The Art Of Finding A Good Franchise

POTENTIAL FRANCHISE, anyway...!!! 

Granted, Tom wasn't even THINKING of that 

when he took on these roles in Saving Private Ryan... 

Dragnet... and the title role in that other flick there...! 

To him, they could all have been Philadelphia - really! 

One shot deals; self-contained stories - that's it! 

Minus the Oscar potential - for Streebek, anyway! 

But that's another story...!!! 

Verily, the development of this "let's adapt 

Dan Brown for the Big Screen" movement 

is a testament to Ron Howard's ambition - 

his and his alone! 

After the basic mystery investigation tale meets Christian Faith and Facts which made the Priory of Sion and Opus Dei at odds 

over *a* Truth... that is of no consequence, really (...!) 

it is time for Science and the God Particle 

-straight out of the Hadron Collider- 

to, indeed, collide with Religion, the Church - and 

the Illuminati... no less! (Or not really...!) 

(Somehow, adapting the book featuring the Freemasons 

-2013 update! 2013 update! I am from the Future!- 

does not appeal much to Ron - 

he must have received threats?

That's... another story!) 

The casting of Ewan McGregor as the Camerlengo 

does, however, accomplish something huge here: 

it finally connects -and it is that much clearer this way 

for the willfully blind out there- the two twins 

of different fathers but, somewhat/somehow, 

of the same mother --- the Jedi and the Priest! 

I always said it: the two have lots more in common 

than the common, casual observer will ever admit; 

 a "Camerlengo" might even be a sort of Jedi 

in some alternate universe or something...! 

This character bridges the gap well, too; 

between the boring, run-of-the-mill padre 

and the powerful, druidic but cool Jedi! 

Jedis always mingle in politics, it seems; 

and so do the priests - especially those stationed 

at the Holy See itself... people forget that! 

And McGregor's simple casting as the Camerlengo 

accomplishes that, in and by itself 

(in spite of the revolting developments 

the film will undoubtedly have; 

spoilers alert...!!!) 

RON HOWARD 

-in closing; and back to the point!- 

has achieved the near-impossible, therefore; 

successfully sell (to a degree) something 

that does not naturally appeal to the masses - 

for action hero fare this is not. 

It isn't science-fiction or any other genre 

frowned upon by the Academy...! 

(Horror - perish that thought now!) 

And it isn't exactly Detective Poirot either; 

otherwise, it would have been done 

straight to TV...! And that was definitely not 

Ron's goal here... No! Ron wanted material 

that could make for SUSTAINABLE SUCCESS 

AND REPEAT BUSINESS 

AT THE BOX-OFFICE...! 

Potentially, anyway... (so far, since its 

release in May, A&D have not exactly 

made business like gangbusters, anywhere on 

the globe, really... There's always DVD sales...?

That will teach them releasing in the month 

of MARY...!!! My favorite, too... ) 

RON and TOM still found something 

perfectly suitable for them BOTH here! 

A vehicle for an actor such as Oscar-winner 

Tom Hanks - substantial, serious, 

light years away from the comedies 

he used to be making, one after the other, 

very early on in his career... 

before he married *his* Bulgarian Bride! 

(That's another story too - from the Future!) 

Something he can act - without having to be 

something he is not (like an Indy or 

-- Heaven Forbid -- a Jason Statham type!) 

There are zero action scenes for Tom, really; 

when the going gets tough, he just absorbs 

and waits it out - until the focus is back on 

riddle-solving... where it should be! 

It's like a MacGyver Deluxe, verily - 

and Ron Howard sure can direct that! 

Direct... or produce! 

Ron found the perfect source material 

for both Tom as for himself, 

as a director with a certain ambition 

and flair for this sort of production, indeed; 

too bad that it had to be DAN BROWN... 

So, no Freemasonry... eh 

There's not much else to adapt there, then! 

Unless it is... INFERNO. 
(Future... Inferno!)

THE LOST SYMBOL 

- a dreadful conspiracy story - 

(some call it a mystery-thriller novel though...) 

out... this year of 2009 

Anno Domini 

... by sheer coincidence ... 

...so much is LOST indeed... paper, patience... TIME! 

AND IT ALL GOES TO HELL...! 

2013 Anno Domini ... !!! 

... within a few short years - only that! 

Yes... I am from the Future! 

And it is... bleak!