The Da Vinci Code

A boring source material that is even more boringly adapted, not to mention the inability to create at least a small dose of tension and dynamics. The screenwriter mixes together truth with myths and legends and creates is an unspeakable mess for the viewer, especially if they haven't read the book and are not familiar with religion. Tom Hanks doesn't do special and Audrey Tautou is there just for show. Only Paul Bettany, who is properly weird, is somewhat good. Ron Howard also completely fails to handle the more action-packed sequences. I haven't seen such muddled and restless cinematography during a nighttime chase in Paris in a long time. In the last ten minutes, we can see maybe five twists in short intervals, which completely demolished it for me. The most muddled and incomprehensible blockbuster of this year. (06/03/2006)

When the book came out and I was lucky enough to get it very early and read it, I was thrilled. Brown's deductions were almost unbelievable, it all made sense. Only now, over time, do I see that the boy excels mainly in research, which he takes great care with, and then the story crystallizes from it on its own. Let's be honest, without that research, there wouldn't be any story; it would just be a classic treasure hunt. He can write it (i.e. use the information he finds) and that is appreciated. Ron Howard's take on the film is Hollywood-esque and quite boring. The chase for riddles here sometimes comes across as almost childish. However, that doesn't change the fact that it works quite well and is a film that entertains. (04/19/2014)

Writer Dan Brown is definitely not going to become the new Umberto Eco, yet his book is quite readable. Unfortunately, the film version is rather unfortunate, given the literal adherence not only to individual scenes but often to the lines themselves, which somehow lose their meaning and logic without further explanation. This then becomes a continuous sequence of dialogues, from which the most fervent conspiracy theories, which so annoy the bigwigs in the Vatican, are suppressed into the background. Still, hats off to Ron Howard for making it flow relatively well despite the exorbitant runtime. If it wasn't for the awkward car chase that steals from The Bourne Identity and the rather clumsily filmed flashbacks, the film would have been more than decent because the scene where Langdon contemplates the cipher and the memory of Issac Newton's monument forms in front of him is amazing, as is the final kneeling. Tom Hanks is not suitable for the main role at all (the wannabe youthful look does not suit this actor), while on the other hand, Paul Bettany is excellent as the albino, including his precisely chosen accent. It’s a thriller worth a single watch, and if it hadn't had the heavy advertising, the copies in the video stores would have been covered in dust after a few months. (06/24/2006)

The Da Vinci Code is flat, tedious and visually unappealing. And for me, as an atheist who at most acknowledges faith in himself, the plot is also unappealing. With the exception of Ian McKellen, the actors are bland and the only thing above average here is Hans Zimmer’s dark music. I haven’t read the book, and now I definitely won’t read it. Typical Hollywood tripe sold through brilliant marketing. (06/11/2006)

A suspenseful and sufficiently intricate piece that was dangerously fashionable to criticize at the time. Traditionally excellent performances by Tom Hanks, the beautiful Audrey Tautou, and the devilish Paul Bettany in a story that is attractive in both historical and contemporary terms, as well as relationship and religious aspects. Without knowledge of the source material, it is demanding of the viewer's attention on the first viewing, and it is only during the second viewing that you can calmly fill in the context. (07/28/2006)