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The Da Vinci Code

and theres more....





Bestselling novel The Da Vinci Code, derided by critics and the subject of furious religious debate, has won best book at the British Book Awards.
Dan Brown, author of the book which has sold 17 million copies, said by video that he was delighted the novel had proved so controversial.

He missed out in the best author award - given to Sheila Hancock who wrote about her life with actor John Thaw.

And the literary fiction award went to Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell.

Brown, an American former teacher who rarely makes public appearances, said of the quasi-historical thriller: "For the record, it is a novel."

In the book, Brown wrote that Leonardo Da Vinci's painting The Last Supper holds the key to the Holy Grail - which is not a chalice, as traditionally believed, but Mary Magdalene.

It claims Jesus and Mary married and had a child and that their bloodline survives to this day - a secret kept by the Catholic Church.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Archbishop of Genoa and right-hand man to the new Pope Benedict XVI, recently said: "It astonishes and worries me that so many people believe these lies."

In other awards at the 16th annual event, hosted by TV presenters Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan, footballer Paul Gascoigne won best sports book for Gazza: My Story.

He beat the autobiographies of Olympic stars Kelly Holmes and Matthew Pinsent, plus former England rugby coach Clive Woodward.

Former US president Bill Clinton won best biography for his memoirs, and actress Hancock was named author of the year for The Two Of Us: My Life With John Thaw.

The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Sir John Mortimer, creator of Rumpole of the Bailey.

The award was presented by a surprise guest - his actress daughter Emily.
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainmen ... 466933.stm
 
If nobody has read The Widow's Son by Robert Anton Wilson, I would strongly suggest it - the subject matter is the same as the 'Da Vinci' Code, but executed much more masterfully, and it was written twenty years ago . . . so if anyone should be suing . . .


-Fitz
 
Oh Fitz! I'm trying to cut down on the book buying! You're no help to an addict, are you? :D

edit Oooo....I've just noticed it's part of a set. That might put me off. What are the rest like (and called, so it's easy to find them!)
 
sjoh9 said:
Bestselling novel The Da Vinci Code, derided by critics and the subject of furious religious debate, has won best book at the British Book Awards.
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Thank God its best book and not best piece of literature. If the Da Vinci Code is ever called intelligent either, i'll eat my sock.
 
rjm said:
If the Da Vinci Code is ever called intelligent either, i'll eat my sock.
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Will you be eating that sock cooked or raw? ;)

Secret fanatical religious sects...codes hidden in Da Vinci's works...intelligent writing...one whopping fabulous read.
--NEW HAVEN REGISTER
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On Dan Brown's website surprise, surprise.
 
Keep in mind that the same types of people considered Jurassic Park to be a well researched book about biology, paleontology, and Chaos Theory.
 
I've said it before, and I'm gonna say it again - it's a fun book, but why are people taking it so damn seriously? No serious scholar believes Mary Magdelene was Jesus' wife, or that there was a serious cover-up to turn her into a prostitute.

Actually, I emphasizing the respectable woman aspect actually demeans Christianity, as identifiying the Magdelene as the prostitute showed compassion and redemption was possible for sinners; rather than the traditional Jewish thing of once a sinner, always a sinner, down unto the Nth generation.

It's just a story!!!
 
Art Experts Search for Da Vinci Painting
By ARIEL DAVID,

ROME - "Cerca, trova" — seek and you shall find — says a tantalizing five-century-old message painted on a fresco in the council hall of Florence's Palazzo Vecchio. Researchers now believe these cryptic words could be a clue to the location of a long-lost Leonardo da Vinci painting and are pressing local authorities to allow them to search for the masterpiece of Renaissance art.

Maurizio Seracini, an Italian art researcher, first noticed the message during a survey of the hall 30 years ago, but his team lacked the technology then to see what lay behind Giorgio Vasari's 16th-century fresco, "Battle of Marciano in the Chiana Valley." However, radar and X-ray scans conducted between 2002 and 2003 have detected a cavity behind the section of wall the message was painted on, which Seracini believes may conceal Leonardo's unfinished mural painting, the "Battle of Anghiari."

