Da Vinci Code [UMD] DVD

The Da Vinci Code
Dan Brown's controversial best-selling novel about a powerful secret that's been kept under wraps for thousands of years comes to the screen in this suspense Thriller from director Ron Howard. The stately silence of Paris' Louvre museum is broken when one of the gallery's leading curators is found dead on the grounds, with strange symbols carved into his body and left around the spot where he died. Hoping to learn the significance of the symbols, police bring in Sophie Neveu (Audrey Tautou), a gifted cryptographer who is also the victim's granddaughter. Needing help, Sophie calls on Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks), a leading symbologist from the United States. As Sophie and Robert dig deeper into the case, they discover the victim's involvement in the Priory of Sion, a secret society whose members have been privy to forbidden knowledge dating back to the birth of Christianity. In their search, Sophie and Robert happen upon evidence that could lead to the final resting place of the Holy Grail, while members of the priory and an underground Catholic society known as Opus Dei give chase, determined to prevent them from sharing their greatest secrets with the world. Also starring Ian McKellen, Jean Reno, and Alfred Molina, The Da Vinci Code was shot on location in France and the United Kingdom; the Louvre allowed the producers to film at the famous museum, but scenes taking place at Westminster Abbey had to filmed elsewhere when church officials declined permission. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Cast Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon Audrey Tautou as Sophie Neveu Ian McKellen as Sir Leigh Teabing Alfred Molina as Bishop Aringarosa Jürgen Prochnow as Vernet Paul Bettany as Silas Jean Reno as Captain Bezu Fache Jean-Yves Berteloot as Remy Jean Etienne Chicot as Lieutenant Collet Jean-Pierre Marielle as Jacques Saunière Marie-Francoise Audollent as Sister Sandrine Rita Davies as Elegant Woman at Rosslyn Francesco Carnelutti as Prefect Seth Gabel as Michael Fausto Maria Sciarappa as Youngest Church Official Denis Podalydès as Controller Harry Taylor as British Police Captain Clive Carter as Biggin Hill Police Captain Garance Mazureck as Sophie at 13 Years Daisy Doidge-Hill as Sophie at 8 Years Lilli-Ella Kelleher as Sophie at 3 Years Crisian Emanuel as Sophie's Mother Charlotte Graham as Mary Magdalene Xavier De Guillebon as Junkie Tonio Descanvelle as Bank Guard David Bark-Jones as Hawker Pilot Serretta Wilson as American Woman Eglantine Rembauville as Student Dan Tondowski as Student Aewia Huillet as Student Roland John-Leopoldie as Student David Saracino as DCPJ Agent Lionel Guy-Bremond as Officer Ledoux Yves Aubert as Louvre Computer Cop Rachael Black as Policewoman Dez Drummond as London Police Mark Roper as London Policeman Brock Little as American Embassy Cop Matthew Butler as Westminster Cop Roland Menou as DCPJ Technician Tina Maskell as Silas' Mother Peter Pedrero as Silas' Father Sam Mancuso as Pope André Lillis as Pope Mario Vernazza as Young Constantine Agathe Natanson as Ritual Priestess Daz Parker as Peasant Mother Andrew Robb as Peasant Father Tom Barker as Peasant Boy Maggie McEwan as Peasant Girl Michael Bertenshaw as Priest Sarah Wildor as Priestess David Bertrand as French Newscaster

