ANGELS & DEMONS

ANGELS & DEMONS (Columbia Pictures)
Directed by Ron Howard

Believe it or not, it’s been three years since Dan Brown’s own THE DA VINCI CODE turned Hollywood and this country upside down with its radical thought provoking antics, using some of the most cherished religious history as its bait. The book alone spent nearly 200 weeks on the NY Times Best-Selling list, so after the film grossed over $750 million worldwide back in 2006, it was almost a no-brainier for the producers to base a film around Brown’s “other” notable piece of fiction, Angels & Demons, which ironically came before its predecessor. And having read both books, even after watching THE DA VINCI CODE, I still felt Angels & Demons on the big screen would be better. Not, so much for the controversy, as the prequel doesn’t touch nearly as many nerves as The Da Vinci Code, but for the excitement of the story and how one twisted plan could turn the Vatican inside out. That’s why ANGELS & DEMONS was the better book and precisely why it has just become the better film of the two, as I can’t help but relish in all the thrilling moments of clarity and intrigue this story is consumed with.

Like its predecessor, the story here is based entirely on the novel by the same name, which sits among the top 5 best-selling books today. That’s right, all those fans that only read The Da Vinci Code are now seeing what some of us already knew when it came to Angels & Demons, which is simply that it’s a much better and faster read. And like its predecessor, the story here centers on Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks), who just can’t seem to stay away from the Catholic Church. For Langdon, studying ancient symbolism in history and religion was more than just a job; it was his life and for years he worked to make a name for himself as the token expert when it came to religious figures and symbols. So, Langdon wasn’t shocked when the director of CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) showed up at Harvard to inform him of a terrible murder involving one of CERN’s own physicists Leonardo Vetra, who was branded with the ambigram symbol of the word Illuminati. A tragedy that just so happened to occur within days of the pope being found dead, forcing the papal conclave to convene, in order to elect the new pontiff. Knowing the history of this underground organization, Langdon couldn’t believe this legendary secret society was resurfacing, much less collaborating and kidnapping with intent to kill the four Preferiti, cardinals considering to be the favorites to be the next pope. And to make matters worse, the Illuminati also have stolen a very delicate canister, no larger than a quarter of a gram, of ‘antimatter’ from CERN, and hidden it within the confines of the Vatican. Antimatter, if combined with the slightest piece of normal matter would unleash a nuclear explosion large enough to wipe out the entire Vatican city. So, as the clock ticks down on the battery backup, which just so happens to be the power stabilizing the antimatter within the stolen canister, Langdon and company attempt to travel through the maze or dubbed “Path of Illumination” of historical clues and hints, all leading to a conclusion that will have you on the edge of your seat in more ways than one.

For those that thought Tom Hanks was the wrong fit the first time around in THE DA VINCI CODE, I would hope this time you would see the logic behind director Ron Howard’s decision to make Hanks the protagonist character. Hanks has done it all, and to me fits right into the shoes of Langdon, who most readers of the famed books pictured a certain way. But, instead of fitting your own mental depiction of Langdon into Hanks, why not let Hanks fit into Langdon? It’s a difficult task for some people, but crucial into seeing just how good Hanks really is in this role. Sure, it’s not the most dramatic role he has played, but he makes sure you are focused on his character and not him, the actor, which is all you can ask from a star like Hanks. Playing opposite Hanks for most of the film was Ayelet Zurer, who played scientist Vittoria Vetra, who was the resident CERN expert on antimatter. Zurer was good and a much better addition to Hanks, than Audrey Tautou was in THE DA VINCI CODE, not that either one was meant to steal the show. That task belonged to Ewan Megregor, who turned in quite the unique role as the Pope’s number two and acting head of the Vatican during this time, also known as the Camerlengo. This role may not look on the surface that great, but his part to the story provided the most intrigue and by films end, the most excitement. But, maybe the diamond in the rough to this cast was Armin Mueller-Stahl, who played the often calm and wise Cardinal Strauss, who was voted as the ‘elector’ during the papal conclave. His presence alone gave certain validity to the story and on goings behind those sacred closed doors within the church.

Believe it or not, ANGELS & DEMONS is just the second film based off a book which I have read, that I have seen in my life; THE DA VINCI CODE being the first. And it’s fitting that the two films coincide with each other, yet are so different in nature, that you find yourself reliving the books all over again, all be it on much lower scale. Because the reality is, no movie will ever match up the book, especially in this case where the book far exceeded any expectations I had after being blown away with The Da Vinci Code initially. Knowing that, I went into this film with lower expectations, and the result was exactly what I was looking for. Sure, it’s not as detailed as the book and if I tried to dissect it into a thousand little pieces, certain parts to the book might be missing, but who cares. As I said three years ago after watching THE DA VINCI CODE; to create the magic and excitement that Dan Brown was able to do with his words is not easy, so getting anywhere close to it would be an achievement in my mind. That was again true here, where director Ron Howard carefully maneuvered the camera in and out of space, allowing all the action and intrigue to unfold the way it was meant to, especially toward the end.

ANGELS AND DEMONS may not start a war of words between believers and non-believers the way THE DA VINCI CODE did, but it sure matched the intensity, plus some. The fact remains, these two films, although similar by the protagonist character, couldn’t be more different in look and feel, which is exactly what Dan Brown envisioned when he signed rights over. So, for Ron Howard to then take that vision and turn it sideways was impressive, all the while producing one very heart-stopping and entertaining thriller that might even have you talking more than its predecessor did when it’s all said and done.

A-