Considered one of Leonardo's greatest works, the mural is known today through the Tuscan master's preparatory studies and copies made by other artists."At the time, this was considered the masterpiece of masterpieces," Seracini told the Associated Press. Recovering it "would be like discovering a new Mona Lisa or a new Last Supper." Leonardo's mural was thought to have been destroyed in the mid-16th century when artist, writer and architect Vasari renovated the hall that once served as Florence's seat of power. He then covered the walls with his own paintings.

Leonardo began working on the "Battle of Anghiari" in June 1505, when he was 53. He worked alongside fellow artist and rival Michelangelo, who had been commissioned to decorate the opposite wall with scenes of the Florentine republic's military triumphs. Michelangelo never went beyond the preparatory work for his "Battle of Cascina," but Leonardo did paint his battle's centerpiece — a violent clash of horses and men called the "Fight for the Flag."

Leonardo later abandoned the work and left for Milan. Some chroniclers of the time said the artist had experimented with unstable paints that had rapidly degraded, leaving the painting irreparably damaged. "For generations these stories have held us back, but there are documents that say otherwise," Seracini said. "Maybe other parts were damaged, but we know that 60 years later, when Vasari began his works, the painting was still visible and people still came to marvel at it."

Vasari raised the hall's roof 23 feet by building a second set of walls, but scans show that at one point he left a space between the two walls that is just large enough to house Leonardo's 19-by-13-foot "Fight for the Flag," Seracini said.

A similar technique was used by Vasari to preserve other works of art, he said.

"We see from Vasari's writings that Leonardo was just too important to him," Seracini said, adding that Vasari himself may have painted the message on a tiny green flag in his 39-by-26-foot fresco as a clue to the location of the "Battle of Anghiari."

"It is the only writing on dozens of flags in that painting," Seracini said. "And what are we looking for if not for something which was already known then as the 'Fight for the Flag'? Can all this be a coincidence?"

Seracini, whose research on another Leonardo painting is quoted in Dan Brown's novel "The Da Vinci Code," is an engineer who has spent the last three decades conducting scientific investigations on art treasures. He said he would like to continue his search for the "Battle of Anghiari" but authorities in Florence have denied him a permit. "For months now we have been at a standstill and since all this is paid for by a private company, at no cost to the municipality, it's difficult for me to understand the reason for this behavior," he said.

Chiara Silla, director of the Palazzo Vecchio museum, said the inquiry hasn't been given the go-ahead because Seracini has yet to present a detailed report on his survey. "Seracini's is a work in progress that is difficult to evaluate," Silla said. "For the last two years we have been waiting for technical and scientific documentation to decide together whether to continue or not."

If authorized to resume, Seracini said he would conduct another series of scans and insert a small probe through Vasari's painting to detect any traces of the pigments used by Leonardo. That would require at least another year of work, he said. If the "Battle of Anghiari" is located, it should be possible for conservation artists to remove a section of Vasari's fresco, extract Leonardo's painting and then safely replace the Vasari, Seracini said. He said it would be a fairly routine operation for experts.

Alessandro Vezzosi, a Leonardo expert and the director of a museum dedicated to the artist in his hometown of Vinci, said he is aware of Seracini's work and that is based on solid evidence. "We need to get to the bottom of this. The idea of a Leonardo hidden there is incredibly fascinating," he said.
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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050620/ap_en_ot/italy_lost_leonardo
 
Ravenstone said:
I've just bought a couple of 'cracking the da Vinci code' books. The da Vinci Code Decoded by Martin Lunn and Cracking the da Vinci Code by Simon Cox (no note of Rev. Garlow as co-author however). I've just finished the Martin Lunn one and it's pretty basic.
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Don´t know if your aware, but ML recently passed away. He was quite involved in the Dragon Society, a strange organisation claiming to be descended from a military order to which Vlad Tepes´ dad belonged.
 
As filming begins...


Nun stages Da Vinci Code protest


A Roman Catholic nun has staged a protest over the filming of the Da Vinci Code at Lincoln Cathedral.
Sister Mary Michael knelt in prayer outside the building for 12 hours to object to the production of the film, which stars Tom Hanks.

