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T H E R a D L E Y C O L L E G E the Da Vinci Code

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T H E R a D L E Y C O L L E G E the Da Vinci Code THE RADLEY COLLEGE CHRONICLE Vol. IV No. 2 9 June 2006 THE DA VINCI CODE Whatever they paid Sir Ian McKellen, he was worth Audrey Tautou – who you may remember from Amélie every penny. As well-bred academic ‘Royal Historian’ – is the pretty but also pretty bland leading totty, in the Leigh Teabing, McKellen, clearly having a good role of French cryptographer Sophie Neveu. Her summer with two blockbusters back to back, used both grandfather was curator of the Louvre and heavily Gandalfian gravitas and ham theatricality to raise the mixed up in a secret society. He opens the film pulse of director Ron Howard’s otherwise resolutely running from his murderer through the corridors of the uninspired adaptation of Dan Brown’s 2003 bestseller. Louvre, and then, while dying, leaves a series of The Da Vinci Code is simply incredible. Yes, the box anagrammatic clues written in his own blood. Quel office returns, the hype, the court cases and the film domage, mais incroyable! are remarkable, but real; the plot of this half-action, Paul Bettany brings admirable commitment to his turn half-waffle crypto-potboiler really is incredible in the as self-flagellating albino monk Silas, an agent of the literal sense of not believable. ‘Incroyable ’, as Sophie conservative Catholic sect Opus Dei. Though keeps saying: ‘Incroyable, Professor, but ze Mona Lisa ridiculously conspicuous in his cassock, running ees jest over ‘ere…’ at one (unintentionally) very around Paris and London with murderously red eyes – funny moment by the dead body in the Louvre. mind you, with those S&M undergarments, you’d be a Tom Hanks rather underplays the role of Robert bit tearful – he stays hot on the trail of the film’s Langdon, ‘Professor of Religious Symbology at Biblical treasure, ‘the source of the Church’s power on Harvard University’ and celebrated author of Symbols Earth’. Alfred Molina and Jean Reno play a sinister of the Sacred Feminine; this seems like a great idea bishop and police captain respectively. while he is playing a professor, and even for a while as Plot and pictures, however, are the pagan idols of The he plays a professor unexpectedly escorted to a crime Da Vinci Code. Unsatisfied by merely dramatising a scene in the Louvre, but once the professor goes on the novel with actors and settings, Howard exhaustively run from police, only to be repeatedly held at gunpoint turns every idea into a visual, in the manner of A and exposed to shocking revelations, underplaying Beautiful Mind’s optical pop psychology. A begins to seem like an absence of blossoming kaleidoscope of visual character. Howard and screenwriter ‘Incroyable, Professor, effects and instructive flashbacks Akiva Goldman deserve blame as illustrates and explains, more often well for allowing the camera to show but ze Mona Lisa ees than necessary, each clever anagram, too little interest in their lead jest over ’ere…’ code and puzzle. Some of the character; the newly invented twist graphics may look like Return of the of the lapsed Catholic Langdon again trying on his King and Kingdom of Heaven CGI rejects but as a moth-balled faith proves especially unconvincing. whole, combined with the narrative, they help to Working closely from Brown, though, Goldman neatly present the controversies in a more palatable manner. highlights the themes of what we see and how we The soundtrack of The Da Vinci Code is enjoyably interpret what we see, the stocks-in-trade of atmospheric but at times grated and intruded upon the symbology professors (if they exist), cryptographers, and detectives; Teabing reminds Langdon, ‘The mind events on screen. The highlight of Hans Zimmer’s sees what it chooses to see’. But he also says ‘It’s what score was the build up in the closing moments of the you choose to believe that matters’, which gives you story. Langdon walks through a city towards the secret an idea of the platitudinal tosh spouted intermittently. location of the object he seeks while the music builds – – — INSIDE — – – Poll on Green issues – page 31 • Social Stereotypes – page 32 • The Warden’s Music – page 34 Social Sudoku – page 44 • Correspondence – page 45 • Sports reports – page 47 and much more… 9 June 2006 THE RADLEY COLLEGE CHRONICLE up beautifully as he nears the end to his search. Professor Eco’s book is hailed as a masterpiece, full of genuine history, theology, linguistic Crammed into a 149-minute frame, this densely richness and thematic complexity. I don’t think, detailed film does begin to inspire heretical though, that anyone is claiming that for Mr chuckles in the way it plays a connect-the- Brown’s effort. historical-dots game to reveal a sketch of a pregnant Mary Magdalene. Murder in the The curator bleeding to death in the Louvre Louvre, Da Vinci-painted clues, Sir Isaac could have got in a pre-emptive strike at the Newton, the Knights Templar, crafty Swiss beginning by writing bankers and Fibonacci numbers. Forget Holy ‘O LAME PLOT! O DRACONIAN CRITICS!’ Blood, Holy Grail, Dan Brown picked up his in his own blood (but don’t waste your time inspiration from a Speakers’ Corner conspiracy trying to find anagrams). Entirely lacking in subtlety theorist; certainly, he got away with his alleged and irony, Howard’s film is too measured to be lively, plagiarism at the High Court last month. too skittish to be provocative and too slack in general The premise that has upset the Church so much is that to be more than a ploddingly literal translation of ink Jesus married Mary Magdalene, producing a daughter into pixels. who moved to France and an extensive Christ family tree. Apparently the Church has been covering up the OVERHEARD… secret ever since. In fact, the novel is packed full of dodgy Church history, ‘facts’, codes and complex A regular column of memorable quotes disparate ideas: the difficulty of adaptation was from all quarters of college. transferring these onto the screen without the energy sagging and the film becoming too long. This process Overheard in a discussion of VI.1 mentoring was made harder by Howard’s stated wish to stick as Don: ‘You guys will be the pilot group for this closely as possible to the book. As a result of this scheme.’ loyalty, the script is unimaginative and doesn’t, Boy: ‘What? So we will be learning to fly?’ therefore, reach the immense potential that the plot offered. The actors are frankly ill-served by the Overheard at the river: adaptation, which provides wooden dialogue which Boy: ‘Sir, are we going to go or are you going to stand Tom Hanks and Audrey Tautou have virtually no hope there looking gormless?’ of making anything meaningful from the script. Overheard in Covered Passage: There is simply no chemistry between the two leads Don, looking at the 1920s picture of the Chapel gallery and some of their lines were cringeworthy because in our last issue: ‘My, that’s a big organ.’ they were so embarrassingly weak, in the midst of searching for clues, Langdon (Hanks) announces: ‘I Overheard in a Chemistry lesson: need a library. Fast!’, and then, in the most ridiculous Boy A: ‘It goes ‘I before E except after C’.’ scene on the top deck of a double decker bus, hacks Don: ‘Yes – for example in ceiling or, or... ceilidh.’ into the University of London’s Theology Boy B: ‘What’s a ceilidh?’ database through a mobile phone. All because Boy C: ‘Oh yes, it’s that Welsh dance…’ the film was, by then, far too long anyway and they needed to cut the book’s research scene. Overheard in the History Department: Except what may be the most insulting editing Boy: ‘... and in 1481 there was an orgy in the decision in years (a brief plot backtrack in an College of Cardinals.’ airplane hangar), Goldman and Howard deserve Don: ‘Really?’ some credit for making this project mostly Boy: ‘Yes sir, Mr Reekes gave me a handout on coherent and even, thanks to McKellen’s it.’ midpoint stretch, entertaining. For the most part, however, The Da Vinci Code is exactly the kind of Overheard in a Classics lesson: safe Hollywood adaptation we’ve come to expect, and Boy A: ‘Apparently, Jane Austen was really ugly’ in the filmmaker’s hands, every plot ‘twist’ should be Boy B: ‘Well, she had to look like a man or she dully obvious even to those who haven’t read Brown’s wouldn’t have been published.’ book. Please keep sending us (printable) quotes for this Many reviewers have compared this book-film pair to column – via email to [email protected]. The Name of the Rose, but I would say there is only a parallel in that the films of both books have tried to follow the text closely but have disappointed. 30 THE RADLEY COLLEGE CHRONICLE 9 June 2006 A POLL ON GREEN ISSUES The younger generation is said to be particularly aware of the problems caused to ‘the environment’ by greenhouse gases, free radicals, and increasing use of water and fossil fuel resources. We conducted a poll among boys of all years to see the level of knowledge and concern of the global issues and some closer to home. Do you think Green issues should be higher up the Reassuringly, Radleians do seem to be concerned political agenda? about the environment. There is no doubt that the Yes: 76%, No: 24% Warden’s recent comments in assemblies have brought the issue to people ’s attention. As a whole, students Do you believe that increased CO2 levels are linked seem to be aware of the threat of global warming and with Global Warming? do feel it is an important political concern.
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