The Great and Powerful Da Vinci Code
May 18, 2006 Posted by Amy Hall
Since large portions of the Da Vinci Code novel consist of one character sitting the others down for extensive lectures on the “facts” of history, I wondered how well the story would translate to the big screen. Apparently, not well.
Just look at these quotes from the article “'Da Vinci Code' misses the mark for
“The Da Vinci Code” drew lukewarm praise, shrugs of indifference, some jeering laughter and a few derisive jabs Tuesday from arguably the world's toughest movie crowd: critics at the Cannes Film Festival….
The Cannes audience clearly grew restless as the movie dragged on to two and a half hours and spun a long sequence of anticlimactic revelations.
“I kept thinking of the Energizer Bunny, because it kept going and going and going, and not in a good way,” said James Rocchi, a film critic for CBS 5 television in San Francisco and the online outlet Cinematical….
One especially melodramatic line uttered by Hanks drew prolonged laughter and some catcalls, and the audience continued to titter for much of the film's remainder.
A friend of mine has been predicting the movie's a stinker based on its ubiquitous advertising campaign. If there's one thing the filmmakers don't need to spend money on, it's publicity…unless, of course, they know something we don't.
Now granted, the reaction of
Related posts:
- Book Review: The Da Vinci Code Breaker by James Garlow
- Book Review: Discussing the Da Vinci Code Curriculum Kit
- Truth in The Da Vinci Code: The Heroes’ View
- Book Review: The Truth Behind the Da Vinci Code
- Book Review: The Gospel According to the Da Vinci Code
- Book Review: Cracking Da Vinci's Code
Posted in Amy's Posts, Culture, Main Page, The Da Vinci Code
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May 18th, 2006 at 6:07 am
A most excellent question.
May 18th, 2006 at 9:12 am
Certainly large amounts of protest can actually stimulate curiosity. I think Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ is an example — many non-Christians I know went just to see what the stink was about. Of course it partly made gobs of money because it was actually an effective film, but also because it attracted a certain audience that doesn't usually go to the movies. Scorcese's The Last Temptation of Christ is more well known for the controversy and the reaction of many Christians against it, than it is known as any kind of box office success, which it wasn't. Why didn't people turn out in droves for that movie? I suspect it was because it wasn't as effective of a film as Gibson's, but it, nor the novel it was based on were not as contemptible as some protestors would have us believe. (I actually loved the novel and enjoyed the film, though it does drag.)
So I think it in part goes down to whether the film is good or not. The other thing that neither of the Jesus movies had going for them was that their casts didn't contain a box office draw like Tom Hanks. I suspect many will go to see the film because the like Tom Hanks' movies.
The Da Vinci Code may be a stinker, but I still expect it to make a bunch of money at least initially. I doubt people who loved the book will be turned away by bad reviews and I suspect others will go because it's been all over the news and they just want to see what the talk is all about. That the reviews say the film becomse cheesey at times is no surprise since the source material was wrought with heavy-handed sentimentality.
May 18th, 2006 at 10:07 am
The book is poorly written. The historical elements are skewed or just plain erroneous. Of course the movie will be of low quality. And there will be plenty of people who will rush to see it because they are lured by the sensational content and, yes, by the arguments swirling around the book. But those people would go anyway, regardless of what we Christians do.
Vicky
May 18th, 2006 at 12:32 pm
The only reason it seems this movie was made in the first place was because the book received so much attention and condemnation from Christians. And I think it's likely that people will see the movie for the same reasons. Christians would probably be better off putting more attention on what they do well instead of what others are doing poorly.
May 18th, 2006 at 11:28 am
I don't think we could have done anything differently. I haven't encountered any angry protests, and the education people have been getting is valuable no matter what. We can't just hide ourselves from the world–especially when we don't need to because we have truth on our side.
All the same, I'll be sad to see Dan Brown profit from our efforts.
May 18th, 2006 at 1:40 pm
“The only reason it seems this movie was made in the first place was because the book received so much attention and condemnation from Christians.”
I don't think that's the case. I heard very little about it at all from Christians until the movie was practically finished. I think the movie was made because the book is wildly popular.
Also, I think the rest of your comment is unfair and not based on what Christians have actually been doing. If people are starting to believe things that are not true according to even secular standards, are Christians doing wrong by teaching what actually is true about history, art, etc.? The focus has most definitely been on teaching the truth and informing Christians (and everyone in our society) rather than on condemning the book.
May 18th, 2006 at 2:42 pm
Anonymous, if you're still hanging around, I'm curious…are you writing as someone who is a Christian or who isn't a Christian? I'd be interested in hearing how this whole subject of the Da Vinci Code and the Christian response is viewed by someone who isn't a Christian.
May 18th, 2006 at 7:45 pm
I'm a Christian, and I believe if you go back and do some research from when the book was first published you'll find that several voices from within the RCC were condemnatory toward the Da Vinci Code book when it came out, hence it's wild popularity. The book's popularity stems mostly from its appeal to women, and to Catholics who have fallen away from the church.
In the wake of all this, it seems to me that most Protestants have wanted to use it as a witnessing tool, pointing out all of its flaws, when in reality they would have done better simply ignoring it, allowing it to play itself out like the fad that it is. You said it well yourself. The answer is yes, people are probably going to go see it, and it may even become a blockbuster because of all the negative attention Christians have given it.
We should have probably taken a cue from the RCC this time because not everything needs to be recognized, especially in pop culture.
May 18th, 2006 at 9:25 pm
“in reality they would have done better simply ignoring it”
I think that's only true if, by “better,” you mean there would be less trouble. I think a more important “better” was accomplished by addressing people's questions.
If Christians had been more diligent to answer people's questions openly–encouraging questions and discussions–for the last few decades, there would have been many more Christians today who could have answered their friends' questions about TDC without all the special attention to the topic. I can't see how ignoring hurting people's questions–even if this would have created less waves–would have been the better option.
I'm sorry to see the movie promoted. The promotion is just a painful side effect of the above (no good will ever be untainted in this sinful world)–especially if the movie turns out to be a dud that would never have gone anywhere, but I think a lot of good has come from addressing the topic and helping Christians to understand the issues and communicate the truth to their friends (that's our main purpose in life, right?). I would much rather have Christians discussing these spiritual issues knowledgably with their friends than ignoring the topic.
May 18th, 2006 at 11:37 pm
I don't see it as a stark choice between ignoring something or engaging it full steam. There are many degrees inbetween.
That said, on this issue I think we have overreacted. The book/movie just doesn't warrant the attention we've given it imo (just how many books are needed to debunk this thing?). So I lean toward anonymous' view of it (while still glad for the sharpening that has taken place as many believers have taken the time to brush up on church history, how the canon was put together etc.)