Exodus: Gods and Kings

Studio: 20th Century Fox
Directed by Ridley Scott

Dec 10, 2014 By Stephen Danay Web Exclusive

The fourth film in Ridley Scott’s loose series of historical epics, Exodus: Gods and Kings brings his brand of epic grittiness to the biblical story of Moses, his relationship with Rameses II and the flight of the Jews from Egypt. Given the relative financial and critical disappointment of Kingdom of Heaven and Robin Hood—unjustified in the case of the former, very justified in the case of the latter—it makes sense that Scott would return to Gladiator, the first and most successful of this series, for inspiration. Both films feature a gruff but noble protagonist who becomes a symbol of populist rebellion against a foppish, sadistic tyrant. Unfortunately, the problems that plagued Scott’s earlier films of this sort, from stiff dialogue and character work to bloated runtimes, are writ large across Exodus.

As is too often the case with films depicting historical events or the lives of historical figures, Exodus frequently feels like it is running down a checklist of scenes and events rather than telling a natural story. That the film is also depicting one of the most popular stories in the Western canon makes this sense of inevitability all the more powerful. In a movie that runs an interminable two and a half hours, inevitability rapidly translates to boredom. That Moses and Rameses’ brotherly love will eventually curdle into hatred, that ten plagues will destroy Egypt, that Moses will eventually embrace his destiny as the savior of the Hebrews, is all a given. And despite some impressive special effects and gorgeous gritty cinematography courtesy of frequent Scott collaborator John Mathieson, the film is far too faithful to both the popular understanding of the story of Moses and modern day blockbuster filmmaking for its own good. (Say what you will about 2014’s other big budget biblical adaptation, Darren Aronofsky’s Noah, but at least that film wasn’t afraid to get weird every once in a while.) The most inventive choice Exodus makes is depicting God as a cruel, petulant child who bullies and blackmails Moses into fulfilling his destiny. It feels almost comically out of place, but it’s interesting and certainly the most accurate portrayal of the Abrahamic God that I’ve ever seen.

In advance of the its release, much has been made of the films’ racial politics, specifically the casting of white actors as ancient Egyptians and Hebrews. Compounding this problem is the simple fact that many of the famous white actors in the film are given so little to do. Christian Bale falls back on his Batman-honed intensity as Moses and Joel Edgerton is all over the map as Rameses, but at least they’re given characters to play. Sigourney Weaver has two scenes—and for some reason, an American accent—as Rameses mother, one of which does not require her to speak. And Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul is completely miscast and wasted as Joshua, who is required to do nothing other than look worried and do what Moses says. I’m not saying it’s ok to waste non-white actors in roles, but if a film isn’t going to utilize the famously talented white actors it has, why not at least waste actors of the appropriate race.

Reviews