The 61-year-old believes the film, based on a book written by Dan Brown, contains heresy.

Tom Hanks and the Sony Pictures film crew are believed to have witnessed the nun's protest.

Sister Mary Michael said she did not care about the effect on them.

"It matters to me what God thinks, not what the film crew think.

"When I face almighty God at my final judgement, as we all will, I can say I did try my best. I did try my best to protest," she said.

Producers were barred from filming at Westminster Abbey because the book suggests the church is covering up the truth about Jesus' life.

The novel portrays Jesus marrying Mary Magdalene and fathering a child.

The Dean of Lincoln Cathedral, the Very Reverend Alec Knight, stepped in and allowed production there.

The film company reportedly offered a donation of £100,000.

The Very Rev Knight said: "It's (the book) been attacked as blasphemous because it argues the notion that Jesus's humanity included an element of sexuality.

"My view is that the book isn't blasphemous, it doesn't denigrate God in any way, but it is speculative, far fetched and heretical.

'Bit wooly'

"It has clearly touched the public imagination, and the Church needs to open up a debate about it rather than throw one's hands up and walk away from it."

Speaking later Sister Mary said he should be providing a strong leadership for the teachings of the Church and should not be "sitting on the fence" about the book's basic claims.

She added: "I understand his thinking but it is a bit woolly.

"I believe he is sitting on the fence with this arrangement.

"It has developed discussion which otherwise we would not be having but at the same time he really should stand up for the truth and speak clearly."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/linc ... 155422.stm
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Psyche babble

The Da Vinci Code has moved from the top of the bestseller charts into the lecture theatre

John Crace
Tuesday September 13, 2005
The Guardian

At one point in The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown says history is written by the winners. He is referring to the way the early Christian church supposedly airbrushed Jesus's marriage to Mary Magdalene out of the scriptures, but he might just as well have been talking about himself. Since the book was first published in 2003 it has topped bestseller lists worldwide and millions of readers have accepted as gospel Brown's version of early Christianity, the Knights Templar and the symbolism of Leonardo's art.

It wasn't long before the knockers were out in force. Catholic scholars, historians and art experts ripped into The Da Vinci Code. But although intellectuals demolished his claims and literary reviewers lampooned his style, the book continued to walk off the shelves. Brown had somehow tapped into every conspiracy theorist's psyche and secured a place in publishing history.

But even Brown can't have expected the book to wind up as the focus for college courses. This autumn, no fewer than six adult education centres in England and Scotland will be running day seminars on aspects of the book. At the Farncombe Estate in Worcestershire, retired Bournemouth University historian Bill Putnam will be exploring the myths surrounding the Priory of Sion, the French secret society Brown claims has protected Jesus's bloodline since the 12th century.

"In fact the story of the Priory of Sion is an elaborate hoax that first materialised in the 1950s and was given further credibility with the publication of The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail in 1982," he says. "Brown continues to maintain it actually existed and that various high profile figures, such as Sir Isaac Newton, Victor Hugo, Leonardo da Vinci and Jean Cocteau, were members. This is nonsense."

Putnam should know what he's talking about. He's written for History Today on the Priory of Sion and is co-author of The Treasure of Rennes-Le Chateau, a Mystery Solved, about the small French village in the Languedoc where the hoax began.

At the College of Adult Education in Peterborough, part of Cambridge University's institute of continuing education, Dr Evelyn Lord will run a day course on the Knights Templar and promises to "disentangle fact from fiction".

But most typical of the code-related courses are those at Dillington House, Somerset; Urchfont Manor College, Wiltshire; Belstead House, Suffolk; and Knuston Hall, Northamptonshire, which examine the religious symbolism of the paintings mentioned in the book.

Valerie Marshall, who will teach many of these courses, has taught art history, architecture and the history of fashion for many years. She admits that the controversies surrounding The Da Vinci Code inspired her to take a closer look at the paintings. "I know many people are very angry about some of the claims Brown makes," she says, "but I don't see it as my role to say either, yes, he's right or no, he's wrong.

