52% intelligent. 9% modest. More monkey than bear.

Sunday, May 21, 2006

Or just a cold and lonely lovely work of art?



In case you were wondering, I did manage to get past page 50 and finish off the Da Vinci Code. It's poorly written, badly researched nonsense. Of course it is. The plot is certainly ridiculous...but..... it does roll along quite nicely, and once I'd got over that initial hump, I was able to stay interested enough to get to the end. It might be damning it with faint praise, but I've certainly read worse. That's not to say that I intend to read any more: people have been busy telling me that "Angels and Demons" is a better book, but I reckon I'm done with Dan Brown. One is more than enough, thanks. The plot's ok, but really I can't think of another book I have read that is so badly written. Dan Brown seems to only have a passing acquaintance with the English language and its proper usage. Rather distressingly, that doesn't seem to have got in the way of the book selling something like 50m copies worldwide. I'm fairly sure that with sales like that, Dan Brown can afford not to give two hoots for stinging critiques of his style.

Or is it just good that people are reading at all? (this is usually the argument wheeled out in defence of the Harry Potter books - don't worry too much about the quality of the book, just be pleased that kids are reading anything at all). Maybe I'm just jealous. I should stop reading and criticising this tripe and focus instead on writing something of my own instead. I'm not greedy - I don't expect to sell 50m copies.... one or two million would be plenty. I don't want Tom Hanks in my film though.

Actually. My view on the book has softened somewhat since I went to see the film last night. The film manages to include all of the bad things about the book, whilst at the same time removing the driving plot that keeps the book moving and keeps you turning the pages.... The film is wordy, pretentious, overly long and dull, dull, dull....

Seriously - don't bother.

The film makes the book look good. What else can I say? The church are wasting their breath complaining and campaigning against this film. They should let it stiff on its own merits.

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I'm off to Paris on Thursday, and I'm planning to visit the Louvre for the first time. What's the betting I can't get anywhere near the Mona Lisa?

7 Comments:

  • At 12:20 pm, Blogger Crucifer said…

    Although I do like Harry Potter and I think it's good kids are being encouraged to read something, I think the argument "It's good that people are reading at all" can only be correct if those people actually start to read otherbooks than just pap like Harry Potter.

    The last good book I read was by Liz Williams - Darklands it was called. Quite interesting and very "Left Hand of Darkness" (Ursula K. Le Guin).

     
  • At 3:15 pm, Blogger Erika said…

    I'm with Crucifer: what was great about HP is that so many non-reading kids are devouring it, and then questing around for something similar (CS Lewis is a popular follow-up apparently). That being said, while JK Rowling is not a Pulitzer calibre wordsmith, she is a mighty fine storyteller - and one that is getting better as the series develops. There is a reason all those adults read the books too.

    Dan Brown, on the other hand... well, you pretty much summed up how I felt about the book. I put it in the same category as The Celestine Prophecy: a bestseller because of its rather interesting subject matter, despite being staggeringly awful writing. But as if Dan cares. He'll go drown his sorrows by bathing in his pool filled with hundred dollar bills.

     
  • At 4:03 pm, Blogger Flash said…

    As you know, I really enjoyed The Da Vinci Code. And it would seem that I am one of the very people of whom you speak. Books read in the 5 years upto DVC = 3, since = 6 and a half.
    Half? Atlantis by some norbert. Now that book is bad.

     
  • At 6:20 pm, Blogger HistoryGeek said…

    Oh, dear...I liked the movie, but then I was so ready for it to be complete rubbish that it probably didn't have far to go to surpass my expectations.

    As for the book, I've said it before, I'll say it again: it was good brain candy. I happen to like brain candy, myself. I read a lot, but rarely anything worth mentioning.

     
  • At 12:36 am, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Given that your thought the book was crap (to which I agree) - why did you go and see the film ?

    Sado-masochism ?
    Schadenfreude ?
    Wrong cinema ?

    It's no wonder they're making so much money. Everyone wants to see how crap it is for themselves.

     
  • At 2:33 am, Blogger Del said…

    If you can get to the Mona Lisa, stick your fake tache on it. The Dadaists would love it!

     
  • At 8:40 am, Blogger swisslet said…

    why did I go?

    1) because it was part of an outing with my girlfriend and a pile of our friends that included dinner and drinks

    2) I thought that it was the kind of story that might make a decent film (whilst taking away all of the bad writing in the book)

    Have you noticed how the ads for the film now feature the line "forget what you might have heard and decide for yourself...."

    Had some bad press then?

    ST

     

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