OK, so “Angels and Demons”; starring Tom Hanks and Ewan McGregor and directed by Ron Howard; the rest are unknowns, at least to me. Well, the Dan Brown books sold like a frenzy when “Da Vinci Code” hit the cinemas and bookstores a couple of years ago. People were angry, and tourist visits to the Vatican spiked and even vandalized the place; just because they were so engrossed in the book. Hate to disappoint you, but if you want real religion and historical accuracy; Dan Brown cannot give that to you.
However, Dan Brown can give Ron Howard an excellent pretext for a good movie. The movie winds in and out pretty seamlessly but it felt way shorter than the book; which is a given, but there seem to be too many ‘empty scenes’; beautiful scenes which do not add to the story. There might be a time and place for scenes like this (e.g. “Lord Of The Rings”) but “Angels and Demons” is not a license to take in minutes of light bathing Tom Hanks through a church window.
However, it is an exciting movie to go to if only you understand the Roman Catholic church, its history and the conflict between religion and man. You may also be angry if you do understand this since you will probably be religious yourself, but that is an entirely different matter. Like I said earlier, this is fiction.
But there was nothing fictitious about Ewan McGregor’s acting. All I could think of was him on his darn BMW motorcycle zooming past the dusty plains of Mongolia whenever he appeared, but even with my prejudice, he seemed to carry his role very well; complete with his native accent.
There is a twist at the end which lately movies seem to lack! This makes it half predictable but not entirely. It’s as if you know its coming, but you don’t want to feel stupid if it doesn’t happen; so you think it’s not going to happen. But when it DOES happen; you go AHA!
Watch it for a couple of hours of suspense and drama coupled with a hint of twisted history about the Roman Catholics, and you will have more than your fair share of satisfaction.