Crew Giles Masters - Art Director Jean-Michel Ducourty - Art Director Tony Reading - Art Director Kathleen McGill - Associate Producer Louisa Velis - Associate Producer John Hubbard - Casting Janet Hirshenson - Casting Jane Jenkins - Casting Ros Hubbard - Casting Richard McBrien - Consultant/advisor Karen King - Consultant/advisor Nick Glennie-Smith - Conductor Richard Harvey - Conductor Daniel Orlandi - Costume Designer Pascal Salafa - First Assistant Director William M. Connor - First Assistant Director Ron Howard - Director Todd Hallowell - Second Unit Director Mike Hill - Editor Daniel Hanley - Editor Todd Hallowell - Executive Producer Dan Brown - Executive Producer Norma Webb - Hair Styles Frances Hannon - Hair Styles José Martin Romero - Hair Styles Paul Gooch - Hair Styles Belinda Parrish - Hair Styles Sam Breckman - Location Manager Isabelle Gautier - Location Manager Duncan Muggoch - Location Manager Olivier Servanin - Location Manager Joseph Formosa Randon - Location Manager Piers Dunn - Location Manager Laurent Grenaud - Location Manager Alexandra Weyers - Location Manager Nicolas Foulatier - Location Manager Hans Zimmer - Composer (Music Score) Bob Badami - Musical Direction/Supervision Paul Gooch - Makeup Belinda Parrish - Makeup Norma Webb - Makeup Frances Hannon - Makeup Candide Franklyn - Camera Operator Allan Cameron - Production Designer Salvatore Totino - Cinematographer Sam Breckman - Production Manager John Calley - Producer Brian Grazer - Producer Martin Tillman - Singer Dee Lewis - Singer Hila Pitmann - Singer Daniel Pagan - Sound/Sound Designer Greg P. Russell - Sound/Sound Designer Kevin O'Connell - Sound/Sound Designer Greg Powell - Stunts Coordinator Remy Julienne - Stunts Coordinator Domique Julienne - Stunts Coordinator David Ford - Special Effects Supervisor Philippe Hubin - Special Effects Supervisor Dominic Tuohy - Special Effects Supervisor Kathleen McGill - Unit Production Manager Pascal Salafa - Unit Production Manager Akiva Goldsman - Screenwriter Fraser Taggart - Second Unit Director Of Photography Alex Lamarque - Second Unit Director Of Photography Eric Catelan - Second Unit Camera Luc Drion - Second Unit Camera Angus Bickerton - Visual Effects Supervisor Mattes & Miniatures - Model Effects Jeremy Braben - Aerial Photography Robert Komatsu - Associate Editor Jean Pierre Lacoix - Gaffer Hugh Marsh - Musical Performer Fretwork - Musical Performer Suzie Wiesmann - Production Supervisor Annie Baudlet - Production Supervisor David Balfour - Properties Master Annie Penn - Script Supervisor Toby Hefferman - Second Assistant Director Olivier Vergès - Second Assistant Director Benjamin J. Dixon - Second Assistant Director Candide Franklyn - Steadicam Operator Chic Ciccolini III - Supervising Sound Editor Barrie Hemsley - Visual Effects Producer Perry Evans - Chief Lighting Technician Yvonne Zarb Cousin - Costumes Supervisor Sarah Bates - Costumes Supervisor Nathalie Cercuel - Costumes Supervisor Dan Grace - Costumes Supervisor Michael Goosen - Production Controller Laurent Bregeat - Second Unit Assistant Director Jamie Christopher - Second Unit Assistant Director Moving Picture Company - Visual Effects Double Negative Ltd. - Visual Effects Visual Effects U.K. - Visual Effects Rainmaker - Visual Effects Senate Visual Effects - Visual Effects Brainstorm Digital - Visual Effects Richard Roberts - Set Decorator Dan Brown - Book Author Ivan Sharrock - Production Sound Mixer Kevin Ahern - Visual Effects Editor Pacific Title - Title Design Intralink Film Graphic Design - Title Design

The Da Vinci Code
A book that should have been a movie in the first place, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code was the best seller of the decade when a film adaptation hit screens in 2006. The premise, whether or not you've read the book, sounds like the recipe for a guaranteed great suspense thriller: large-scale cover-ups, precious artifacts, an albino monk from a Catholic sect who self flagellates, and Tom Hanks donning the strangest haircut of his career. Where could they go wrong? In quite a few places, apparently, but The Da Vinci Code is still an enjoyable movie. When the pace gets going and the intrigue builds up, the film flies on its own momentum...and we'd expect nothing less from Ron Howard. Unfortunately, the screenplay was adapted by Akiva Goldsman who was responsible for such ugly book-to-screen transitions as I, Robot and Practical Magic. Goldsman succumbs to the most common screenwriter's pitfall in adapting a book, by including extraneous information, alternate timelines, and far-abreast side stories with no time to make them into something entertaining or useful to the audience. Unless he was operating from the assumption that every viewer of the film had read the book, the chintzy-looking fuzzy-screen flashbacks don't provide useful backstory but instead just muck up the pace and weaken the film's focus. A more dramatic and sweeping take on the thrill-ride would have tightened up all of these problems: a musical or visual refrain used whenever the heroic cryptologists examine a new riddle, or even a stronger concentration on the cabalist mazes would have lent the movie the excitement and captivation its premise deserved. As it stands, The Da Vinci Code is a good movie whose only tragedy is that it could have been great. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
 

Allan Cameron: Art Directors Guild, Best Art Direction - Contemporary Film (nominated) Chic Ciccolini III: Satellite Awards, Best Sound (nominated) Greg P. Russell: Satellite Awards, Best Sound (nominated) Hans Zimmer: Broadcast Film Critics Association, Best Score (nominated) Hans Zimmer: Golden Globe, Best Original Score (nominated) Hans Zimmer: Satellite Awards, Best Original Score (nominated) Kevin Ahern: Satellite Awards, Best Visual Effects (nominated) Kevin O'Connell: Satellite Awards, Best Sound (nominated)

General Specifications: Language Options: English, French Subtitle Options: English, French Sound Processing: Additional Features: DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1: Alternate Wide Screen MPAA Rating: PG13 DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 149 min