Movie · 2009 · Thriller, Mystery · 2h 19m · PG-13 · English
Curator score: 1.9/10 (528.3K ratings)
The holiest event of our time. Perfect for their return.
Overview
Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is recruited by the Vatican to investigate the apparent return of the Illuminati – a secret, underground organization – after four cardinals are kidnapped on the night of the papal conclave.
Ratings
Curator score: 1.9/10
IMDb: 6.7/10
Letterboxd: 3.16/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 36%
Metacritic: 48
TMDB: 6.7/10
Director
Ron Howard
Production
Columbia Pictures, Imagine Entertainment, Skylark Productions, Panorama Films, Brian Grazer Productions
Cast
Tom Hanks, Ewan McGregor, Ayelet Zurer, Stellan Skarsgård, Pierfrancesco Favino, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Thure Lindhardt, David Pasquesi, Cosimo Fusco, Victor Alfieri, Franklin Amobi, Curt Lowens, Bob Yerkes, Marc Fiorini, Carmen Argenziano, Howard Mungo, Rance Howard, Steve Franken, Gino Conforti
Where to watch
fuboTV
Curator Review
Verdict
A fast, glossy Vatican conspiracy thriller with enough momentum, iconography, and absurd set pieces to stay entertaining, even when the plotting gets preposterous. It works best as high-end pulp: smart-looking, propulsive, and occasionally ridiculous in a fun way.
Best for
Viewers who like conspiracy thrillers with religious imagery
Fans of puzzle-box mysteries and countdown narratives
People in the mood for slick, overblown studio spectacle
Audiences who enjoy camp-adjacent seriousness
Skip if
You want airtight logic or historical realism
You dislike earnest blockbuster melodrama
You prefer character-driven mysteries over plot mechanics
You are tired of Dan Brown-style clue-chasing
Overview
Angels & Demons is the rare sequel that moves faster than it thinks, which is both its biggest flaw and its main charm. Ron Howard turns the Vatican into a giant escape room, sending Tom Hanks through churches, crypts, and conspiracies with the breathless confidence of a paperback thriller come to life.
Worth noting
The movie is at its most enjoyable when it leans into spectacle: secret symbols, ceremonial pageantry, and absurdly elaborate twists that keep escalating whether or not they make sense. Hanks plays Langdon as a man who can identify a clue from a glance at a statue, which gives the whole thing a comic, almost mythic certainty.
Bottom line
It’s not especially elegant, and the emotional stakes are thin, but the pace is strong and the production has real polish. If you want a serious-minded thriller that accidentally becomes a very expensive piece of pulp, this delivers exactly that.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Olivia (3.5★) · 2655 likes
ewan mcgregor in that priest outfit...forgive me father for i have sinned am i right
Jackson Tyler (3★) · 1400 likes
Yo, I climbed that ledge in Assassin's Creed.
jo (3.5★) · 1244 likes
father obi wan vs fleabag hot priest cage match i would like to see it
clownhead (2.5★) · 759 likes
catholicism bad but unfortunately? catholicism sexy
Marcus (1.5★) · 753 likes
One of the very first things you see when this movie starts is a logo saying "Imagine Entertainment" and God help me, I was trying to the whole time.
1998 · Action, Drama, Thriller · 2h 12m · R · Curator 4.8/10 (392.3K ratings) · Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
For the paranoid, high-pressure thriller side of the appeal, with a relentless sense of being hunted.
2022 · Action, Adventure, Comedy · 1h 52m · PG-13 · Curator 1.5/10 (530.1K ratings) · Where to watch: Netflix, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Netflix Standard with Ads
A modern adventure that embraces pulp, chase structure, and playful genre energy.
A more serious conspiracy thriller with international scope, institutional corruption, and investigative momentum.
Topics
conspiracy thriller, religious mystery, puzzle-box, cat-and-mouse, cathedral gothic, race against time, studio spectacle, campy seriousness, urban adventure, 2000s thriller