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Motion Picture Reviews by Thomas Ormsby

Exodus-Gods and Kings

Cecil B. DeMille's 1956 production of The Ten Commandments was a very theatrical version of this same story of the exodus of the Hebrews out of Egypt, after 400 years of enslaved servitude. Charlton Heston's take on Moses was rendered in a decidely Michaelangelo-style of power and appearance.

Fifty-eight years later, Christian Bale tries to convince Pharoah to let the people go with a more understated acting approach; but he comes with a far more impressive package of plagues to help in the persuasion process. This Ridley Scott interpretation of the second book of Moses is a more spectacular look into the 12th century BC., at the peak of Egypt's domination of the world in that era . . . a world built with slave labor, despite The History Channel's assertion that this was all one big public works project, with happy volunteers all lined up to haul 100 ton stones up daunting inclines to whatever Pharaoh-commemorating monumental construction project they were directed. We are treated to sweeping scenes of the culture of that time, with its monuments, statuary and decor, and Ridley Scott's trademark flyover aerial views of ancient Memphis, taken, we assume, from Pharoah's blimp.

Pharoah, it turns out, was not the benevolent construction contractor that we might be led to believe. He was a man after his own heart, devoted to the preservation of his own reputation and legacy, no matter how many whip lashes were required. Enter Moses, a member of Pharoah's household, but by adoption--not birth--a fact revealed early in the plot. So jealousies and rivalries force Pharoah's hand and he orders Moses into exile, a sojourn that takes him to his future wife and the God who needs a general.

Some liberties were taken in depicting certain aspects of this three-thousand year old story--the personification of God, for example--and many purists will balk at how this was done. I can hear them now. But I am not among them. The book of Isaiah states that "a little child shall lead them," and though I am aware that this refers to the kingdom of God yet to come (Isaiah 11:16), I found this form of personifying God to be an effective plot device in the same way that I found the stowaway aboard the Ark in last year's Noah to also be a very effective way to demonstrate that evil would still be present in the world when the flood waters subsided. But that movie went too far afield, at times coming off like some weird amalgem of Transformers Meets Lord of the Rings.

But there are some outright inaccuracies that were in this screenplay that needn't have been. The Lord forbade Moses from entering the Promised Land because he had killed a man . . . not several men as Ridley Scott depicts. And the turning of the Nile into blood was initiated when Moses dipped his staff into the water, and not the way this movie shows. I did find it to be highly effective visually, and it does inspire wonder--but it is not accurate--if you hold to the version of Exodus that Moses actually wrote. And I do.

It has been difficult to derive the total truth of Biblical stories from Hollywood productions; but it has been far more difficult, over a far greater span of time, to derive the truth of what the Bible actually says as opposed to the teachings of many churches. How many of us have been taught that when we die, we go to heaven. And yet the Bible says nothing of the sort. It clearly states that "the dead are dead, and know nothing." Or, "No one has gone to heaven except He who came from heaven." So, I tend to give Biblically based movies some latitude, because I was influenced to be a faithful man early in life, not because of anything I heard in churches; but due to the powerful influence of several movies I saw as a teen.

The power of images is unmistakable. This is why, in the Book of Exodus, there is a commandment against fashioning images of any living thing, and bowing ourselves down to them. Some churches even teach that the commandments of God are no longer valid--so with that kind of deception at work, I really cannot fault Hollywood for some minor variations from the truth I saw in this movie. And I will say this in defense of Exodus Gods and Kings. It upholds the presence of an Almighty God working behind and within all of the events of the Exodus from Egypt. And this motion picture does show, on an enormous scale, the power of God to bring down an empire with the forces of His Nature alone. For these reasons, I do recommend it.

--Thomas Ormsby

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