Posted on 12/12/2014 9:50:34 AM PST by SeekAndFind
In 2014, Hollywood has embraced telling religious stories on film. No longer, it seems, are religious viewers denied the opportunity to see biblical stories onscreen.
In February of this year, Roma Downey and Mark Burnett brought Jesus’ story to the big screen in Son of God. In March, director Darren Aronofsky presented Noah , which— in spite of its narrative flaws— worked as an epic tale. This weekend, Ridley Scott— the newest high-profile director to embrace this trend— offers up a version of Moses’ story in the new drama Exodus: Gods and Kings.
Regardless of your religious beliefs, this biblical story of Moses leading the Hebrew slaves out of Egypt is a massively engaging one, and one that could easily serve as the basis for an epic film. As a matter of fact, it already did in 1956 where Charlton Heston played Moses to great acclaim in Cecil B. DeMille’s beloved epic, The Ten Commandments.
But times are different now, it seems, and instead of relying on the compelling narrative to tell the story, Scott focuses all of his attention on production values and visual effects. Oscar winner Christian Bale stars as Moses and does an admirable job but Joel Edgerton seems completely lost as the monstrous Ramses, making the figure as superficial and off-putting as the massive amount of make-up that adorns his face. After a rumor spreads that Moses is a Hebrew, Ramses threatens one of Moses’ loved ones and forces him into exile. The superficial scenes between the two (showing their comradery before Moses’ exile) — like so much of the first hour— simply seem to exist to tire the audience out before the plagues begin.
Scott only seems interested in what happens in the second hour of the drama (which, for the record, clocks in at a grating 146 minutes). Some of the effects work but they offer little consolation for viewers who are more interested in substance than style.
Instead, well-known actors— like Sigourney Weaver and Aaron Paul— appear and then seemingly disappear from the drama with little explanation. That only gives more room for Scott to add in unnecessary special effects like a brutal alligator attack and horses being devoured by sharks. What should’ve been a solid religious drama instead sometimes feels like the third installment in the Piranha movie series (now with sharks!).
As for God himself, he doesn’t speak to Moses through a burning bush. He speaks to Moses through a petulant child named Malak (Isaac Andrews), who condescendingly commands Moses to do things he’s uncomfortable with. When Moses is hesitant to follow God’s plan, Malak notes “For now you can watch” and later, when Moses urges restraint, Malak insists that he wants to see the pharaohs on their knees.
Ironically, God is presented as a vicious leader while little is shown of the physical abuse that the pharaohs delivered to their slaves for hundreds of years (when some abuse is shown, it’s directed at a slave who notes that he doesn’t feel any pain). The story of Exodus should’ve been about these slaves escaping their masters but instead Scott misses the main reasons why they needed to escape.
If Hollywood wants to embrace Biblical stories, they should focus on the text and show why certain things— like the exodus itself— were important and necessary, unlike the film Exodus: Gods and Kings, which is a baffling waste of time and talent.
If this is as big a piece of crap as Noah, then I’ll be glad to ignore it.
I saw a small clip of the movie and discovered that Moses was “demanding the water part” .. What ..?? According to the Bible, Moses didn’t say anything .. he just obeyed GOD’s command; “... lift up your staff ...”.
This was an attempt to pre-empt GOD’s WORD .. and insert A HUMAN’S WORDS.
Because the left has decided they can’t abide by GOD’s WORD, then I won’t bother to spend my money to see their ignorant movie.
I think I’ll skip it. Christian Bale is no Charlton Heston.
I liked “The Prince Egypt”. I doubt I’ll see this one.
With respect to the question asked by the Title of this article:
Absolutely not. Once again, the Anti-Christian Hollywood has decided to rewrite another story from the Bible and remove God out of the story.
Don’t waste your money and don’t reward the Marxists and Atheists in Hollywood by buying a ticket.
Hollywood isn’t making religious films. It’s milking the Bible for movie plots. If violent death at the hands of devout Muslims weren’t a possibility, it would borrow from the Koran, too.
I’ll wait for the book.
Dude has a speech impediment. He been working on it for years, but it is still there. Just like that other one that does the car commercials now, can’t remember his name but you’d know him if you ever saw his lips contort when trying to pronounce certain words....
I’m not talking about stuttering...
Disappointed to read where this movie is missing the mark. From trailers I thought we might find an epic movie inspiring people to know or remember the greatness of their God.
From all the “come-and-see-me videos” in the few hours of cable-company-supplied-recorder bit os video, or from YouTube, they could not have been so wrong.
The movie bits I have seen, and all the wasted airtime on the NBC-owned “Weather Channel”, are all flash and dash with all the latest gimmickry, and no soul.
Christian Bale ain’t no Charlton Heston, even if his parents visited a ‘moil’ when he was an infant.
The movie looks as it borrowed from ‘The Lord of the Rings’, in it’s militaristic confrontations. Moses, in battle armor, on a chariot, screaming: “Come with me, and you shall live!”?????
The movie has an overall feel of another disaster movie, which all were ecliped by “The Day After Tomorrow”.
Is it at all anyway within 20 feet of a closed Bible on a coffee table in somebody’s house? I don’t get that connection. Do you?
The Bible says the people stood away far off from the mountain of God (Sanai) which spewed smoke, lighening and thunder...well I should guess so. So they transplant a petulant child? I don’t think so. Moses was 80 years old when he led the expedition and his purpose was to free God’s people from 400 years of slavery in Egypt to return to the Promised Land
I promise I won’t go see a Hollywood Biblical movie that takes this much liscense with Scripture
Freegards
LEX
So we have another anti-Christian movie mocking God.
Pray America is waking
I think if the film causes people to go to the original source and be exposed to God’s truth, it will be a good thing.
The Forbes review panned it.
I just saw “Noah”—refused to see it in the movies, and this was a DVD of a friend that I borrowed, so I didn’t even “rent” it. Totally trashed the Biblical story....made God look like he hated babies and Noah was going to do God’s bidding by killing them. Perverted.
People should avoid Hollyweird Bible movies
I’ll give a miss, thank you very much.
Not much coming out of sewerland that is watchable.
Heck, they even f...er...Obama’d up Intergalactic.
The talent’s pretty thin in la la land, the only hope is a reboot thanks to the big one.
Churches - especially youth pastors - and Christian-television let the ‘camel put his nose under the tent’ when they enthusiastically embraced Roma Downey’s Hollywood endeavors.
Why they would align themselves with a New Age proponent instead of working together to produce a factual rendition of great Bible stories is beyond me. It must be the $$$$$
It’s just a movie...
[I’ll wait for the book.]
Unfortunately many have the Book and have never read the story of Moses.
The craptastic Prometheus aside, Ridley Scott is a magisterial filmmaker.
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