Saturday, May 20, 2006

What? They saw a movie? In a theater?

No, the world is not coming to an end. But my husband and I actually had a babysitter, and went out without Charlotte to see a movie. On opening night, no less. We saw Da Vinci Code last night, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I had read the book a couple of years ago, but my husband had not. I actually enjoyed how the movie flowed, and I don't remember any major plot points that were changed from the book (no extraneous elves appearing in major battles or anything...).

As a catholic, I have to say that I am saddened by all the protests of the film (and book). Do some people have such a shaky foundation for their faith that a work of fiction can threaten them that much? Perhaps it is not the movie that they should be questioning.

Also, though I understand that this type of movie paints a bad picture of the Vatican and it's (fictional!) workings, I don't believe the protests are fair. I watched the Bourne Supremacy recently, which portrays a series of American government characters that are engaged in a similarly murderous secret business. Like Bishop Aringarosa and his cohorts, the secret agents in Bourne Supremacy are having innocent people hunted and exchanging large sums of money and other, clearly illegal and immoral things. Yet I don't remember any protestesters or media reports about how the movie was unfairly portraying the American Government or how it should be banned. There are probably just as many real-life "secret agents" who cringe when they see that sort of depiction as there are bishops shuddering at the thought of how the fictional Opus Dei activates.

In any case, protests or no, the movie was fun. It makes for a lively and thought-provoking treasure hunt, and I would recommend it to anyone who's unlikely to take the whole thing too seriously.

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