""Robert Langdon" (Tom Hanks) is back, and he has only a few hours to solve a mystery to save thousands of Catholic faithful, and top candidates for role of pope, before an incident which will kill them all as they await the annoucement of who the new leader of the church will be.

Now, "Langdon", along with a woman who helped create antimatter in a lab, must figure out the clues and save the faithful of the world's largest church.

Let me say first that this is much better than the original movie, which I barely remember seeing. You really don't need to read the novel that the movie is based upon to enjoy it.

There are some really good performances in this film, especially from Hanks, who proved himself as a solid leading man many times. Here, he really shines as a leading man.

There is some serious problems with character development with supporting characters, especially "Dr. Vittoria Vetra" (Ayelet Zurer), whose antimatter is being used as a weapon, and "Camerlengo Patrick McKenna" (Ewan McGregor), who turns an interesting plot twist that I never expected at the end, but isn't seen as much as I would like.

Another problem with this movie is that it is obvious that they opted for green screen for many scenes depicting Roman Catholic churches within Rome's city limits (the church refused to allow the movie to be filmed at the locations since the church declared the book offesive to the church). A barely trained eye (which I have since I learned TV production back in high school) could see the actors were in front of a green screen. These effects will become noticeable to the untrained eye as the film ages, and special effects advance.

One thing this movie does pretty well is that it gives very little time for the audience to breathe between action and plot advancing scenes. You get excited as "Langdon" and "Vetra" get closer to the murderer(s) as they discover new clues.

Despite not being able to shoot on location, and the threat of a strike at the time, Ron Howard did a great job in the director's chair as usual. He was able to use interesting camera angles to help tell the story nicely.

I can't really say I noticed the soundtrack of the movie, since I barely pay attention to instrumentals since that's not my style I listen to. I do notice that it helped the scenes, and in this movie it did.

If you see this on any of the movie channels like HBO, or on Netflix, check this one out."

"The movie was good, just no where near as good as The Da Vinci Code. The acting was top notch (especially from Tom Hanks and Ewan McGregor) and the action was good. This movie certainly had more action than in the first movie, but I enjoyed The Da Vinci Code more because it is refreshing to have a movie captivate you with mysteries and plot development rather than pure violence and action. Check out my full review here: "http://garretts-attic.net/blog/2009/09/movie-review-angels-demons-2009/""

" Tom Hanks is back as Langdon and this time he's against a secret society called the Illuminati. He's teamed with a physicist (Ayelet Zurer) who created a powerful energy source with her father. Her father was murdered and it was stolen. Together they have to race against time and find it before it's used as a deadly weapon.

Critics complained that Ron Howard was too true to Dan Brown's book with the Da Vinci Code and that there was too much talking. But with Angels & Demons I found that it wasn't enough like the book. Some key characters were cut out and enough wasn't done with Zurer's character as well. She never gets to form any kind of romantic relationship with Langdon like in the book. While, she never acts too sad or angry that someone killed her father like in the book. Ewan McGregor's character was at least the same way I remembered him in the book and he was surprisingly perfect in the role. I didn't think he could pull it off but he did.

This movie wasn't bad but believe it or not, I actually liked the Da Vinci Code a lot more. I was always interested while watching it and I wasn't bored enough to give it extremely low ratings like some people. I also didn't have a problem with Tom Hanks' hair...lol. Despite Angels & Demons being fast paced and less slow in some places than the Da Vinci Code, I still was into the movie less. I actually found the Da Vinnci Code to be more fun even if the material was even more sac-religious and silly. While Tom Hanks was good in both films, I think he sort of shined more in the Da Vinci Code whether or not critics didn't like his hair lol. I honestly just didn't see the big deal about his hair and it didn't get in the way of my feelings for the movie. "

"Review:

The action starts in the Vatican after the sudden death of the Pope; simultaneously, the Hadron Collider in Switzerland successfully generates anti-matter. Shortly after this remarkable scientific achievement, one of the vials of antimatter is stolen by a mysterious stranger. After four Cardinals are kidnapped, a mysterious ransom video and note show up brandishing the word Illuminati, an ancient group infamous for opposing the Catholic Church in the 1600’s. Harvard symbologist professor Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) and his team of investigators urgently seek meaning behind the Illuminati’s cryptic clues, in order to save not only the lives of the kidnapped Cardinals, but everybody in Rome as well.