"What I intend to do is to explore the experts' various theories, while working logically through the paintings mentioned in the book. I will also be showing colour slides of the representation of John the Baptist, Mary Magdalene and the Last Supper by other artists, such as Dürer and Caravaggio. This way students can come to their own conclusions about Brown's interpretation in The Da Vinci Code."

Meanwhile in Scotland, Newbattle Abbey College will be using its proximity to Rosslyn Chapel - where the book claims the relics of Mary Magdalene were once kept - to combine an on-site visit with a weekend course. It is attracting students from as far as America.

All that seems to be missing is a college with a keen interest in hands-on archaeology prepared to offer a week's digging under the pyramid in front of the Louvre. There again, as every reader knows, Brown's hero got there first.
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http://education.guardian.co.uk/egweekl ... 02,00.html
 
Art detective exposes hidden images to fuel Da Vinci Code conspiracies


John Hooper in Rome
Tuesday September 20, 2005
The Guardian



Amid the obsessive scholars and scheming prelates who inhabit Dan Brown's global blockbuster, The Da Vinci Code, there is a real person.

Maurizio Seracini works in a high-ceilinged, colourfully frescoed palazzo just across the river from the Uffizi gallery in Florence. His premises are packed with machines that look as if they belong in a hospital or laboratory.

Brown calls him an "art diagnostician", which is not a bad description for someone who probes paintings with state-of-the-art-technology, often to advise museums, dealers and collectors on their restoration.

The Da Vinci Code revolves around the contention that Leonardo Da Vinci's paintings are full of symbolic allusions to a secret claimed to have been preserved by successors of the defunct medieval order of Knights Templar - that Christ married Mary Magdalene and had a family whose descendants are alive today. What attracted Brown to Mr Seracini was his epic investigation into what lies below the surface of the Adoration of the Magi, a work the art detective believes was sketched by Da Vinci, but painted over by someone else.

As Brown related, infra-red photography had revealed many differences between the painting and the under-drawing. These, he said, appeared "to subvert Da Vinci's true intention". He added: "Whatever the true nature of the under-drawing, it had yet to be made public."

Now it can be. Mr Seracini, who could finish his four-year investigation this week, has given the Guardian an exclusive preview of the results. He provided a glimpse three years ago to the New York Times and since then, he said, he had revealed his incomplete findings to only four experts not directly involved. Mr Seracini has examined the painting minutely using a technique that exploits the fact infra-red light passes through paint but reflects off the under-drawing.

As the photographs show, he and his team have conjured from below the amber-brown layer with which much of the panel is covered a collection of Da Vinci's drawings that were hidden for more than five centuries. They contain numerous previously invisible - or barely discernible - details. Some will electrify conspiracy theorists.

The Adoration of the Magi could have been dreamed up as a playground for semiologists. Even the visible work is packed with figures, faces, beasts, buildings, foliage and an extraordinary amount of activity, much of which bears no relation to the biblical account of the three kings' visit to the Virgin Mary and her newborn child.

There is a ruminating figure in the foreground surrounded by a sea of faces. Behind Mary on one side, there is an oddly shaped, incomplete structure which is sometimes taken for a ruined palace. On the other side horsemen can just be made out engaged in a struggle. Missing from the scene are elements you would expect. There is no stable, no manger, no oxen, not even a donkey.

Mr Seracini's investigation has been funded by the Swiss-based Kalpa group, a non-profit organisation that supports scholars and their research. Three assistants have worked full-time for almost a year in the final phase, enhancing and assembling 2,400 infra-red images.

Whether covered up by Da Vinci or someone else, Mr Seracini said he has found "a whole new world" under the surface which no one disputes was created by Da Vinci. There is ample documentary evidence that he was commissioned to paint an Adoration of the Magi and that he completed at least part of the work.

"You get a wonderful sense of Leonardo's creative ferment," said Martin Kemp, an art history professor at Oxford University and one of the few experts who has seen the partial results of Mr Seracini's work. "The amount of brainstorming going on underneath the painting is remarkable."

On the right, a finely depicted ox and donkey emerge from 500-odd years of invisibility along with part of the roof of the missing stable. The misanthropic king scowling over Mary's right shoulder is revealed as a figure of composure and majesty. A host of masterfully sketched faces emerges in the lower left corner.

