 In Ron Howard's thrilling follow-up to The Da Vinci Code, expert symbologist Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) follows ancient clues on a heart-racing hunt through Rome to find the four Cardinals kidnapped by the deadly secret society, the Illuminati. With the Cardinals' lives on the line, and the Camerlengo (Ewan McGregor) desperate for help, Langdon embarks on a nonstop, action-packed race through sealed crypts, dangerous catacombs, and the most secretive vault on Earth! Storyline: Following the murder of a physicist, Father Silvano Bentivoglio, a symbolist, Robert Langdon, and a scientist, Vittoria Vetra, are on an adventure involving a secret brotherhood, the Illuminati. Clues lead them all around the Vatican, including the four altars of science, Earth, Air, Fire and Water. An assassin, working for the Illuminati, has captured four cardinals, and murders each, painfully. Robert and Vittoria also are searching for a new very destructive weapon that could kill millions. Written by XXDustfingerXX Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Martin Liebman, November 12, 2009 -- Trust no one. While The Da Vinci Code bordered on comedy, delivering a superficially complex but ultimately paint-by-numbers laugher of a plot with one ridiculous contrivance after another, Angels & Demons manages to offer a somewhat tighter, more organic, and simply far more enjoyable romp through the world of past and present intermingled in a dangerous game of violence and deceit. It still suffers from some of the same problems that hindered its predecessor, namely somewhat shallow and superfluous side characters, plot contrivances, "secrets" that aren't the least bit difficult to discern well before the characters in the film manage to do so, and a sluggish pace. Still, the problems don't destroy the film, but they do weigh it down enough to keep this from being a real nail-biting winner. The latest film adapted from controversial author Dan Brown's library, Angels & Demons is billed as a sequel to The Da Vinci Code (the two share no real common story threads), but the novel was actually published before The Da Vinci Code. Nevertheless, Director Ron Howard, returning to once again helm a Brown novel-turned-film, injects Angels & Demons with a bit more focus and plenty of technical know-how, the result a film that's not great by any means but certainly watchable and far better than the critically-panned The Da Vinci Code. In Switzerland, the Large Hadron Collider -- a particle accelerator capable of creating "anti-matter" -- has just gone online, and Scientist Vittoria Vetra (Ayelet Zurer) finds a colleague murdered and the sensitive anti-matter stolen. Meanwhile, Symbolist Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks, Forrest Gump) is called to the Vatican after the untimely death of the Pope to help ward off a threat from an ancient and long-thought-defeated enemy of the Catholic Church, the Illuminati. With the help of Camerlengo Patrick McKenna (Ewan McGregor, Black Hawk Down), the man in charge of the Vatican until a new Pope is elected; and Commander Richter (Stellan Skarsgård, Ronin), head of the powerful Swiss Guard that protects His Holiness himself, Langdon is tasked with not only piecing together the puzzle of the Illuminati, but saving the lives of four kidnapped Cardinals and saving the Vatican itself from the anti-matter that has but hours until it explodes with enough force to obliterate the Vatican off the face of the Earth. Despite Angels and Demons' somewhat complex (if not slightly cumbersome) journey into the deepest bowels, darkest secrets, and complex hierarchal structure of the Vatican, Director Ron Howard makes the film rather accessible and easy to follow, despite a long runtime, an abundance of historical and technical jargon, and a moderately slow pace. The story delivers an interesting premise, made all the more fascinating by the dichotomy between the latest in modern technology and most ancient of places, beliefs, tales, and rituals. There's more of an aura of mystery about the picture, far more so than The Da Vinci Code, and while it's not too terribly difficult to figure out -- or at least make a smart guess based on observation and the tendency towards twist endings -- the film manages to keep up something of a decent shroud over the finer details of the story, at least for a while. Still, Angels & Demons delivers too much of a good thing, and after a while the film simply becomes less and less kinetic, dangerous, and fascinating and more and more cumbersome and dull. Clues start to jumble together, the film loses its sense of urgency and danger, and tension is kept to a minimum, save for a particularly excellent scene featuring Langdon coming to the rescue of a victim caught in a deadly and breathless trap. In the end, Angels & Demons is interesting but not smart, a picture that relies on stunning locations, strong technical attributes, and the semblance of a good story to mask the fact that it's nothing more than a big-budget ballyhooed example of the same old, same old. Fortunately, Angels & Demons sports excellent technical attributes that elevates the film a notch or two higher than it probably deserves. Tom Hanks delivers a scene-commanding and intelligent performance. He plays Dan Brown's hero well, particularly here, where his character seems more capable of going beyond the basic scholarly call of duty and getting his hands dirty in the process as he saves lives and uncovers a deadly conspiracy. Even when the situations and dialogue become somewhat nonsensical, Hanks maintains a confident aura that keeps the movie on a fairly even keel, and he does an excellent job of selling the material even when the material itself falls short. Ewan McGregor's character that plays pivotal to the film is fairly well developed but the Star Wars actor's effort leaves a bit to be desired, particularly in the delivery of his occasionally-mumbled dialogue. Angels & Demons' additional primary cast -- Ayelet Zurer and Stellan Skarsgård -- are fine if not slightly superfluous and underdeveloped, respectively. Aside from Hanks' performance that proves far and away better than that in The Da Vinci Code, Angels & Demons enjoys steady and confident direction from Ron Howard, and he makes sure to milk every breathtaking vista to fantastic effect. Even when all else fails, Angels & Demons is generally a gorgeous film to look at. Superior to The Da Vinci Code in every regard, Angels & Demons still isn't great cinema, but it does make for passable entertainment that has on its side a decent if not predictable story, a good performance from a legendary actor, and strong technical elements that accentuate the film's gorgeous locations and sets. On the flip side, Angels & Demons is something of a meanderer, and the film becomes a bit too repetitive and dull once the novelty of the concept begins to wear thin, and it seems that it matters not how the film arrives at its ending but rather that it -- eventually -- does get there and only for a payoff that astute viewers will see coming a mile (or, in this case, a reel or two) away. Sony's Blu-ray release of Angels & Demons is, as expected, spectacular. Boasting a strong 1080p transfer, a fabulous lossless soundtrack, and a plethora of extra content spread over three discs, fans of the film or author Dan Brown's story should have absolutely no qualms about making this title a permanent member of the Blu-ray collection, but newcomers are advised to rent (alongside The Da Vinci Code) first. Cast Notes: 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), Thure Lindhardt (Chartrand), David Pasquesi (Claudio Vincenzi), Cosimo Fusco (Father Simeon), Victor Alfieri (Lieutenant Valenti), Franklin Amobi (Cardinal Lamasse), Curt Lowens (Cardinal Ebner), Bob Yerkes (Cardinal Guidera), Marc Fiorini (Cardinal Baggia [as Marco Fiorini]). IMDb Rating (01/03/18): 6.7/10 from 236,046 users
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