Dan Brown is an influential writer, to say the least. His work is very specific, his books move through hordes of mysteries without breaking the barrier of realism and showcase so many different, darker, and hidden sides to society’s most well-known monuments, symbols, and people. However, it’s safe to say that the films based on his work starring Robert Langdon have been far from good adaptations. In fact, it could even be said that these films barely even scratch the surface of the themes being conveyed in the books. Now, on the topic of 2016’s Inferno directed by Ron Howard, it suffers from the same problems as the previous installations, albeit on a much grander scale.
How to Download Inferno
You can download the film from a digital store. You can also stream it. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice. Check out also the two previous movies of the mystery film series – The Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons.
The Movie Review
Just like the Dan Brown novella, Inferno sees Professor Robert Langdon, a world-renowned symbologist awaken in a hospital bed with amnesia, unaware of where he is and what has occurred the past few days.
He is told by Dr. Sienna Brooks that he’s suffering from amnesia as a result of a gunshot wound, and from here on begins a mystery. A mystery that will lead both Robert Langdon and his highly enigmatic companion Dr. Sienna Brooks down a rabbit hole that leads to an evil scientist on the verge of cutting the world’s population in half.
I will be honest, I wasn’t a huge fan of the book version of Inferno either, it seemed like the most impersonal story for Langdon to be the protagonist of. However, I must commend Dan Brown on creating one of the best endings in the Langdon series within Inferno.
The ending of Inferno, however, is its worst aspect by far. It renders all the events depicted in the movie and the book pointless in a way that feels like a random cop-out on behalf of the screenwriters. It reeks of production and studio interferences. Despite this, there are other equally obvious flaws in Inferno that prevent it from succeeding.
It is almost impossible to believe that Ron Howard directed this.
The film’s pacing, direction, and overall artistic merit are a mess. The biggest issue of Inferno is that it never succeeds in bringing that sense of urgency that The Davinci Code or even Angels and Demons did. Moreover, a ton of the story content is just rushed through which makes this film even more confusing for viewers. There are so many twists and turns in this film, and yet all of them are either used horribly or told at times where they simply don’t matter or bring any sort of relevance to the plot.
However, not all is lost asked Tom Hanks, and his charming personality, charismatic mannerisms, and lovable character seem to be a saving grace for this film. Of course, it was going to only get worst from here on. It seems that only Hanks, in terms of the cast, excels. Felicity Jones’ portrayal is rather mechanical because her character has a very weak past and unclear motivations.
This results in a delivery that lacks expression and range. Not to mention, without any sense of urgency, threat, or even looming danger, the rest of the cast either overacts or is squandered in caricature roles.
Inferno is further devalued by some haphazard editing and an over-reliance on high-speed tracking shots. Those tracking shots suggest that the cinematographer was being forced to make this film intense because none of the material in the script was going to do the job. It made me feel rather queasy and sick after watching the movie despite the gorgeous locations and beautiful production design.
The wonderful sets and gorgeous vistas really do make one wish that they belonged in a far better movie, but nothing much redeems Inferno’s aesthetic side. Although there have been much better compositions in the previous installations of this franchise, Hans Zimmer’s soundtrack is both unsettling and moving. It enhances the suspense-filled mood of this movie quite a bit.
The Verdict
The third installment of Dan Brown’s trilogy about the exploits of Professor Robert Langdon, Inferno, has an utterly unimpressive and formulaic plot. Moreover, the editing is terrible, the camera work is a complete disaster, and the screenplay is corny and uninteresting, lacking any sense of urgency or depth. This movie can be watched because of a few things such as Hanks’ performance and Hans Zimmer’s score, but it is in no way a good film in any way.
