The Da Vince Code movie has been sweeping ticket sales in movie theatres all over the world. Despite negative reviews from movie critics, it still managed to rake up a total of USD$224 million from its worldwide opening.
This movie is based on the book with the same title written by Dan Brown. The book itself made millions of dollars and have managed to remain as New York Times' Bestseller for 18 weeks. Following from the book's success, Dan Brown has released other books, although not as successful as The Da Vinci Code, but still received a favorable reception from readers worldwide. The sequel for The Da Vinci Code book was scheduled to come out sometime end of this year, but due to some reason not mentioned, its been delayed till next year.
Many people have asked me whether if I'm gonna watch The Da Vinci Code movie. My answer to them since the beginning was 'No'. Often, they will ask 'why' to my 'No'. You'll find the following entry as my justification, and I have to make a disclaimer first that this is simply my own opinion, and in no way am I representing anyone else, nor planning to impose this opinion on any person, Christian or non-Christian.
When I first heard that about the book, I was curious to find out what it was all about. Thru the internet, I've managed to land myself in scores of reviews as well sypnosis and other analysis of the book. The information I've read included those pro and anti-Da Vinci Code. I've also managed to watch some documentaries released on The Discovery Channel refuting and trying to prove Dan Brown's claims. But till today, in all honesty, I've not read the book. Nor do I plan to. And for the same reason also, I'm not planning to watch the movie. Why you may ask? Here's my reason:
Gathering from the sources I've mentioned above, the main consipracy theme within The Da Vince Code was that Jesus of Nazareth, whom Christians worldwide worships as the Son of God, is nothing more than just a mortal man who married the ex-prostitute Mary Magdalene and had managed to create a lineage of family who involved themselves in secret societies and whose missions include hiding truths but preserving it thru 'codes' found in paintings and other artifacts. This is of course against what the bible claims and teaches, that Jesus was the Son of God whose birth was a miracle as His conception was thru a virgin mother. Not only did He taught good things during His ministry here on earth, but He came to die of the cross for the sins of the world. Three days later after His crucifixation, He resurrected from the grave, spent 40 days with His disciples and ascended into heaven in view of hundreds of witnesses.
In spite of the known fact that the Da Vinci Code is just simply 'fiction' and the movie is just for mere 'entertainment', one issue just could not escape my thought and that is: "What so entertaining watching a movie about Jesus being a liar?"
Lets put it this way. Should they've made a movie about someone whom you respect and adore, maybe it could your father, spouse, etc. and portraying them as someone whom they're not, for eg, maybe as a murderer, liar, or adulterer, how would you react to it? Here's a good example: Try going to any of your friends and ask them to imagine that both their parents are crooks/cheaters/murderers/perverts and see their reaction. I'm quite confident that even though you emphasize that you're just stating a 'what-if' situation, they will be quick to say, "please don't use my parents as your example".
Most people's reaction to this would be that those people are "close-minded" and "over-sensitive". Do they have the right to be? Sure. Afterall, it was their parents who sacrificed and persevered to make them who they are today. What's so entertaining about trying to make the people they loved and respect so much as criminals, even though it just for make-believe?
Thus, in the same way, I do not find any entertainment in a movie that portrays my Redeemer, Savior and Friend as a liar because it is clearly states in the bible that Jesus is the Son of God. More than that, Jesus claimed that He is God. I believe in all my heart that Jesus came down to earth to die for my sins so that I can be reconciled to God. So, excuse my over-sensitivity when I say 'No' to anyone's invitation to a movie which portrays my adored and beloved Savior as a liar. The truth is, I don't mind being labelled as a close-minded person. But forgive me if I don't spare the time to those who ask me trying to argue my stand, because to me, there's no argument. And no Tom Hanks nor Ron Howard is good enough reason to watch either.
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