More Of An In Between Thing Going On (Angels and Demons (DVD))

Member Name: GoFigure

Product:	Angels and Demons (DVD)
Date:	24/10/09 (70 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Skilfully directed, great special - effects and acting . . . entertaining.

Disadvantages: The storyline is a bit too tame and predictable.

Director: Ron Howard
Screenplay: David Koepp & Akiva Goldsman
Genre: Mystery - Drama - Thriller
Country: USA
Certification: 12+
Language: English/Italian/French... etc.


MAIN CAST:


Tom Hanks [Robert Langdon]
Ewan McGregor [Camerlengo Patrick McKenna]
Ayelet Zurer [Vittoria Vetra]
Stellan Skarsgård [Commander Richter]
Pierfrancesco Favino [Inspector Olivetti]
Nikolaj Lie Kaas [Assassin]
Armin Mueller-Stahl [Cardinal Strauss]


Having managed to create a tiny quantity of anti-matter and stored it successfully in a 'supposedly' fool-proof container, Leonardo Vetra, the physicist in charge, is murdered and the container is stolen... which forces his daughter Vittoria, also a physicist working on the project, to attempt to find the assassin/thief before he uses the anti-matter (which was created in order to give the world free energy) as a weapon of mass destruction.

Meanwhile, the assassin/thief has managed to kidnap four cardinals, each of which could potentially become the successor to the Pope who has just passed away, and sent a message to the Vatican stating that the cardinals will be killed within an hour of each other, and that the final blow against the church will come one hour after the cardinals' deaths when the container holding the anti-matter finally runs out of power (the battery will run out) and explodes beneath the Vatican - when this occurs, the Illuminati's revenge, after years of persecution (in the past), will be complete.

Not knowing what else to do, the church calls on the only person who can decipher the clues left by the assassin/thief before he murders the cardinals and uses the anti-matter to destroy the Vatican... and, potentially, most of Italy... that person is Robert Langdon, a Harvard symbolist and writer who is not particularly liked by the church because of his work.

Together with Vittoria and Inspector Olivetti, Robert Langdon will have to unravel the mystery of the Illuminati, discover the location where the group used to meet in secret, save the cardinals before they are executed, find the anti-matter container, and stop the assassin/thief before he makes good on this threat... and he's got just a couple of hours to go before the first cardinal is scheduled to be executed.

'Angels & Demons', directed by the great Ron Howard, is a cinematic masterpiece that was expertly and painstakingly put together using special-effects, gothic backgrounds, and a storyline that plays itself more like a videogame than a movie... added to this an obscure and intense atmosphere that matches the claustrophobic spaces found within the Vatican's ancient crypts and secret passages, and this movie can be nothing other than entertaining - and so it is, but, unfortunately, not as entertaining or full-bodied as the movie's predecessor, 'The DaVinci Code'.

Although I enjoyed this movie, I was, at the same time, slightly disappointed by the lack of 'mystery' and by a somewhat 'toned down' storyline that is far too predictable, and by action scenes that just seem to fall short of brilliant. The whole thing was quite tame... there wasn't the chaotic heart-pounding race against time that should have been present, and there was a definite lack of tension.

There are a few memorable scenes in this movie that will linger long after the storyline has faded from memory, all thanks to Ron Howard's skilful direction, some brilliant special-effects and Tom Hanks' extraordinary acting skills, however, the movie's lack of a solid storyline lets it down in the end.

All in all, there is absolutely nothing 'really' wrong with this movie - it's entertaining, loaded with action scenes, possesses a fair bit of mystery and an ounce of suspense, and the actors have given a stunning performance that, although unworthy of an Oscar, is worthy of the viewer's time and attention. There's a great atmosphere attached to this movie that draws the viewer in, and although there's very little to wrap your brain around, it's easy to watch.

Summary: A writer must uncover the secrets of the Illuminati before an assassin destroys the Vatican.