Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Angels and Demons

While walking home yesterday, I noticed that there was a lot of commotion occurring in the Pantheon area. Sure enough, the Ron Howard film "Angels and Demons," is currently being filmed throughout the city. Labeling the Dan Brown novel a blockbuster would be an understatement, as millions of Americans have read the book thinking that they have gained inside knowledge about Roman history.

The area was crowded with people trying to get a clear picture of Tom Hanks or just witness the filming. The one scene we saw was Tom Hanks and one of his co-stars walking from the fountain toward the entrance of the Pantheon. However, before the shot everything was set up perfectly by Howard. He cleared out the entire area except for a few vendors, some random tourists, and a group of nuns, all of whom would be included in the overhead shot.

This slightly bothered me. Since the Pantheon is simply down the road from our classroom, we walk by it frequently. The atmosphere is nothing like the illusion that Howard created. He made the area seem serene, when in reality the area is always so crowded with tourists. It is actually a skill to navigate through the throngs of tourists and reach your desired destination. When people see this movie, they will not be given the true ambiance of the piazza. But I quickly forgave Ron Howard though, because he helped produce "Arrested Development."

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