Perhaps the most important discovery for critics and historians is that the two horsemen in the upper right corner are just one small part of what was originally a full-blown battle scene. The violence and horror are almost palpable: men flinch as they parry blows with their raised arms; they writhe under rearing horses. Visible through the struggle are more battling men and horses at a distance.

One question raised by Mr Seracini's painstaking investigation is why Da Vinci wanted to include such a bloody scene in a nativity painting, and why he - or someone else - thought better of it.

But another question, and the one that will fascinate the Dan Brown fans, is what Da Vinci was up to on the other side of the painting in the last area of the panel to be fully rendered by Mr Seracini's technicians.

The traditional interpretation is that the building is a ruin symbolising the decay of the old, pre-Christian order. Mr Seracini's examination has confirmed the structure is not Christian. Da Vinci did not turn to the Classical Roman architecture that was all around him. "This is a lotus capital," said Mr Seracini, pointing to the top of a column. "I was very surprised when I saw this."

The capital, the upper portion of a column, offers one of the main clues to the age and style of a building. Capitals modelled on the lotus flower are characteristic of ancient Egypt.

Parts of the building are ruined and neglected. Another recent discovery, made just a few days ago, is that there is a tree growing out of the stonework. Yet there are people - apparently labourers and craftsmen - clambering all over it. Mr Seracini believes the building is a pagan temple, and that Leonardo originally intended to show it being rebuilt.

This is unusual in a nativity scene, but it does not take a huge leap of the imagination to see in it, as Da Vinci Code fans no doubt will, an allusion to the book's pivotal claim: that, after the dissolution of the Knights Templar, the order was surreptitiously reconstructed so its secret could be preserved. Mr Seracini, who claims never to have read Dan Brown's book, is reluctant to enter into such speculation.

But he is convinced that he has discovered the "true" adoration and that what we have all been looking at for centuries is a distortion created by a "very minor hand". Sitting beside him as he summons details from the under-drawing on to a large computer screen, it is not hard to see why.

Physical details that are exquisitely rendered in the original design become deformed by the application of the top layer, which is a mixture of pine resin, shellac, carbon and bitumen.

Mr Seracini believes this upper layer was applied a half-century or more after Da Vinci. But most art historians remain unconvinced.

Some have argued the work was never intended to be seen in its current form; that the orange-brown mixture was intended merely as underpaint. Just as controversial is the question of Da Vinci's intentions.

Mr Seracini said Da Vinci created the under-drawing as an underpainting because he used a brush and a mixture of lampblack and watery glue.

"Otherwise it would just have faded," he added.

Was he saying that Leonardo might have suspected his work would not stay the way he intended it, and may have deliberately preserved it that way? "I'm not going to speculate on that," Mr Seracini replied briskly. "That's for art historians to do. But I cannot rule it out."
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www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/ ... 82,00.html

They also offer a PDF of the image:

http://digital.guardian.co.uk/guardian/ ... er18.shtml
 
Did anyone see the program on ITV last night about the book? Not sure if it was on before but i found it quite amusing.Anyway...

'Da Vinci chapel' filming starts


Officials have closed the Rosslyn Chapel in Midlothian for a week to allow filming of the bestselling Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown.
The medieval building has found new popularity because of its association with the best-selling novel.

But concern has been expressed that the unprecedented interest in the chapel will be damaging unless it is strictly controlled.

The chapel's trustees said protection of the site was always under review.

Agreement for the use of the location has been agreed between the trustees and Rose Line Productions.

The film will star Tom Hanks as Professor Robert Langdon.

The 15th century chapel first experienced a surge in visitors after the book's plot suggested it was built to house the secret of the Holy Grail.

Despite being derided by the Catholic church and many historians, Dan Brown's work has sold 17 million copies worldwide.

Trustees spokesman Stuart Beattie has said he is confident his colleagues will feel the film is value for money. Location fees alone could generate £100,000.

A spokesman for Rose Line Productions described Rosslyn as a "magnificent" building which would enhance the quality of the film.

