History Literature / TheDaVinciCode

* ArtisticLicenseLaw: Sophie tells Langdon that the police Captain suspects he committed the murder and can have him detained for months. No. French law only allows someone to be detained for 24 hours, with another 24 hours allowed if approved by the local prosecutor and the police can demonstrate it's necessary. The Captain would have to prove Langdon committed the murder in the face of evidence that Langdon was nowhere in the vicinity, he'd have to answer for destroying evidence when he erased Langdon's name, they'd have to prove Langdon either smuggled a gun into France or acquired one when he was already there, the list goes on. He can't charge Langdon, only the local prosecutor can do that, and he doesn't have enough evidence to make it stick. And to repeat, the prosecutor is going to be ''seriously pissed'' that he destroyed evidence by erasing part of what the victim wrote. Of course, Sophie may have simply said that to get Langdon to stop arguing and get moving.

* HollywoodLaw: Dan Brown seems to be under the impression that all it takes to extradite a British national from their own country is for a foreign law enforcement agencies to make a call to a local police officer. Also, he seems to think that said local police will simply detain the suspects until the foreign police arrive to make the arrests themselves. Also, he says the French police judiciary is the equivalent of the FBI. It's not-this refers simply to detectives. The closest France has to the FBI is the National Police, but there is no exact equivalent because of the way France's government is organized. It is not federated like the US, so there's no need for an interstate agency. The National Police takes care of civil law enforcement duties for the entire country -- except in smaller towns and more remote areas, where the municipal police have jurisdiction -- and the "police judicaire" is the section of the National Police that investigates the most serious crimes such as murders. Whether this is a case of CreatorProvincialism or just another case of Dan not doing the research (or both) isn't clear.

* InspectorJavert: Bezu Fache.

* RedHerring: As in all Creator/DanBrown books, [[spoiler:but literally in this case: "Aringarosa" is Italian for... [[RedHerring you guessed it]].]] (it actually means pink herring, but red herring is Aringarossa so it only lacks an s)

* RedHerring: As in all Creator/DanBrown books, [[spoiler:but literally in this case: "Aringarosa" is Italian for... [[RedHerring you guessed it]].]]

* The 2006 [[Film/TheDaVinciCode film adaptation]] of ''Literature/TheDaVinciCode'' has multiple story issues that weren't present in the book. Just to name a few:

* DoubleStandard: [[spoiler:Teabing and the Piory's grievance with the Church is centuries of persecution and deceit. This ignores the fact that those things are also found (in sometimes greater and sometimes lesser degrees) among some non-Catholic Christians, religions besides Christianity, and non-religious people, ideologies and institutions.]]

* HeelRealization: [[spoiler:Silas has one: "[[IronicEcho I am a ghost.]]"]]

* HollywoodLaw: Dan Brown seems to be under the impression that all it takes to extradite a British national from their own country is for a foreign law enforcement agent to make a call to a local police officer. Also, he seems to think that said local police will simply detain the suspects until the foreign police arrive to make the arrests themselves. Also, he says the French police judiciare is the equivalent of the FBI. It's not-this refers simply to detectives. The closest France has to the FBI is the National Police, but there is no exact equivalent because of the way France's government is organized. It is not federated like the US, so there's no need for an interstate agency. The National Police takes care of civil law enforcement duties for the entire country -- except in smaller towns and more remote areas, where the municipal police have jurisdiction -- and the "police judicaire" is the section of the National Police that investigates the most serious crimes such as murders. Whether this is a case of CreatorProvincialism or just another case of Dan not doing the research (or both) isn't clear.

* DeliberatelyPainfulClothing: Silas wears a spiked chain around his right thigh.

* UnwittingPawn: [[spoiler:Silas, Remy, ''and'' Aringarosa.]]

* ArtisticLicenseLaw: Sophie tells Langdon that the police Captain suspects he committed the murder and can have him detained for months. No. French law only allows someone to be detained for 24 hours, with another 24 hours allowed if approved by the local prosecutor and the police can demonstrate its' necessary. The Captain would have to prove Langdon committed the murder in the face of evidence that Langdon was nowhere in the vicinity, he'd have to answer for destroying evidence when he erased Langdon's name, they'd have to prove Langdon either smuggled a gun into France or acquired one when he was already there, the list goes on. He can't charge Langdon, only the local prosecutor can do that, and he doesn't have enough evidence to make it stick. And to repeat, the prosecutor is going to be ''seriously pissed'' that he destroyed evidence by erasing part of what the victim wrote. Of course, Sophie may have simply said that to get Langdon to stop arguing and get moving.

** The book's claim that the Biblical canon was decreed by Emperor Constantine at the Council of Nicaea is likewise [https://youtu.be/YBRy0Z7PyVM complete bogus].

* UnrelatedInTheAdaptation: In the novel the docent at Rosslyn Chapel is actually [[spoiler:Sophie's older brother who was not killed in the car accident as she believed]]. In the movie there's no mention of the two characters being related.

!!Contains examples of:

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%%* AlbinosAreFreaks: Silas. As inaccurate as the portrayal of albinism is, the use of the trope is arguably justified. Silas's father was an alcoholic thug who abused his son because of his appearance, forcing Silas to run away from home as a teenager and turn to crime to survive. He's not an evil hitman ''because'' of his albinism, but it's understandable that his treatment might lead to some unsavory career choices.

