We might not be able to beat Robert Langdon in a game of cluedo, but when it comes to film trivia, we could teach the prof a thing or two.
By Mike Atherton
Robert Langdon is back – which is great news, because it means that Tom Hanks is back, too. Not only is Hanks one of our favourite actors, he’s also notoriously shy of sequels, but here he is stepping into another Dan Brown / Ron Howard super-thriller in Inferno, which leads us to believe that these films are just as fun to make as they are to watch.
We last encountered Langdon in 2009’s Angels & Demons, juggling antimatter and papal wannabes – unless you’re following the order of the books, in which case you’ll recall him going toe to toe with tattooed Freemasons in The Lost Symbol (the adventure that director Ron Howard decided to skip). Readers of the series will also know that the second film in the trilogy was based on the first of the novels, and The Da Vinci Code – the film that began the franchise – was based on the sequel… confused? Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered. Here’s everything you need to know before you head to Vue to experience the apocalyptic thriller in all its plot-twisting glory.
Robert Langdon’s not his usual sharp self
Up until this point, no matter how weird or contrived the path, Langdon was the man to guide you through it. But this time around, the Prof’s got a major handicap in the form of a wound to the head that’s left him in a Florentine hospital with “mild retrograde amnesia.” But don’t panic, because….
Felicity Jones has got his back
Yep, before we see her take on the Empire and Darth Vader himself in December’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Jones is lending a hand in Inferno as Sienna Brooks, Langdon’s doctor and new partner. And he’ll be needing her help, because…The end of the world is nigh (again)
This time, the threat’s an actual rendering of Dante’s fictional inferno – the nine circles of hell – right here on earth that involves a deadly virus and a plan to cull the human race. If you’re thinking that only a madman could conceive of such a threat, then you’re right, because...
Ben Foster is one of the bad guys
We love this guy, and he’s especially good at being villainous. Foster plays Bertrand Zobrist, a super-rich scientist who comes up with the terrifying plan to tackle the world’s overpopulation. And he’s not alone…
He’s part of a super shady organisation known as the Consortium
We love a conspiracy theory about a secretive organisation pulling strings behind the scenes, especially one with a weakness for leaving a series of rather obtuse clues hidden in plain sight within works of art and religious artefacts. Which is great, because...
Robert Langdon still loves cracking codes
Let’s face it, if the Prof didn't regularly get called in to stare at paintings from weird angles and solve centuries-old riddles, he’d have to invent a conspiracy himself. Which, in the case of Inferno, may not be too far from the truth, as he wakes up at the beginning of the movie with no memory of exactly what he’s been up to recently…
Inferno is out now. Get times and tickets here.
