On the menu at the Hotel Da Vinci

Advantages: Shiny new hotel, modern and comfortable
Disadvantages: Not the most interesting town in Tuscany

...The 4-star Hotel Da Vinci lies just on the other side of the River Arno from the town centre of Empoli. It's an easy walk from the hotel to all that the town has to offer, unfortunately that's not really an awful lot. On the plus side, it's an easy hotel to find - exit the superstrada 67 (or FI-PI-LI, Firenze-Pisa-Livorno) at either the Empoli east or west junction, follow the by-pass to the bridge, and turn right (or left) for Vinci. In case those instructions are too hard to follow, it's signposted all the way from the SS67 exit. Hotel Da Vinci is ideally situated for visiting some of the major attractions of Tuscany, being a 20-minute drive from Florence, 5 minutes further from Pisa, and around an hour from Sienna. Empoli has rail links with both Florence and Pisa. The hotel is a silver-grey shining, ultra-modern edifice...

proxam 20.08.2005 · Read review
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Review of Hotel Da Vinci, Vinci

The Da Vinci Codswallop

Advantages: I suppose it would save you reading the novel
Disadvantages: It's utter crap

...Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is called in when the curator of the Louvre is found dead in the museum, covered in mysterious sigils. But Langdon soon finds himself framed for the murder and on the run with French cryptologist Sophie Neveu. They are quickly embroiled in a conspiracy far larger than they could ever have imagined; one that could threaten the tenets of Christian belief. But powerful people are determined that the secret remains just that and they are willing to kill to protect it. Though Ron Howard's output is usually less than innovative, he can normally be relied on to make good, solid, diverting fare. It's unclear what went so spectacularly wrong with "The Da Vinci Code". The film takes itself too seriously throughout, which is odd considering the source material is nothing more than an airport/beach novel struck...

afy9mab 03.10.2006 · Read review
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Review of The Da Vinci Code (DVD)

Crack the Da Vinci Code

Advantages: A good story from the Brown Novel, great filming and good cast
Disadvantages: Not outstanding acting, slightly erratic at times, lots of information in short space of time

...Dan Brown's international bestseller comes alive in the fil, 'The Da Vinci Code', directed by Academy Award Winner Ron Howard. Join symbologist Robert Langdon and cryptologist Sophie Neveu in their thrilling quest to solve a bizarre murder mystery that will take them from Paris to London - and behind the veil of a mysterious ancient society, where they discover a secret so powerful it could shake the very foundations of mankind. (DVD Blurb) IMDB gives this film 6.4/10, however I would place it around the 7/8 mark. This has been a popular film and grossed US$224m in its opening weekend. Boxofficemojo suggests that toward the end of 2006, this film had grossed over US$750m. STORYLINE ~~~~~~~ I am going to review the storyline from a fictitious point of view. There is much debate surrounding the factual accuracies and other...

reevo_the_great 07.11.2008 (08.11.2008) · Read review
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Review of The Da Vinci Code (DVD)

The Da Vinci Code

Advantages: Very good read- unputdownable
Disadvantages: No

...the location of the grail. During the search, via the discussion between the characters, Brown details the historical background about the legends of the grail and the various myths associated with the grail. You can see the techique Brown used. He puts a thread through the various myths and makes a connection between the various events and facts and links them into a story. However, many of the facts mentioned are indeed true, such as the origin of the "black Friday". I also learned a lot about the famous Leonardo Da Vinci and a lot of the "decoding" skills. I have to say I enjoy reading the story very much and it is one of the best adventure fiction I've read in a long time, a clue follows another. Sooner or later you will notice that you cannot put down the book!! Another thing which I get from the story is the crytex which is a mobile vault...

medgenie 29.07.2008 (27.07.2008) · Read review
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Review of The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown

The Da Vinci Code (PS2)

Advantages: Fun puzzles, good graphics, good sound, hard to complete
Disadvantages: Storyline bit linear, poor combat system.

