Angels & Demons vs. TRM
--SPOILER ALERT--
Don’t continue if you don’t want to read some of the plot of the movie.
The movie implies that there is a secret organization, the Illuminati, that has infiltrated the highest ranks of the Catholic Church, as well as The Swiss Guard, and is plotting to take over the Papacy itself. The gruesome death toll mounts as the Illuminati lead the heroes on a chase to save the lives of some potential Popes and prevent the destruction of the Vatican with an anti-matter bomb!
I had the “bad guy” picked out during the first scene where he appeared. But what I didn’t expect was a major plot twist. The Illuminati aspect of the story was nothing but a false trail, the type of red herring Alfred Hitchcock called a MacGuffin. The bad guy wasn’t a member of the Illuminati at all, he was just a crazed bozo who thought that the church had become too liberal(!).
In the end, there were actually two stories. One was a power grab, the other was a bunch of facts (about art works, about the Illuminati, etc.) looking for a story. Contrary to what some have claimed, I would say that this was a pro-Catholic film. The church remains doing what the church has always done because it is composed of human people.
But because the second story, all about the Illuminati, is nothing but a ruse, so, too, is any spirituality or mysticism that could have been the beating heart of such a story.
If you are looking for an exciting mystery that is filled with spiritual concepts, I would encourage you to read The Resurrection Murders. It doesn’t “cop out” at the end. The “lectures” found in Angels and Demons are minimized in my book. People in the story learn by doing, not by hearing. It’s far more active and has more than just one major twist in the story.
Okay, The Resurrection Murders is my book, so perhaps I’m prejudiced. But if you’re looking for an exciting and spiritual story that doesn’t wimp out at the end, read The Resurrection Murders. I think you’ll really enjoy it and won’t feel like you were cheated.