If you remember much about the blockbuster movie “The Da Vinci Code,” you likely remember two things: 1) Tom Hanks’ horrid mullet and 2) how incredibly slow the movie was, with entire scenes of nothing but dialogue. Director Ron Howard took heed of the criticism and does not make the same mistake in “Angels and Demons.”

Although “Angels and Demons” is a prequel, the movie is a sequel, not that it really matters. It’s a week after the pope’s unexpected death and the world’s top cardinals have gathered to elect the new pope. Before they gather for the conclave, the four top choices are kidnapped.

Taking responsibility for this is an ancient secret society known as the Illuminati. Centuries earlier, the Illuminati were scientists and philosophers, like Galileo, labeled as radicals by the Catholic Church. Although the ancient brotherhood wasn’t one of killers, this generation of Illuminati are bent on revenge. The kidnappings are payback for the centuries-old persecution and execution of scientists by the church.

The Illuminati says it will kill one cardinal every hour, beginning at 8 p.m. And if that isn’t bad enough, the Illuminati has also stolen a canister of anti-matter, hidden somewhere in the vast underworkings of the Vatican, that will detonate at midnight.

The Vatican turns to Harvard professor Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) for help, as he is one of the foremost authorities on the Illuminati and its symbology. With the help of the Vatican police, the Swiss Guard and the scientist who created the anti-matter (the requisite hot chick, played by Ayelet Zurer), Langdon speeds across Rome, trying to figure out ancient clues that reveal the Path of Illumination, the Illuminati’s map to its secret hiding places and where the killings will take place.

Again, the movie is, thankfully, much more fast-paced than “The Da Vinci Code,” with much of the explanation done as action is happening. Langdon and his female counterpart still spend plenty of scenes in libraries (the Vatican Archives) and churches discussing what’s happening, but they’re sprinting through them rather than standing around.

Though the movie moves and explains things extremely fast, it doesn’t leave anything important out. There are no plot holes or unexplained gaps that should have been filled, as can often be the case when a script is poorly adapted from a book. Still, if you haven’t read the book version of “Angels and Demons,” you might miss a few things if you’re not paying close enough attention.

But, whether or not you know what’s going to happen, the movie excites. Langdon’s piecing together of the Illuminati’s clues — using centuries-old texts from the Vatican Archives — is intriguing, if a little implausible.

“Angels and Demons” the book was a page turner when “The Da Vinci Code” wasn’t, and the same goes for “Angels and Demons” the movie. Lengthy exposition gives way to fast-paced and thrilling action. And did I mention that the mullet is gone?