Movie Review: The Da Vinci Code

May 20, 2006 in Film/TV

I can only come up with one word to describe Ron Howard’s movie adaptation of Dan Brown’s best-selling novel “The Da Vinci Code.” That word is anomaly. People often complain that movies do not live up to the books that inspire them because directors opt for plot changes and are forced to leave important details out. Now people are complaining because Ron Howard came along and made a movie that actually does accurately represent this fairly complex book.

The movie is more like a “videobook” than a cinematic work of art. For me it was a great way to relive the adventures of Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu. As a separate work of art it deserves little acclaim. It certainly won’t win any awards for directing, acting, or cinematography. But in this case, I’m perfectly happy with that. For the casual moviegoer I can understand how the complexity of the codebreaking and symbolism which Ron Howard painstakingly includes in the film can detract from it’s appeal. But for the detail-oriented thinkers out there who thoroughly enjoyed the book, I think this movie is quite entertaining. My rating: 8 out of 10.