind in its dark, soft hues and intellectual overtone. Howard uses crosscutting effectively in telling the story from many points of view. While the film still comes across as confusing at some points, Howard does a good job streamlining the plot to make it comprehensible. He also adds character quirks and backgrounds for Langdon (he's claustrophobic) and Sophie (she has a unique gift of calming others) to smooth out the otherwise two-dimensional characters. While the intellectual and historical expositions in the book can be interminable, Howard actually makes a mistake by shortening and rushing through them, by using cheap digital transitional effects. In doing so, the true intrigue of the story (and not the run-of-the-mill treasure-hunt plot) is somehow lost. We want to solve the puzzles ourselves, but Howard doesn't allow us. What excites people about the story is not the wild goose chases or guns, but Robert Langdon's ability to break codes and solve puzzles using his intellect and knowledge, as well as the stories behind the mystery. As is, the film is a few bits short of being a complete code of success.
Stars: Tom Hanks,Audrey Tautou, Ian McKellen, Jean Reno, Paul Bettany, Alfred Molina, Jurgen Prochnow, Jean-Yves Berteloot, Etienne Chicot, Jean-Pierre Marielle
Director: Ron Howard
Writers: Akiva Goldsman (based on novel by Dan Brown)
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for disturbing images, violence, some nudity, brief drug references and sexual content
Running Time: 149 minutes
Rating:
Script – 7
Performance – 7
Direction – 7
Cinematography – 6
Music/Sound– 6
Editing – 7
Production – 8
Total – 6.7 out of 10
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