Movie Review: Angels & Demons

* Where there are movie reviews, there will be movie spoilers.

A hushed battle, hidden from the public, has been going on under our eyes and nose for centuries. A battle almost as old as light versus dark, a battle which involves many great figures, it bears its head once more from slumber to seek vengeance for the slained, for beliefs. It is a battle between faith and science, a battle between the Catholic church and the Illuminati.

No matter the different opinions the world has had over Dan Brown's famous, or infamous, books, 'The Da Vinci Code' and its sequel 'Angels & Demons', you must give credit to his ability to tie religion, art, and history together. No doubt that a lot of research must have been made to ensure that the plot remained believable to the point of being factual and true, as I understood alot of people took it to be.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="217" caption="Angels & Demons (from thecinemasource.com)"][/caption]

Following the success, or rather the major love-hate publicity received, of 'The Da Vinci Code', the filmmakers continued Robert Langdon's educational journey of understanding the church and the many secrets surrounding it. From helping to uncover the secret left by Leonardo Da Vinci and safeguarding the last descendant of Jesus Christ, Robert Langdon (still played by Tom Hanks) now finds himself rushing against time to prevent the slaughter of 4 Preferitis due to become the next Pope and saving the lifes of the people in Vatican City. As per the plot in the previous movie, Robert Langdon and his team follow a series of age-old clues around the city.

It took me a while to get into the mood of the film. I find myself more adaptable to 'The Da Vinci Code' than to its sequel and I had to struggle a few times to get my head out of the whole 'Jesus Christ's biggest secret' and into 'the secret brotherhood of the Illuminati'. Be warned, at the beginnings of the film, you'll be wondering whether you stumbled into the wrong movie theater as it starts off like a spy-cum-scientific film and is spoken mainly in a foreign language.

I think the biggest flaw of this whole film was the foreign language spoken (was it French or Latin, I wonder) in numerous scenes throughout the movie. While those reading the Chinese and Malay subtitles (like me) would understand the dialogue, those who don't will find themselves lost at sea. They really must put the English translation during those scenes, even though some people overseas might understand the language. Think of the entire world, people! :curse:

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="322" caption="Some of the stars in action (from guardian.co.uk)"][/caption]

The plot is, in my opinion, somewhat a bit over the top. I mean, come on, one singular man plotting revenge against a whole city? Killing a renowned scientist, inflitrating a top secret research lab, stealing a scientific matter capable of bombing a whole city, kidnapping four grown men and overpowering the police and Swiss Guard? A bit tad much, don't you think? Even a whole group of masterminds will take days to execute all that and this lone guy does it within a day? :shock: We need more men like this in the army, police force and CSI.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="350" caption="Vittoria Vetra & Robert Langdon searching through a church (from z.about.com)"][/caption]

The movie is kind of like a documentary of the churches in Vatican City. Robert Langdon went to at least five of them in the course of the movie and we even get to see a library of sorts under the city where past books and treasures are kept in well-preserved rooms. There's a scene in this library that is filled with tension and ends with a sort of dark humour. I enjoyed that scene tremendously. :-D

The filmmakers did a mistake!! Well, perhaps it was intentional and perhaps it might escape the viewers' notice but it was soooo obvious to me. The real prepetrator actually revealed himself in one sentence that just sounded odd when he said it. Seriously, the filmmakers need to edit that or rewrite that dialogue. It was a total give-away and instantly aroused my suspicions and I was right!! :victory:

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Ewan McGregor as Camerlengo Patrick McKenna (from hollywood.com)"][/caption]

Aside from that maybe intentional,goof, IMDB (the Internet Movie DataBase) website has not reported any additional goofs. Either the filmmakers did too good a job or IMDB does not want to get involved in the battle that seems to be going on off and on the Net regarding the movie's 'blasphemy' of the church and take on the Illuminati

If you're observant, you can note the difference between the extras and the real people. There was a scene where you can clearly see people gawking at Tom Hanks and the film crew as well as some barriers erected to prevent non-casts coming onto the set.

Personally, I like 'The Da Vinci Code' better but my boyfriend prefers 'Angels & Demons'. He says it's easier to understand.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="288" caption="Conferencing on the next step (from filmofilia.com)"][/caption]

This controversial movie is perhaps a mind-bender for a lot of people but I admire how they are able to put the plot and the movie together even with all the filming restraints against them. Filled with action, tension, beautiful scenes of Vatican City and informative dialogue on religion and history, this film is a must-watch for those who are open-minded enough. You'll be surprised at the ending as the complicated plot becomes even more so, and what you may have thought or deduce throughout the movie will shatter with new unforeseen revelations.

P.S: I'm kind of glad that my religion does not allow statues. Some of the statues and artworks shown in the movie are quite scary to me, no offense.

Camerlengo Carlo Ventresca (a.k.a Patrick McKenna in the film): Open the doors, and tell the world the truth.