Angels & Demons [Blu-ray]
by Ron Howard
![Angels & Demons [Blu-ray]](/images/Angels-Demons-Blu-ray-B002O5M4SU-L.jpg)
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Blu-ray details
Actor: Ayelet Zurer, Ewan McGregor, Pierfrancesco Favino, Stellan Skarsgård, Tom HanksDirector: Ron Howard
Brand: Son
Producer: Anna Culp
Producer: Brian Grazer
Producer: Dan Brown
Writer: Dan Brown
Producer: John Calley
Writer: Akiva Goldsman
Writer: David Koepp
Blu-ray: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language); French (Original Language); French (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.40:1
Running Time: 138 minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: 2009-11-24
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Product features:
- Condition: New
- Format: Blu-ray
- AC-3; Dolby; Dubbed; Subtitled; Widescreen
Blu-ray Reviews of Angels & Demons [Blu-ray]
Blu-ray Review: Angels & Demons Review
Summary: 4 Stars
ANGELS & DEMONS
STARRING: Tom Hanks, Ewan McGregor, Ayelet Zurer, Stellan Skarsgard, Pierfrancesco Favino, Nikolaj Lie Kaas and Armin Mueller-Stahl
WRITTEN BY: David Koepp and Akiva Goldsman; based on the novel by Dan Brown
DIRECTED BY: Ron Howard
Rated: PG-13
Genre: Thriller
Release Date: 15 May 2009
Being arguably the best actor in Hollywood, Tom Hanks could probably make any bad movie good. Throw in additional acting talents like Ewan McGregor, Stellan Skarsgard and Armin Mueller-Stahl and the brilliant directing of a genius like Ron Howard and can you really go wrong? I doubt it.
Angels & Demons is a big bright and shiny Hollywood adventure and isn't afraid to show it. Its premise is absolutely ridiculous and everyone in it knows it and we know it; especially if we saw the first installment, The Da-Vinci Code. Going forward from there, we can relax and enjoy it for what it is.
Tom Hanks (a religious man who believes in God in real life) received a lot of negative press, when he filmed The Da-Vinci Code. That film was even more absurd than this one but Tom's argument was that the point of the film was never intended to be taken literally. It's an adventure film; nothing more. The same goes for Angels & Demons and I am sure he and director Ron Howard and everyone Else involved, will go through it all over again.
What's the touchy subject matter? Why, religion of course. The first film focused on the belief that the Bible was filled with lies about who Jesus Christ really was and this one deals with the dark underbelly of the Catholic Church and its oldest enemy: science. So can we forgive the filmmakers for obviously not being allowed to film on location? I think we can. You can hardly notice anyway; they did a great job re-constructing Rome. I wonder if they built it in a day.
I have heard from others that they believe the film doesn't necessarily try to make the Catholic Church look bad. I have my own relationship with God and am in no way Catholic at all so I'm not in the middle here and I say very sarcastically, Yeah Right! What are you going to tell me next, that W. was a pro-Bush film?
I found it blatantly obvious that the filmmakers are against Catholicism. Now I haven't read the books (yet) so maybe they are just adapting the material to the screen as was previously written by Dan Brown, but even if that were the case, it still seems like some things were purposely placed in the film. Maybe it's just the artist in me that picks up on these commonly missed subtleties in films, or maybe it's all in my head. After all, what makes my opinion better than anyone Else's? The only advocate I have for it is that as of yet, I have never once disagreed with myself.
We see Priests talking on their cell phones, wearing dark sun glasses and smoking cigarettes, in their robes. Some may not see anything wrong with this and I am not implying that this makes the characters bad people. But you have to ask yourself, `Why did they show us that shot?' It's a very quick shot and then it's gone, so what was its purpose?
It is constantly mentioned throughout the course of the film that the Catholic Church has covered things up over the years. I'm not saying that this isn't true; I'm just saying it's in the film. Even at the end of the film, all of the events that just took place are covered up and the information that is put out to the press is a lie.
When one member of the Church tries to express how the Church gives to the people, he is shut down with the fact that the Church is also a bank and houses at least one Mercedes and several people's assets.
SPOILER ALERT: If you haven't seen the film, just skip this paragraph. I'm sorry but this point just has to be disclosed. Let's not forget the fact that the villain in the film is the only character who completely disagrees with science and is 100 percent pro-God (as far as we know he is the only one, some others may be as well, but it is not shown to us). I'm not saying the character isn't bad (yes he is a murderer); I'm simply saying that this priest is made into the villain and his faith in the Lord is stronger than anyone Else's. It feels a little weird to me. Why would you want the villain to be the only guy in the film sticking up for God completely, if you weren't trying to make the Church look bad? This does make for an interesting plot twist, totally. I'm only referring to the point that to me it is obvious that there is anti-Catholicism viewpoints pressed upon us in the film. There is also the scene where he burns himself alive at the end of the film; I don't think I need to discuss that one any further. And in the scene with him and the head of the Swiss Guard towards the end, they clearly wanted us to side with the opinion of the Guard over the Priest; thus he having no comeback to what was said, even if he was wrong.
There are several more of these elements but I haven't even gotten to the plot yet.
The film starts off with a very dangerous weapon being stolen from a Swiss laboratory. The weapon is simply a special something created through science known as anti-matter. Next we have the death of the Pope. Now someone must be chosen to take his place. Coincidentally four of the favorite selectees are kidnapped and the Vatican is notified that at eight, nine, 10 and 11 p.m., one-by-one they will be murdered throughout the city of Rome. Then at midnight, the stolen anti-matter will lose its battery juice; causing it to explode and completely annihilate Vatican City.