...The Da Vinci Code roles everything into one with combat, puzzles to solve, stealth to pull off and more. TRUTH TO MOVIE The game generally follows the storyline of the movie, there is some extra events added that could not have happened in the movie but the plot of the game and film are similar is most aspects. 4/5 COMBAT SYSTEM The combat system is very basic and uses a system of controls that would be more suited to a dance game (press the right button as it appears on the screen). I think that it is obvious that this game was not designed with the combat system in mind and that it was just a necessity. 2/5 NON-COMBAT GAMPLAY This is where this game excels, there are puzzles to solve which are quite complicated, you have to sneak past enemies and make tactical decisions about who to fight and who to avoid as well as which...

anakha6 26.08.2008 · Read review
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Review of The Da Vinci Code (PS2)

Not the da VINCI Code

Advantages: Leonardo's birthplace
Disadvantages: Leonardo overload

...early life. The country-side around has not really changed much since those days and this is reflected in landscape drawings that he produced in his youth which are dispayed here. Entrance is free but there's not really a lot to justify charging anyone for anyway! Also, the drive along the torturous route to get here is a little hair-raising. IN CONCLUSION, I though Vinci was a charming little village in its own right, but the association with Da Vinci is what brings the tourists in. Having said that, it wasn't crowded at all, although I imagine it could get that way. Although there are a couple of hotels in the area, it's not somewhere I'd choose to spend the night. It's more of a day-trip type of place, and being less than an hour from Florence or Pisa, it's easy enough to get to. I would say that if you had little or no...

proxam 01.11.2005 · Read review
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Review of Vinci

The Da Vinci code

Advantages: An entertaining conspiracy read
Disadvantages: Its not true

...Author : Dan Brown RRP: £6.99 Shops: Smiths, Waterstones any decent book shop The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown was a book I had been planning to read for some time however, due to a back catalogue of reading materials I had put it off until last week. Several friends have recommended the book to me and everything I have read regarding the book meant that it was definitely one I should read. Now I make no apologies for not being overly in depth with the plot for this book as I believe, like revenge, it is a dish best served cold to coin a phrase. The reader should be free to experience the book for themselves rather than through the eyes of me or anyone else. The Plot: The first thing you read in the book is that all of the Architecture, Locations and secret societies in the book are real...an intriguing start I am sure...

Matt.Blundell 08.02.2005 · Read review
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Review of The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown

The Da Vinci Code - fact, fiction, or just hype?

Advantages: Decent plot, some interesting characters...
Disadvantages: ... written with all the subtelty of a sledgehammer

...I have to admit, I only really read The Da Vinci Code out of curiosity. After all, few books in the past century have created as much fuss as this one. Seen by some as a beacon of truth and others as a scandalous attack on Christendom (particularly the Catholic Church), it's obviously not a book that one can be indifferent to. Er? well actually, I think you can. Certainly I was. Despite the fact that most people seem to either passionately love or violently loathe The Da Vinci Code and indeed Dan Brown and his other novels, I finished it feeling that it was really nothing more than a slightly below average thriller. (Admittedly this is not a genre I particularly read a lot of. My opinion based on what I have read is that Tom Clancy is unequalled among modern thriller writers, though I do dislike the amount of profanity in his books...

CaptainDisaster 20.10.2005 (21.10.2005) · Read review
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Review of The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown

Death, The Art of Da Vinci and A Damn Fine Read

Advantages: Absorbing multi-layered fascinating fiction
Disadvantages: The hype surrounding the novel - am always suspicious of hyped novels

...Oh no - not another Da Vinci Code review I hear you sigh! Oh no - still after 44 reviews - yet another! Sorry but yes - another Da Vinci Code review! I was very hesitant in writing a review for this novel because of the very fact that there are already another 44 reviews of this novel for the Ciao readers to go at, but no, I stopped and thought long and hard, and decided that I wanted to write this review if not for you - the Ciao reading public, then for me the Ciao writing individual. I wanted to write and say I truly and utterly loved this novel, and there aren't that many that I would want to be so unequivocably vociferous about. I did want to write a little about why this is such a good novel and what I enjoyed about it, just because I want readers within the Ciao community to read an honest and forthright opinion...

kitty17 02.04.2005 · Read review
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Review of The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

Advantages: Good pace, easy to read, good and interesting characters. Good Story.
Disadvantages: It's not real.

...This is a review written by my cousin that I thought I would put on here: When I purchased this book in January 2006, I was aware that it was a best seller and that millions of people had read it. I had ignored the reviews and had little idea of the content. Some reviewers early on had said that author Dan Brown's research was "Fantastic" Brown's editor continues to stand by his man, saying that Brown made nothing up save the fictional, contemporary story wrapped around religious controversy. After I browsed through the story initially, I realized what I was in for, and why all the ensuing critical flack from art historians, religious scholars. As a result, I can still identify with those who find inspiration from The Da Vinci Code, which relates the following: At night in the Louvre Museum in Paris, an albino monk dressed in...

ralfschumacher 22.10.2007 · Read review
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Review of The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown