And so this is it. Enjoy :)

ON ANGELS AND DEMONS…

A Movie Review by Joice de Guia

The book written by Dan Brown received rave reviews so I think it wouldn't be surprising if it were to be made a motion picture. It's been ages since I've read the book but I just have to tell this: the author is a geographical genius. He wrote accurate descriptions of some famous landmarks in Europe. These descriptions have retained in my mind for quite some time. And then, when it's time to watch the movie, the details came back and unfolded in my eyes.

This is what I love most about books turning into movies--- the excitement of watching the scenes come alive out of the pages of the book. Although there may be little departures from the original plot, the same suspense adventure will definitely engross the spectators.

My rating: 8 stars out of 10 (mainly because of the enigmatic scenes of Rome J)

Exploring the Vatican and its follies

Harvard Professor and symbologist Robert Langdon is back in the movie screens after the much publicized and criticized prequel, The Da Vinci Code. This time, he flees to the city within a city Vatican to solve a mysterious case involving one of the most powerful underground societies ever to exist, The Illuminati. Known to history as the Catholic Church's greatest opponent, The Illuminati manages to sneak into the walls of the physics laboratory, CERN, in Geneva where the antimatter was being completed. This antimatter is enough to obliterate Rome in the world map, much to the satisfaction of anti-Catholic Church organizations. It was then stolen and placed somewhere (said to be the path of illumination) in Vatican. Four cardinals who were subsequently the candidates for Papacy were pulled out from the conclave to become hostages. For a time limit of 8 hours, Langdon together with the Swiss guards and the CERN scientist Vittoria Vetra must locate the four churches in Rome revealed through the clues---the elements wind, fire, earth and water. Each cardinal will be branded by the Illuminati symbol of the element and be killed.

In the end, Camerlengo Patrick McKenna (actually the Carlo Ventresca in the book) became Vatican's hero when he bravely detonated the bomb after flying the helicopter a thousand miles up. Just when the non-reading spectators thought this was the end of the Camerlengo's life, he amazingly parachuted out of the helicopter before the antimatter exploded, saving his dear existence.

Now the main argument in the movie is found within the ending, when it was time to reveal the Camerlengo's true colors. Some relatives who haven't got time to read the books were asking me—why is this one entitled Angels and Demons? I guess everyone must have a quick look at the Camerlengo within the film. At first, he was perceived as a priest wanting to unite the Vatican after his alleged father, the former Pope himself, died. Ewan McGregor's portrayal was, with a bit of subjectivity, convincing. Who would have thought that this Camerlengo was the real evil within the Vatican? The sweet, innocent look of Patrick McKenna turned out to be the root of all the Illuminati involvement. Just because of absolute fear that science and technology will take over religion, he designed a mischievous plan of hiring a skilled assassin made responsible for all the cardinal branding and killing. Not only that, he had the heart to poison the Pope, because of the support the latter gave to the antimatter conception.

Shaken faith?

(A side story)

Must we always put a versus in between science and religion? There will always be points of comparison but given the fact that both are devised by mankind, I think there's no point in discussing and debating any further. Both are of the same nature—system of beliefs, theories and controversies.

I am a devout Catholic yet a believer of the Theory of Evolution by Charles Darwin. I also believed Charles Darwin came from Adam and Eve. There's nothing wrong with that. The Catholic Church has had their share of gory past, with a line-up of unbelievable Popes with unbelievable records. Every non-Christian was slain to death during that time, what's so surprising about the Church having a lot of present day enemies? But that didn't change my ways of thinking about God and his divinity.

What do you mean morals?

The Catholic Church was even more offended when the movie was freely shown in cinemas worldwide. They think it will affect most of the Catholic communities. That got me thinking too, what will we, Catholics get from watching this film?

I have two answers for that:

1. Faith- No, make that more faith. Why would you risk your faith with just a work of fiction? Truth is, Dan Brown is a Catholic himself. We cannot deny that he fearlessly attacked the Church, but I would like to commend him more as a literary genius rather than a religion wrecker. He made incredible plotlines and unforgettable characters. I was also awed by the cinematography of the film (credit goes to director Ron Howard), but I believe my faith and ideals were intact that after seeing reading the book and seeing the film, they were as they were.

2. Appreciation with Critical thinking- The most obvious explanation was the production of this review. This is a piece of art, meant to be criticized and analyzed on an artist's, not a Catholic's, view of things.

Joice's final say:

The movie is independent from the book, so it's understandable that it veers away from some of the literary piece's elements—like the characters and storylines. This has a more dramatic presentation than the Da Vinci Code, should I say. Ron Howard complemented Dan Brown's fascinating and tourist-attracting depiction of Roma. The urge to go visit the St. Peter's Basilica got even more intense. Plus, the acting's not bad either. Ewan McGregor is legendary. At the end of the day, it's worthy of my time and money. I would recommend it to everyone. J