The conflict in the film arises from an old enemy of the Catholic Church, known as the Illuminati; a group of scientists who seek revenge for the torment they once suffered from the Catholic Church for simply expressing their scientific beliefs. Of course, none of the Catholic characters in the film ever deny that these things took place and none of them shine light on the fact that it was wrong. It was so long ago that it is sort of brushed off and accepted.
As if the plot itself doesn't have `Big Hollywood Movie' written all over it, every single sequence from there out is a fun movie-magic-ride, reeking of warm buttery popcorn.
Enter Tom Hanks, returning as Robert Langdun; the awesome symbolist who isn't afraid to poke fun at his own profession. We meet him in a swimming pool at Harvard University, of all places. He is met by a man requesting him to accompany him to Rome. Langdun has a brilliantly written opening set of one-liners. We are forced into liking him instantly.
Langdun has been requested by the Vatican (despite the bad taste he put in their mouth with all of his shenanigans from The Da-Vinci Code) to help them discover the locations to where the priests are to be executed. We learn that Langdun's side goal in the film will be to obtain the missing documents he needs from the Vatican archives (which he was denied several times by Vatican Officials) to finish his novel. He has no outright intention of going about achieving this goal; we just know that it will at some point come up again, because we have all been to the movies once or twice and that makes it fun.
The Church teams him up with a woman who for cinematic purposes will accompany Hanks around Vatican City as a form of eye candy and someone to exchange various dramatic one-liners with. Again, fun though. Plus they throw in a plot joiner slash back story that her father was murdered when the anti-matter was stolen, so naturally she'd want to be a part of all this.
The entire thing seems pointless. Why wouldn't the killer just murder all of these priests and then blow up Vatican City? Or better yet just blow up Vatican City with the priests inside? Why all of the cat and mouse chasing around? The answer is because then the movie would be over, silly.
Langdun somehow knows exactly where to look for clues in the Vatican archives (although he has never been there) and of course manages to use those clues to find the location of the next victim. Once he arrives at said location, he finds more clues to lead him to the exact location of the priest.
Meanwhile, there is another side-story going on back at the Vatican. It has been discovered that the previous Pope was in fact murdered.
Ewan McGregor gives an outstanding performance as Camerlengo McKenna and is grief stricken at this discovery. He's a high priest, put kind of in charge but not entirely as he still gets his but chewed by Cardinal Strauss (Armin Mueller-Stahl) while they seal the doors to their private chamber to select a new Pope.
No-one seems bothered by the fact that their fellow priests will be slain. Even after a few of them actually are murdered, there is still no cause for alarm or a need to show emotion.
The Swiss Guard has implemented a strategy in hopes of finding the killer by randomly shutting down power grids to certain locations of the city. This adds to a great deal of suspense to the film as our characters are already pressed for time as it is, and of course undoubtedly some of them will become trapped when this happens.
Is the movie a bit over the top? Definitely. Is it worth your time anyway? You-betcha. If you are of Catholic faith will you be left with itchy elbows and an upset stomach? Probably, but at least you will have been entertained.
The movie does exactly that. It entertains us and what adds to the value of its entertainment isn't the story and the ridiculous plot; it's the great characters and the amazing actors that bring them to life, that keep us intrigued. Everyone did a great job here. Armin Mueller-Stahl could very well be elected the next Pope; and after his performance as the Swiss Guard, Stellan Skarsgard will have no problem starting his own security company, should he ever tire of acting.
Ron Howard is brilliant behind the camera whether he's doing a comedic classic with Jim Carrey (Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas) or a Masterpiece of suspense like Angels & Demons. Yes he may make some people uncomfortable with this film; but that's why there's Cable folks.
Description of Angels & Demons [Blu-ray]
No description available for this title.Item Type: BLU-RAY DVD Movie
Item Rating: PG13
Street Date: 11/24/09
Wide Screen: yes
Director Cut: no
Special Edition: no
Language: ENGLISH
Foreign Film: noSubtitles: no
Dubbed: no
Full Frame: no
Re-Release: no
Packaging: Sleeve
If the devil is in the details, there's a lot of wicked fun in Angels & Demons, the sequel (originally a prequel) to The Da Vinci Code. Director Ron Howard delivers edge-of-your-pew thrills all over the Vatican, the City of Rome, and the deepest, dankest catacombs. Tom Hanks is dependably watchable in his reprised role as Professor Robert Langdon, summoned urgently to Rome on a matter of utmost urgency--which happens to coincide with the death of the Pope, meaning the Vatican is teeming with cardinals and Rome is teeming with the faithful. A religious offshoot group, calling themselves the Illuminati, which protested the Catholic Church's prosecution of scientists 400 years ago, has resurfaced and is making extreme, and gruesome, terrorist demands. The film zooms around the city, as Langdon follows clues embedded in art, architecture, and the very bone structure of the Vatican. The cast is terrific, including Ewan McGregor, who is memorable as a young protégé of the late pontiff, and who seems to challenge the common wisdom of the Conclave just by being 40 years younger than his fellows when he lectures for church reform. Stellan Skarsgard is excellent as a gruff commander of the Swiss Guard, who may or may not have thrown in with the Illuminati. But the real star of the film is Rome, and its High Church gorgeousness, with lush cinematography by Salvatore Totino, who renders the real sky above the Vatican, in a cataclysmic event, with the detail and majesty of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. --A.T. Hurley
Stills from Angels & Demons (click for larger image)
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