Inferno (2016)

Based on the best selling book by Dan Brown, Inferno is the latest entry in Ron Howard's suspenseful film series.  This installment finds Professor Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) in an Italian hospital, victim of a mysterious head wound and amnesia.  Soon, a few pieces of a larger puzzle are revealed, as Langdon and his attending physician Sienna Brooks (Felicity Jones) are chased across Europe by police officers as well as agents of the W.H.O.  Add to this the mystery of a deceased billionaire with a dangerous philosophy, clues surrounding the work of the poet Dante, and a hidden biological weapon, and this becomes a recipe for danger-filled adventure.
One of the first things that struck me about Inferno was the departure in tone from previous films in this series.  The film immediately grabs you by the neck and shakes vigorously.  With some expertly done editing and makeup/effects work, Inferno displays a nightmarish world that is at once shocking and confusing, reflecting the current state of Robert Langdon himself.  After this, things calm down a bit, and we begin to see the different pieces of the puzzle that has been prepared for our hero.  Interestingly, this puzzle solving format only seems to last for about half of the movie.  After this, the characters become as puzzling as the clues that have been followed.  In fact, I found myself so wrapped up in piecing together the clues hidden in Renaissance paintings and art objects that some of the biggest plot reveals took me completely by surprise, which is exactly what this type of movie should deliver.  Director Ron Howard makes great use of authentic locations in the film, which makes for an incredibly beautiful viewing experience, as well as reinforcing the feeling of secret history being discovered.
For the most part, I found the cast did an excellent job.  However, I found the performance of Felicity Jones a little on the flat side.  It wasn't necessarily bad acting, but I felt that Sienna Brooks was simply there to facilitate the plot movement, and didn't feel like a fully rounded character to me.  That being said, the performance of Tom Hanks and the rest of the cast make up for it.  In particular, I enjoyed the work of Ana Ularu as a trigger-happy police officer, and Omar Sy as a determined W.H.O. agent.  Also, Irrfan Khan is worth a mention as the professionally dangerous company man, Harry Sims.
I don't remember the previous films in the series very clearly, so I'm sure a few moments were lost on me, but I still found Inferno accessible to an essentially new viewer.  There are only a few small callbacks, but it's enough to make one want to go back and watch the previous movies.  If you're into mystery, history, and suspense, Inferno is a perfect movie for you to check out!