** It is also made apparent that pagan societies with a stronger female presence were more peaceful in contrast to the imperialistic, tyrannical Roman Christianity. While it is true that pagan religions weren't generally interested in expanding beyond their regional frontiers (rulers and conquerors sometimes chose to forcefully implant their own beliefs in their territories, but this was more often done by reasons of cultural identity than out of a true preaching goal), the claim that they were more peaceful than Christianity is wrong at a basic level. Romans, Greeks, Celts, Mesopotamians, and Levantines (including the ancient Canaanite religion that became UsefulNotes/{{Judaism}}) all had warrior deities, which often dominated their pantheons and cultures, and some of them featured brutal practices like human sacrifice and ritual mutilation. That early Christians weren't interested in war as a concept was such an oddity at the time that it was a source of misunderstanding even among their own sects.

* ConflictBall: It's not immediately clear just what the antagonists are fighting over. The Aringarosa want to keep the secret of Mary Magdalene a secret. The Priory has kept their knowledge of Mary Magdalene secret for centuries.

* ConflictBall: It's not immediately clear just what the antagonists are fighting over. The EvilAlbino and Aringarosa want to keep the secret of Mary Magdalene a secret. The Priory has kept their knowledge of Mary Magdalene secret for centuries.

* EvilAlbino: Silas. As inaccurate as the portrayal of albinism is, the use of the trope is arguably justified. Silas's father was an alcoholic thug who abused his son because of his appearance, forcing Silas to run away from home as a teenager and turn to crime to survive. He's not an evil hitman ''because'' of his albinism, but it's understandable that his treatment might lead to some unsavory career choices.

** Albinism is often linked to poor eyesight due to lack of pigment in the eyes as a result of being melanin-deficient. Silas would most likely be a very poor candidate to be what is effectively an assassin, since shooting at long distances and being able to drive at night is part of the job description.

** It is also made apparent that pagan societies with a stronger female presence were more peaceful in contrast to the imperialistic, tyrannical Roman Christianity. While it is true that pagan religions weren't generally interested in expanding beyond their regional frontiers (rulers and conquerors sometimes chose to forcefully implant their own beliefs in their territories, but this was more often done by reasons of cultural identity than out of a true preaching goal), the claim that they were more peaceful than Christianity is wrong at a basic level. Romans, Greeks, Celts, Mesopotamians and Levantines (including the ancient Canaanite religion that became UsefulNotes/{{Judaism}}) all had warrior deities, which often dominated their pantheons and cultures, and some of them featured brutal practices like human sacrifice and ritual mutilation. That early Christians weren't interested in war as a concept was such an oddity at the time that it was a source of misunderstanding even among their own sects.
** In the novel, Silas longs for a life of solitude and quiet study as an Opus Dei monk. In real life, Opus Dei has no religious orders, precisely because it urges followers to sanctify everyday pursuits such as family and career, not retreat from the world. In addition, the self-flagellation that Silas partakes in is optional in real life Opus Dei and isn't required to be as extreme as whipping (a cold shower would be fine).

* HollywoodLaw: Dan Brown seems to be under the impression that all it takes to extradite a British national from their own country is for a foreign law enforcement agent to make a call to a local police officer. Also, he seems to think that said local police will simply detain the suspects until the foreign police arrive to make the arrests themselves. Also, he says the French police judiciare is the equivalent of the FBI. It's not-this refers simply to detectives. The closest France has to the FBI is the National Police, but there is no exact equivalent because of the way France's government is organized. It is not federated like the US, so there's no need for a inter-state agency. The National Police takes care of civil law enforcement duties for the entire country -- except in smaller towns and more remote areas, where the municipal police have jurisdiction -- and the "police judicaire" is the section of the National Police that investigates the most serious crimes such as murders. Whether this is a case of CreatorProvincialism or just another case of Dan not doing the research (or both) isn't clear.

* PopCultureSymbology: The book makes a mention of Grail symbolism hidden within Disney cartoons, from ''Snow White'' to ''The Little Mermaid''.

* SurpriseCarCrash: Detective Sophie Neveu became an orphan in a head-on collision. In a childhood memory flashback, Sophie remembers being in the back seat of a sedan, with both parents turned to dote upon her; they never saw the tractor trailer that came looming into the windshield.

* FleurDeLis

%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1501860715069046400

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_da_vinci_code_2a.jpg]]

* AdventurerArchaeologist: Sort of; Adventurer Symbologist (a [[strike:made-up]] discredited discipline) in this case.

* HollywoodLaw: Dan Brown seems to be under the impression that all it takes to extradite a British national from their own country is for a foreign law enforcement agent to make a call to a local police officer. Also, he seems to think that said local police will simply detain the suspects until the foreign police arrive to make the arrests themselves. Also, he says the French police judiciare is the equivalent of the FBI. It's not-this refers simply to detectives. The closest France has to the FBI is the National Police, but there is no exact equivalent because of the
way France's government is organized. It is not federated like the US, so there's no need for a inter-state agency. The National Police takes care of civil law enforcement duties for the entire country -- except in smaller towns and more remote areas, where the municipal police have jurisdiction -- and the "police judicaire" is the section of the National Police that investigates the most serious crimes such as murders. Whether this is a case of CreatorProvincialism or just another case of Dan not doing the research (or both) isn't clear.

* BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy: Leonardo was part of an ancient group that knew the secret of Jesus and communicated it through secret messages in ''Art/TheLastSupper''.

* FantasticCatholicism

* HollywoodLaw: Dan Brown seems to be under the impression that all it takes to extradite a British national from their own country is for a foreign law enforcement agent to make a call to a local police officer. Also, he seems to think that said local police will simply detain the suspects until the foreign police arrive to make the arrests themselves. Also, he says the French police judiciare is the equivalent of the FBI. It's not-this refers simply to detectives. The closest France has to the FBI is the National Police.
** The last part is (more or less) true. There is no "french equivalent of the FBI" because France is not a federal state, but the "police judicaire" is part of the National Police and are the ones who investigate the most serious crimes such as murders.