When I heard reports this week that critics hated the movie version of The DaVinci Code, I was a bit worried about going to see it. I really enjoyed the book. It was a treasure hunt, a thriller, a murder mystery. A good read. I hate it when a book I like gets turned into a really bad movie. Criticisms included that Tom Hanks looked bored, his costar Audrey Tantou couldn’t be understood because her accent was so thick, and that the audience laughed in the most inappropriate places.

I don’t know what move those critics went to see, but the one we just came back from was a lot of fun. Tom Hanks was more thoughtful than in some of his more previous roles, but I didn’t see him look bored. I could understand Audrey Tantou just fine. Her accent just wasn’t all that thick. The only time the audience laughed was in some pretty appropriate places.

As a treasure hunt movie, National Treasure was more fun and edge of your seat exciting. It’s the subject matter which makes “The Code” more interesting. Mix fact with fiction with old mythology with a healthy dose of stretching ideas to fit a point of view, and you’ve got yourself a powerful brain bender.

I’m not the guy to talk about the theological problems in this movie. In case you’ve missed it, I’m not a fan of organized religion. So I don’t get the problems that some religious folks have voiced. I didn’t find anything hertical or particularly offensive about it. The fact that there were other Gospels is historically documented. The fact that Constantine and the Council of Nicaea got together and chose the Gospels as we know the Bible today is also well-documented. I can’t speak for Constantine’s or the various Bishop’s motives…but then again, neither can anyone else.

Personally, I find the fact that the Catholic Church and other religious groups want to supress the movie much more offensive than anything the movie says about the life of Jesus. But that’s just the way I’m wired.