Exodus: Gods and Kings
“Exodus…” is impressive, but it didn’t move me.
Yeah, THAT Exodus. The Bible one. Moses. Egypt. Hebrew Slaves. Plagues. God’s word emanating from hot shrubbery. Infanticide. Passover. Parting of the Red Sea. Commandments. THAT one. So, irrespective of your thoughts on the whole existence-of-God thing and the Bible’s veracity as a historical document, you can’t deny that it’s a hugely rich and compelling story. In the hands of the man that brought us Gladiator, Alien, and Bladerunner it’s sure to be a Biblical banger, right? Well, kinda.
Ridley Scott’s tale of sandals, sand, and saviours is certainly ambitious, epic, and technically impressive, but it doesn’t have much of a soul. The cast is all-star and give committed performances, and the visuals are as eye-popping as you’d expect when one of cinema’s great visionaries spunks a nine-figure budget, but it’s very uneven, and if you’re watching a film thinking “I can’t wait for the next plague. I hope it’s frogs.” then something is amiss.
Its problem might be that it doesn’t bring anything new to the story. It leaves a few things out – we’re a few plagues short, I noticed – but Christian Bale’s Moses isn’t much more developed as a character than Charlton Heston’s was in the ‘50s, and, though last year’s other Old Testament retelling Noah was flawed and occasionally bonkers, it was a much more engaging take on a millennia old story.
“Exodus…” is impressive, but it didn’t move me.
