i went to see 'state of play' at the dollar theater but the reel machine apparently ate the film so instead we saw 'angels and demons.'
this movie is much better than the at times dull 'da vinci code,' and it seems dan brown's first novel with robert langdon translates much better to the big screen. that being said, the movie is simply ok. it's a watchable summer film, but it remains largely forgettable. tom hanks and the leading woman in the film don't have very much chemistry and interactions between them come across as a little awkward.
another awkward part of the movie was the pacing and urgency of the characters. with every hour they had before another catholic bishop was murdered, it seemed everyone spent the first part of the hour leisurely figuring out the location, taking time to do trivial things like when tom hanks washes his face. then, when the location is determined, suddenly everything goes into high urgency mode and they race to save the victim with only minutes to spare. being a book adaptation one could tell that certain details were cut out and other details were crammed into the dense dialogue. all these different things created a wonkiness to the film that made it much less believable.
ron howard is a talented director (watch the great 'frost/nixon' and it is immediately apparent), and so the cinematography is great as the vatican shines as the film's set. the plot has enough twists and turns to keep the audience interested. this film is mediocre at best. after watching it you will not feel that your time spent was a complete waste of time, and i do not suggest going far out of your way to see it. my suggestion is to wait until it's a rental.
