Defacing ‘Da Vinci’

For this generation of baby boomer editorial cartoonists, reared on Mad magazine cinematic spoofs and “Saturday Night Live” sendups, the urge to mock movie-poster imagery is adolescent if not infantile. With “The Da Vinci Code,” throw in the chance to blend the enigmatic smile of an iconic masterpiece with the furtive smirk of Vice President Dick Cheney, and it’s irresistible.

And although Dan Brown’s conspiratorial page turner is a controversial marriage of biblical history and fictional mystery, these cartoons get to the point — about tax cuts, government secrecy, political divisiveness and the futility of box-office boycotts. Points you get right away, even if you’re a reader — or middle-age cartoonist — who doesn’t know Opus Dei from Opus the penguin or Opie Taylor, the film’s director. — Joel Pett

Joel Pett is the Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist of the Lexington Herald-Leader. His work also appears in USA Today.