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I think Derwood is onto something. Whether or not Brown really was gunning for a movie or not, I can't say for certain, but writing that way entertains the "speed reader / novel devourer" more than the deep reader. It seems to me that Brown isn't into character development all that much. In the DaVinci Code and Angels & Demons, he spends more time developing supporting characters than the protagonist -- an odd thing to do if one wishes to continue to write books starring the same protagonist.
Having said that, I must also put forward the notion that he needed some easily likeable (or hate-able) characters to fit in with his little treasure hunt theme, loosely based on history with a good deal of creative license (i.e. making shit up) on his part.
For the record: I liked A&D better than the DVC, but I likely won't read another of his books if they're all like that. Kudos to Brown for spurring a side industry to discuss his misdeeds and for actually making people pay attention to history when he's actually being accurate.
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