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Friday, May 05, 2006

The Da Vinci Code

1) The suspicion of authority
2) The "tabloid" love of the 'expose'
3) Suspicion of established religion
4) Suspicion of 'success' [how has something lasted so long, it must have a flaw somewhere]
5) A fascination with Jesus? [Graham suggests but I am not quite so convinced]
6) The idea the women have been suppressed for 1700 years

• Wikipedia article on the book and the film
• There is a great set of little videos from London's Temple Church, a central location in the book, dealing with the history of the Holy Grail, called "Demystifying the Da Vinci Code".
• Trailers for the film here at IMDB.
• Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code Website.
• Decoding the Da Vinci Code - an article by NT wright covering the historical aspects.
• The Da Vinci Code - a review by scholar Craig Blomberg
• Cracking the Anti-Catholic Code Part 1 and Part 2 - critique by by Carl E. Olson, with Sandra Miesel
• A nice little enthusiastic review, with some quick facts Dan Brown may have missed! by Steve Sparrow
• BBC News item about how the Indian Muslims are joining the protest about the film. You may note here that it is being given permission to be shown on India: "if the film-makers agreed to a disclaimer at the start of the movie saying it was a work of fiction"
• Da Vinci FAQ's - a very thorough look at everything you ever wanted to know!!
• A proper list of articles here at emergesque - crikey!
• Scott McKnight asks the church to learn something from this - the need for integrity.
• Brian McLaren in this interview gives a fresh view in allowing it to ask us some questions
• This is fascinating: Poll suggests Da Vinci code undermines trust in Catholic church. For example: "Sixty per cent of the adults polled who read the book believed there was truth to the claim that Jesus had children by Mary Magdalene. This compared to just 30 per cent of those who has not read it."
• Dan Brown answers his own questions here
• Article at CBS News on the existence [or otherwise] of the Priory of Sion.
• Article in the New Yorker on Marketing "The Da Vinci Code" to Christians. Debunks the facts of the Da vinci Code from all angles, but asks if Christians have been duped by the marketing machine. Leonardo Da Vinci art expert suggets "The Da Vinci Code" might make a better opera than a film, offering the old advice that "if it's too silly to be said, it can always be sung". Opus Dei say: "The Web site has received more than three million visitors, and some of the curious have now become members. The Silas wannabes are generally screened out. "Every once in a while, we get an e-mail from somebody who's really fascinated by the cilice and the discipline, and says he would like to join up if he can use them. And that's not the kind of person that we're looking for."

• Empire Magazine gives it 2 stars. Verdict: One of the most talk driven summer flicks in living memory, an out of sorts Howard transforms what should be a fun treasure trail romp into something inert and borderline dreary.
• BBC review. Quote: "Hanks is dry and uninspiring as Langdon - and the mullet hairstyle he sports throughout deserves a credit of its own."
• IMDB entry. Look out for on-going developments there.
  

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