The much-anticipated sequel to Da Vinci Code was finally shown yesterday and it was pretty darn good . Considering the fact that many of the fans and readers of Dan Brown’s two books were utterly disappointed by the Da Vinci Code, this one was going to try and live up to all the hype surrounding it. And in my opinion, the movie showed a different side of the Church and drew the line between science and religion pretty well. I really enjoyed the movie and was still trying to figure out who the traitor was until the end!
The story begins with the death of the Pope and also showed in parallel the Hadron Collider and how scientists were able to successfully put anti-matter in a container. But those same scientists were murdered, except for one, and the anti-matter stolen by an unknown entity. Robert Langdon, who was never able to finish his second book because the Church rejected his petition to enter the most secretive vault in the world. He is sought after to help in the investigation of what officials have discovered as the probable resurgence of the Church’s oldest and biggest threat, the Illuminati.
What follows is a non-stop ride of twists and turns and a hunt through sealed crypts, dangerous catacombs and deserted cathedrals. The movie is truly riveting and keeps you at the edge of your seat. When it was discovered that the Pope was murdered, it turned the entire Vatican upside down and led to a battle of wills within the Church. Everyone now knows there is a traitor within and that the Illuminati has managed to secretly infiltrate the Vatican. The problem was they had no idea who it was.
There was also the problem with the Illuminati bomb which was hidden where no one except Robert Langdon could find but only if he could figure out the clues in time. Each hour 1 of the 4 kidnapped cardinals, who are the would-be successors of the Pope, would be executed in line with the four elements of Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water, until midnight when the Illuminati bomb destroys the entire fabric of the Catholic Church’s existence. And the race for time begins for Robert Langdon.
It wasn’t an all-star cast but it definitely got the job done and I loved it. Tom Hanks played Robert Langdon unbelievably well while Ewan McGregor played his role as the Camerlengo to a tee. The other stars like Stellan Skarsgard who played Commander Richter and Armin Mueller-Stahl who played Cardinal Strauss were also very very good. I’m unsure as to why this was given terrible ratings by both Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB, but you have got to go see Angels & Demons as it definitely is not as bad as the critics say. I’d say it’s one of the best movies so far this year. Below is also a special on the movie for download and it’s around 175MB.
Personal Rating (out of 10): 8.9/10
IMDb User Rating (out of 10): 7.1/10
Starring: Tom Hanks, Ewan McGregor, Ayelet Zurer, Armin Mueller-Stahl
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Duration: 138 minutes
Links: Official Site, IMDB
Feature: Angels & Demons Special
May 17th, 2009 at 9:36 pm
i bet you haven’t read the book, i think i’d have to say the movie didn’t live up to my expectation.. as some major parts of the book were not shown…and they were pretty important in understanding Camerlengo’s character. PM me, and i’d tell you why, i dont wanna ruin it here, there might be some readers of your blog who haven’t watched or read it yet…
May 18th, 2009 at 8:44 am
yeah i haven’t but i think that’s the great thing about it. since i haven’t read the book i didn’t have any pre-conceived notions on how the movie should turn out so i sat there enjoying the movie as it was understood and creatively directed by Ron Howard. not at all disappointed, though i’d understand why people who’ve read the books, like you have, would be