“The Da Vinci Code” movie seems to be headed to the same success and controversy as the book by American author Dan Brown.

One of the most challenging elements Hollywood faced is to create a movie that is fresh and thrilling although the plot is known to millions of moviegoers. This is because those of us who read the book have our own images of the places, characters and adventures depicted in the best-selling novel. Our imaginations are put to the test when faced with concrete images in the film.

In this respect, “The Da Vinci Code” movie is surprisingly pleasing-perhaps even more entertaining than the book. I thought the movie was quite surprising in its interpretation of the book.

While impossible to follow every theme or subplot in the book, the film covers most important elements of the main plot while keeping the viewers on the edge of their seats for the entire movie.

Tom Hanks is Robert Langdon, the historian that gets caught up in the search for the key to the mystery of the Holy Grail. Hanks’ performance is an incredible asset to the movie. He fits almost perfectly into the image Dan Brown projects of the lead character in the book. As the movie develops, other characters stick closely to the roles Brown assigned them in the book.

In the three years since I read the book, I forgot much of the storyline. It was nice to be able to become re-acquainted with the plot that Jesus married Mary Magdalene and that they had children whose offspring survive to this day and are hunted and feared by the Vatican.

Although the main plot that leads Langdon to discover these descendants is kept intact, comparing every scene in the film to the sequence of events in the book, I believe, is a mistake.

It is unrealistic to believe that a movie can exactly mirror the book it was inspired by. The box office seems to agree that “The Da Vinci Code” is a nonstop exciting movie in its own right.