Hanks will play the lead role with Audrey Tautou the female co-star. Oscar winner Ron Howard is directing.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/4280730.stm
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FIGHT!
Da Vinci publisher in court case
Two authors are launching a High Court action against the publishers of The Da Vinci Code, which they say infringes upon their ideas.
Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh are suing Random House, claiming the bestseller lifts from their 1982 book The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail.

A High Court hearing will be held next week, followed by a trial next year.

Random House was unavailable for comment on the claim that Brown stole the idea that Jesus had a child.

A spokeswoman for Baigent and Leigh said the authors had been struck by alleged similarities to their history book.

Recent re-release

She said: "The basis of their case is theft of intellectual property.

"There are huge chunks of The Da Vinci Code which they say is lifted from their book."

The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail was recently reissued through Century, part of the Random House group.

It features "cryptically coded parchments, secret societies, the Knights Templar" and links them to "a dynasty of obscure French kings" and the Holy Grail.

It also claims that Jesus and Mary Magdalene married and had a child together.

The Da Vinci Code, derided by critics and the subject of furious religious debate, won best book at this year's British Book Awards.

The novel sees an art historian follow a trail of codes and puzzles to explore claims that Jesus and Mary's bloodline survives to this day.


A film is being made by director Ron Howard and starring Tom Hanks.

Baigent and Leigh wrote their book with a third author, Henry Lincoln, who is not taking part in the legal action due to ill-health.

In August, Brown won a court ruling in New York against writer Lewis Perdue, who claimed The Da Vinci Code plagiarised elements of two of his novels, Daughter of God, published in 2000 and 1983's The Da Vinci Legacy.

Perdue sought to block future distribution of the book and forthcoming film, as well as $150m (£84m) in damages, but the judge said any similarity was based on "unprotectable ideas".
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Two authors are launching a High Court action against the publishers of The Da Vinci Code, which they say infringes upon their ideas.
Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh are suing Random House, claiming the bestseller lifts from their 1982 book The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail.

A High Court hearing will be held next week, followed by a trial next year.

Random House was unavailable for comment on the claim that Brown stole the idea that Jesus had a child.
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Fight! Fight! Fight!

(I hope the plaintiffs win.)
 
I thought Brown acknowledged HBHG as source material?
 
Anome_ said:
I thought Brown acknowledged HBHG as source material?
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Perhaps they feel that he didn't acknowledge it enough?

It's a tricky one. There seem to me to be similarities with several other books (the novels Foucault's Pendulum and The Last Temptation of Christ to name but two) in the thinking behind The Da Vinci Code.

The legal area of 'intellectual property' can be a bit of a quagmire, I suspect. I vaguely recall a case where one composer was complaining that another composer had copied part of his work, and the reply was "yes, but who owns the note 'B'?", or words to that effect.
 
IIRC you can't copyright ideas, but you can copyright the way in which they're presented. So you couldn't copyright a historical event or the facts in a news item, but you could sue for breech of copyright it someone lifted more or less verbatim chunks of a book or article that you'd written on the case.

So assuming that Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh are claiming that the facts behind HBHG are true, they can't own those facts, only the way that they are presented. Unless of course they're going to admit that it's largely fiction, which opens up a whole new ballgame...
 
KeyserXSoze said:
The legal area of 'intellectual property' can be a bit of a quagmire, I suspect. I vaguely recall a case where one composer was complaining that another composer had copied part of his work, and the reply was "yes, but who owns the note 'B'?", or words to that effect.
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The estate of John Cage recently took on the risible Mike Batt (of "wombles" fame) for writing a silent piece for his pop classical protegés, the Planets. This, of course, was a reference to 4'33'' by John Cage, a piece consisting of silence. I thought that going to court over it was a bit of a shame, really.
 
Da Vinci Code court battle raises mystery

Da Vinci Code court battle raises mystery
By A Correspondent



DAN BROWN’S bestseller The Da Vinci Code was at the centre of its own High Court mystery yesterday when parts of a claim that the book was plagiarised were struck out.



