The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code Movie:
Directed by: Ron Howard
Produced by: Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, John Calley
Screenplay written by: Akiva Goldsman
Novel written by: Dan Brown
Starring: Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Sir Ian McKellen, Paul Bettany, Jean Reno, Alfred Molina, Jürgen Prochnow
Music by: Hans Zimmer
Cinematography: Salvatore Totino
Editing by: Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill
Distributed by: Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures
Release date: 18 May 2006 (Malaysia)
Language: English


Ron Howard and Akiva Goldsman, the Oscar-winning director and writer of A Beautiful Mind, reunite to bring Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, one of the most popular and controversial novels of our time, to the big screen with a cast headed by two-time Academy Award-winner Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Sir Ian McKellen, Alfred Molina and Jean Reno.

Produced by Oscar-winner Brian Grazer and John Calley, The Da Vinci Code begins with a spectacular murder in the Louvre Museum. All clues point to a covert religious organization that will stop at nothing to protect a secret that threatens to overturn 2,000 years of accepted dogma.




ROBERT LANGDON
Langdon's usually sharp blue eyes looked hazy and drawn tonight. A dark stubble was shrouding his strong jaw and dimpled chin. Around his temples, the grey highlights were advancing, making their way deeper into his thicket of coarse black hair. Although his female colleagues insisted the gray only accentuated his bookish appeal, Langdon knew better. "If Boston Magazine could see me now," he thought. Last month, much to Langdon's embarrassment, Boston Magazine had listed him as one of that city's top ten most intriguing people -- a dubious honor that made him the brunt of endless ribbing by his Harvard colleagues.



SOPHIE NEVEU
At thirty-two years old, she had a dogged determination that bordered on obstinate. Her eager espousal of Britain's new crytologic methodology continually exasperated the veteran French cryptographers above her.



SIR LEIGH TEABING
Despite the aluminium braces on his legs, he carried himself with a resilient, vertical dignity that seemed more a byproduct of noble ancestry than any kind of conscious effort.



MANUEL ARINGAROSA
Manuel Aringarosa had packed a small travel bag and dressed in a traditional black cassock. Normally, he would have wrapped a purple cincture around his waist, but tonight he would be traveling among the public, and he preferred not to draw attention to his high office. Only those with an erudite eye would notice his 14 karat gold Bishop's ring with purple amethyst, large diamonds, and hand-tooled mitre-Crozier applique.



BEZU FACHE
Captain Bezu Fache carried himself like an angry ox, with his wide shoulders thrown back and his chin tucked hard into his chest. His dark hair was slicked back with oil, accentuating an arrow-like widow's peak that divided his jutting brow and preceded him like the prow of a battleship. As he advanced, his dark eyes seemed to scorch the earth before him, radiating a fiery clarity that forecast his reputation for unblinking severity in all matters.



SILAS
He was broad and tall, with ghost pale skin and thinning white hair. His irises were pink with dark red pupils. The spiked cilice belt that he wore around his thigh cut into his flesh, and yet his soul sang with satisfaction of service to the Lord. Pain is good.


Blade
The blade or pyramid is the alchemical symbol for fire. It also symbolizes masculinity and in combination with its complement shape the chalice, the blade forms the Star of David or Solomon's Seal. The blade is also an equilateral triangle, a symbol of the Christian trinity.


Chalice
The chalice symbol alludes to the specific cup that held Christ's wine during the Last Supper, the selfsame Holy Grail which became the point of Sir Galahad's quest. The chalice, an inverted pyramid, is also the alchemical symbol for water.


Ankh
The ankh character is an Egyptian hieroglyph for the word "life" and was often found in tomb paintings near representations of immortal deities and fertility goddesses. Egyptians carried the symbol as a good luck charm and protective talisman.


Greek Cross
Unlike the more commonly-known Latin cross, the Greek cross has arms of equal length, signifying perfection or balance. This symbol is also associated with the four points of the compass, the four alchemical elements, the positive sign and the symbol for addition. It appears on the Greek and Swiss flags, and a red version of the Greek Cross is the symbol for the Red Cross organization.


Fleur-de-lis
The symbol of the fleur-de-lis or "lily flower" is mostly associated with the coat of arms of French monarchs, starting in the 12th century. It can be found earlier on Assyrian jewelry and then Greek, Roman and Celtic coins as a general symbol for royalty.


Cross
One of the most widely recognized symbols in the world, the cross is a symbol for Christianity itself and the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. There are many variants of the cross. Shaped like the capital letter T, the first Tau cross is modeled after the wooden cross the Romans used to crucify Christ.