The Da Vinci Code (2006)

A murder inside the Louvre and clues in Da Vinci paintings lead to the discovery of a religious mystery protected by a secret society for two thousand years -- which could shake the foundations of Christianity.

Director:

Ron Howard

Writers:

Akiva Goldsman (screenplay), Dan Brown (novel)

Stars:

Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Ian McKellen

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 16 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Hanks	...	Robert Langdon
Audrey Tautou	...	Sophie Neveu
Ian McKellen	...	Sir Leigh Teabing
Jean Reno	...	Captain Bezu Fache
Paul Bettany	...	Silas
Alfred Molina	...	Bishop Manuel Aringarosa
Jürgen Prochnow	...	Andre Vernet
Jean-Yves Berteloot	...	Remy Jean
Etienne Chicot	...	Lt. Collet
Jean-Pierre Marielle	...	Jacques Saunière
Marie-Françoise Audollent	...	Sister Sandrine
Rita Davies	...	Elegant Woman at Rosslyn
Francesco Carnelutti	...	Prefect
Seth Gabel	...	Michael
Shane Zaza	...	Youth on Bus

Storyline

Symbologist Robert Langdon is thrown into a mysterious and bizarre murder. Alongside Langdon is the victims granddaughter and cryptologist Sophie Neveu, who with Robert discovers clues within Da Vinci's paintings. To further find the truth, Robert and Sophie travel from Paris to London, whilst crossing paths with allies and villains such as Sir Leigh Teabing and Silas. Wherever their path takes them, their discovery which is about to be revealed could shake the foundations of mankind.

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Plot Keywords:

secret | murder | chase | holy grail | secret society | 

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Taglines:

Seek the truth, seek the codes.

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Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for disturbing images, violence, some nudity, thematic material, brief drug references and sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Falcon and Columbia Pictures [cz] Official site [ru]

Country:

USA Malta France UK

Language:

English French Latin Spanish

Release Date:

19 May 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

El código Da Vinci

Filming Locations:

Albert R. Broccoli 007 Stage, Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$125,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$412,659 (South Africa) (26 May 2006)

Gross:

$217,536,138 (USA) (18 August 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, Imagine Entertainment, Skylark Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

149 min 174 min (extended cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS SDDS (8 channels)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The mural on the ceiling at the Cardinals' meeting place is called Hell, representing Aringarosa as a Fallen Angel.

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Goofs

When Silas shoots the Bishop, there is a shot from behind Silas where he bends down. You can see the shape of the mike battery pack under just above the rope tied around his waist to help support his robes.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Silas: Stop now. Tell me where it is.
[removes hood]
Silas: You and your brethren possess what is not rightfully yours.
Jacques Saunière: I don't know what you are talking about.
Silas: Is it a secret you will die for?
Jacques Saunière: Please...
Silas: As you wish.
[cocks gun]

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Crazy Credits

The "A" in "DA VINCI CODE" has no horizontal line, mirroring the "V", giving both the "Blade" and the "Chalice" of the masculine and feminine symbols described by Landgon in the movie.

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Connections

Referenced in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Echelon Conspiracy/Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li/Crossing Over (2009)

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Soundtracks

"Secrets"
Written by Flipper Dalton
Performed by Flipper Dalton, Libera Benedetti & Irina Björklund (as Irina Bjorklund)
Courtesy of Da Silva Entertainment

User Reviews

Could have been better... Should have been better.

If you take the most popular book in recent years, you should have the most popular movie since The Lord of the Rings, right? Wrong. Though the film was hotly debated, its cinematic quality and popularity aren't nearly as high as one would expect. Amid protests, pending lawsuits, and outright denouncements by Catholic officials, Ron Howard released his adaptation of Dan Brown's novel, The Da Vinci Code.

American symbologist Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) and French cryptologist Sophie Neveu (Audrey Tautou) are on a trans-European quest to solve riddles left by Louvre curator, Langdon's hero and Neveu's grandfather, Jacques Saunier, as he lay dying. The riddles and subsequent quest allegedly lead to the true identity and whereabouts of the famed Holy Grail. Hot in pursuit of the thinking man's Bonnie and Clyde is Javert-ian French police captain Bezu Feche (Jean Reno), intent on pinning the murder of Suanier on Langdon and Neveu, and albino monk, Silas (Paul Bettany) under the command of a mysterious telephone voice known only as The Teacher.

With a pedigree such as the most popular book in the world, two Academy Award winners (Hanks, Howard and writer Akiva Goldsman), French film superstars (Tautou and Reno) and Gandalf (Ian McKellen), you'd wonder how such a film could fail.

Well, how about the miscast of Howard as director. Howard lacks the vision to properly adapt the novel and bring it to life. Some of the blame does go to his Cinderella Man scribe Akiva Goldsman for not writing a fitting script. But Howard's awkwardness is more prominent. If we were going to pick name directors for this film, Steven Spielberg would have been better choice, but I think David Fincher (Se7en and Fight Club) would have been perfect.

The whole production felt rushed. Having just read the book, a lot of plot points were fresh in my mind, and that may have clouded the comprehension of certain things, which I think Howard and Goldsman were counting on. Looking back on it, the first 30-45 minutes were very rushed, and I don't think things were adequately explained. They were still referenced and used in the movie, but not explained well. It suffered from the, what I call, Godfather syndrome: referencing things from the book at the wrong time. They could have taken their time with the film, and it would have told the same story, and been a lot better.

Hanks was out of place as Landon, our hero. He doesn't have or project the same presence about him that Langdon should have. Might I suggest seasoned conspiracy theory veteran David Duchovny? As with Mission:Impossible:III, the supporting cast was impeccably put together, and the one true weakness of the cast is unfortunately the keystone (maybe it's just a bad year for actors named Tom).

Slightly better than your average summer fair, but still doesn't hold up when put against the equally action oriented yet wholly more insightful X-Men franchise.