Two authors who claim that Brown, whose novel is being made into a film starring Tom Hanks, had stolen chunks of their 1982 book The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail are suing publishers Random House for damages for infringement of copyright. But Random House came to court to ask Mr Justice Lewison to strike out large parts of the claim. Michael Baigent, 57, a New Zealander, and Richard Leigh, 62, an American, agreed by consent to an order cutting out a substantial part of their claim and to provide more specific details.

They also agreed to pay Random House the thousands of pounds in legal costs incurred by the changes. A Random House spokesman said: “We are delighted with the result, which reinforces our long-held contention that this is a claim without merit. We will be defending it vigorously.”

The full trial is due to start on February 27.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/ ... 26,00.html
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Re: Da Vinci Code court battle raises mystery

DAN BROWN’S bestseller The Da Vinci Code was at the centre of its own High Court mystery yesterday when parts of a claim that the book was plagiarised were struck out.
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Curioser and curioser... :?
 
'The Da Vinci Code' gets a trailer

For those of you who doubted that Ron Howard and Tom Hanks could deliver a fast-paced, gripping and thrilling adaptation of Dan Brown's bestselling novel The Da Vinci Code, you're in for a surprise - the theatrical trailer was released today and seems to indicate that the filmmakers have captured the spirit and undeniable charm of the novel perfectly.
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www.dvdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=59638

Direct link:
www.apple.com/trailers/sony_pictures/da ... large.html
 
I've seen plenty of gripping and thrilling trailers that were for really boring and badly paced films.

Sometimes they hire a specialist trailer company to do them, and the result has nothing to do with the actual film.
 
Secret Site in The Da Vinci Code Trailer

Source: Anasazi
December 14, 2005


If you've had a chance to watch the new trailer for Columbia Pictures' The Da Vinci Code, you might have noticed a flashing word and letters at the end. Scooper 'Anasazi' wrote:

Thanks for the update on The Da Vinci Code trailer. Cool stuff! There is something strange about it though! Check out the letters that are highlighted at the end of the presentation. The Word SEEK and the letters: T H S E C D E O

Unscramle this and it reads: SEEK THE CODES

OK, I checked out:

SeektheCodes.com

Looks like some regular schmoes website BLOG, right? Wrong! I checked out the domain registration. It's registered to Sony Pictures Entertainment. This is the first riddle in a string that starts with the trailer!

Cool, eh?
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Cool indeed, be sure to check out the trailer and visit this new site.
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www.comingsoon.net/news.php?id=12381
 
Adults only for Da Vinci Code


Opus Dei seeks adult rating for Da Vinci Code

The Catholic organisation Opus Dei is asking censors to give the Hollywood version of Dan Brown's best-selling novel The Da Vinci Code an adult rating because of the 'hateful image' of the group it portrays.

Opus Dei, which is often criticised as ultra-conservative and secretive, is particularly angry that a key figure in the story, a self-flagellating monk, is cast as a member and commits a grisly murder at the behest of a delusional bishop.

It said there were no monks in the order. In addition, the story 'falsely depicts' members 'lying, stealing, drugging people, and otherwise acting unethically'. Marc Carroggio, a spokesman, said: 'Any adult can distinguish reality from fiction, but when history is manipulated you cannot expect a child to make proper judgments.' The organisation has already asked Ron Howard, the director of the film, which is released in May, to remove its name from the script. Howard said: 'There will be no placating. Opus Dei is mentioned in the book, and we didn't shy away from that or any other aspect of the story.'

Source

[Emp edit: Fixing big link]
 
ted_bloody_maul said:
Adults only for Da Vinci Code


Opus Dei seeks adult rating for Da Vinci Code

...

Source
In their wisdom Opus Dei have said they don't want young people's understanding corrupted by the film.

Considering how aciduous their youth wing is in inducting and propagandising young Catholics into their organisation, you can be sure they know a thing, or two, about corrupting the innocent.

ODAN (Opus Dei Awareness Network) on questionable practices and recruitment techniques:
http://www.odan.org/questionable_practices.htm

Books forbidden by Opus Dei:
http://www.odan.org/forbidden_books.htm

Wikipedia on Opus Dei:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opus_Dei

Last year, I watched a very enlightening Belgian documentary about their recruitment through youth groups and summer camps. i.e. It's a brainwashing cult.
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