Bits of history are sporadically spoon-fed to the audience about the Church/Illuminati strife, as well as each party involved; this method allows for viewers who have not read the Dan Brown novels to closely follow along. The movie is quite suspenseful, as each discovery the team makes only leads to yet another shrouded clue in the web of Illuminati references. This, however, gets a bit tiresome as it serves for the basic architecture for the entire two hours: the result being a lot of talk and sparse action.

The recurring theme acts as a metaphor for hot-button topics of today, issues that mostly boil down to religious vs. scientific beliefs. Within the movie are characters of vacillating mentalities, such as staunch Catholic priests in addition to more progressive-minded ministers. These sorts of characters essentially bridge the gap between religion and science, in an attempt to prove how each side has its utility.

Even if you do not follow the series of novels religiously (pun intended), Angels & Demons is guaranteed to deliver as thorough entertainment with remarkable suspense. It opened worldwide on May 15 with $152 million in earnings, and is now playing in theaters. "

"At The Movies

Angels & Demons (G)

Praise the Lord!

By ROBERT WALDMAN

Fear not followers of the Catholic Church. Judge for yourself any controversy over one of Hollywood’s classiest new films, Angels & Demons. Straight from the heart of brilliant filmmaker Ron Howard this follow-up to the hit film adaptation of The Da Vinci Code is pure escapist fun all the way. Brave Sony Pictures saw the light and allowed Howard and co. to continue this rollicking adventure yarn steeped in that old time religion. For a fresh look at an old subject brave the crowds and walk on over to Empire Studio 12, Colossus and Famous Players Silver City sites around B.C.

Relaxation is out for Michael Phelps wannabe Robert Langdon. Once condemned by The Church for his book and theories the much maligned author gets the shock of his life when leaders of one of the great religions ask for his help. Trouble is brewing in of all places The Vatican so our hapless American gumshoe gets a V.I.P. ticket to Rome. Well, not exactly.

Once in the holy of holy places Langdon runs smack dab into murder, conspiracy and some potential evil based on some old Church writings. As the bodies pile up clues come fast and furious in this terrific whodunit that does not, I repeat, does not slander any religion. Somehow science and religion have gone askew and some secret sect called the Illuminati may in fact have resurfaced after years if not centuries of being dormant. Just what lies ahead for the citizens of Rome, the world and one Robert Langdon is anyone’s guess as this cat and mouse game unfolds.

Howard again shows his brilliance as a filmmaker. Attention to detail concerning Church practices is fine tuned as is the cunning portrayal of Tom Hanks (Big) who fully engulfs the screen as the one man possibly with the key to save humanity. Help is offered in this scavenger-like clue riddled hunt by Vittoria Vetra, nicely portrayed by Ayelet Zurer (Vanishing Point).

Mystery surrounds this tale which is why the story is so darn good. Great shots of Italian cultural icons lend a sense or realism to the whole concept of this secret sect come undone. Very strong supporting work from the likes of Stellan Skarsgard (Mama Mia) as a security official and Armin Mueller-Stahl (Eastern Provinces) further adds to the appeal.

Clocking in at 138 minutes Angels & Demons is so suspenseful and interesting with its quotient of clues and danger that the time just flies off the screen. Chances are good that a third entry in this saga of religious-laced thrills will be again welcomed by world movie fans despite the unfounded protestations of some selfige holier than thou types.

Read more reviews by Robert at www.moviereviewssite.com "