Exodus: Gods and Kings Movie Review

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The Good: Christian Bale (Moses) does well as a militant Moses, but I think that Joel Edgerton (Pharaoh Ramses) may have stolen the spotlight from under Bale. Edgerton does a nice job of conveying a character with a broad mix of emotions and really steps up to the plate in being the antagonist to Moses. Director Ridley Scott also delivers a great visual for the audience. The scenes of Egypt, the action packed battles, and the plagues were all entertaining to see.

The Bad: For whatever reason, this movie feels too "Hollywood" rather than a story into a different time and place. It seemed as though Sigourney Weaver (a Queen of Egypt) and Aaron Paul (Joshua) were add to the movie more so for their namesake. It just felt off, as with many other characters casted.  As for the story itself, it does take a very modern, artistic, and more secular perspective on this biblical narrative. (Think of the movie Noah, but less over the top). The miracles (which would usually be the highlights of the film) are unfortunately robbed of their extraordinariness with some of the character's rational explanations.  There's probably a very good chance that many people who are knowledgeable about the biblical story will simply not like how Moses or God are portrayed throughout the film. Unfortunately, the movie does seem to drag on for a while until you get to the much anticipated plagues and Red Sea crossing. This may just be me, but it seemed like the Red Sea Crossing was a bit of a let down too. I guess you can blame Charlton Heston for raising the bar so high.

The Reason: As you may have already heard, there is a bit of controversy with the "white wash" casting done in this film. It's not with every character, just the main ones. Some people may be slightly distracted with the constant caucasian, blue eyed characters that are supposed to represent characters of middle eastern descent. Sad thing is that this is nothing new in Hollywood, so more than likely most people will probably look past it 30 mins into the movie. The director is known to be an agnostic, so don't be surprised if this movie strays away from the Biblical account or even the previous 10 Commandments movie.  You should absolutely NOT watch this film in 3D. There are no special effects that warrant it. Unfortunately, there's nothing about this movie that gives me the impression that it will become a classic on any level. If you still think you want to see this, watch it for the matinee price at best.

The Rating: 6.5/10

In Theaters