Having planned to see State of Play on the weekend, I was surprised when I ended up in a cinema face to face with vatican conspiracy instead and wondering how I got talked into seeing it.

Angels and Demons, the film of the bestselling Dan Brown book, is the predecessor to The Da Vinci Code (but as if I needed to tell you that). Tom Hanks is back as Professor Langdon, and thankfully there are many improvements from the first film. His hair, for one. And Angels and Demons is marginally more believable than it’s predecessor, save for one action packed scene involving a helicopter, a bomb filled with anti-matter and a parachuting priest (guaranteed it’ll make you giggle).

The plot goes something like this: The pope is dead  (looking suspiciously like Jean Paul II), and the four Preferiti (favourites to be elected) have been kidnapped by a man that looks a lot like Val Kilmer (but not quite). He sends a message to the Vatican that he will assassinate one cardinal per hour until midnight, when he will blow Vatican City sky high using stolen anti-matter. Despite having umpteen Swiss guards and gendarmes at their command, the Vatican can only call on an American atheist to help them out. Then there’s all these subplots involving the Carmelingo (played very handsomely by Ewan McGregor), a physicist and your usual Dan Brown hidden signs and visits to all the major tourist destinations.

While it might sound ridiculous, it’s pulled off with (mostly) finesse and is an able-bodied thriller. Ron Howard did not have permission to film inside the Vatican, so the sets were recreated in a studio. The attention to detail is impeccable and one of the best things about the film.

There are some bits at the beginning where it feels like Robert Langdon is giving a history lesson on the Illuminati, but for the most part it keeps pace, and there are some great scenes such as the escape from the Vatican Library.

As much as I hate to say it, Angels and Demons ain’t a bad film. I might admit I enjoyed it.

3.5/5