The Prince of Egypt (1998)
A Film Review by Mark O'Hara Visit Online Film Critics Society at http://www.ofcs.org
Important stories have a way of getting themselves retold. As part of the greatest story ever told, the story of Moses is done up with amazing technical skill and a good amount of interest in DreamWorks' 'The Prince of Egypt.'
In a wonderfully poetic opening sequence, we watch Moses' mother place him in a basket. But he does not float serenely through the bulrushes; instead the infant is nearly ruined by crocodiles, hippopotami, and several boats. Finally he is rescued by the Queen (voice of Helen Mirren). So much for background, as the action jumps twenty or so years to show an unrealistic but hilarious chariot race between the two sons of Pharoah - Rameses (Ralph Fiennes) and the adopted Moses (Val Kilmer). There is a bond between the brothers that gives the very story mythic overtones, as we know the bond must eventually be shattered.
The meat of the story covers Moses' transformation from prince to Hebrew prophet. In one scene Moses runs upon his real sister, Miriam (Sandra Bullock), and brother, Aaron (Jeff Goldblum). Of course he rejects any notion of being related to these lowly slaves. The movie does a nice job of portraying the subtle reckonings of memory: Moses somehow recovers familiarity with Miriam's song, the one his mother sang to him in his infancy. But this is only the first in a series of revelations. After Moses irrevocably severs his connections with the Egyptian court, he takes to living with desert people, serving the priest of Midian, Jethro (Danny Glover). Moses and Jethro's daughter Tzipporah (Michelle Pfeiffer) marry, and after a time Moses (as a pre-Christ figure) gives up his private life as a shepherd and fulfills God's will.
'The Prince of Egypt' would not benefit from comparison to Cecil B. De Mille's classic 'The Ten Commandments.' 'Commandments' has the length and expanse of an epic - three hours of human struggle with no songs or animated whimsicality to lighten the subject matter. Yes, it is dated by the time in which it was made, but 'dated' does not mean 'bad.' The scope of the narrative in De Mille's movie is breath-taking and, besides, Charlton Heston's voice has it all over Val Kilmer's. 'Prince' probably benefits from it shortness, considering its main audience is children. The most remarkable miraculous events are touched upon - the infestations of frogs and locusts, pestilence, and a scary sequence - the origin of Passover, in which the first-born of Egypt (except those whose lintels are marked with the blood of the lamb) die with the most forlorn of exhalations. This animated feature does fair justice to these serious events.
The most striking, I think, is the Red Sea parting. This was my favorite scene, and my son's. It has been broadcast far that DreamWorks spent countless human hours depicting the attempt of Moses and the Jews to leave Egypt, only to be blocked by the sea. Rameses' legions are bearing down upon them, creating an almost perfect dramatic moment. Executive producer Jeffrey Katzenberg and his entire staff have accomplished a magnificent task, a five-plus minute sequence of terror and wonder that is as fascinating to watch as any moments filmed. What an idea - to show the ocean life as the fleeing people stumble under the vast curtains of parted water!
Other strong parts of the production include music and original storytelling. My wife and daughter - both very able musicians - liked the songs. Ten-year-old Kristin claims to have almost cried during "Deliver Us" and "All I Ever Wanted." I was struck by the layered texture of the song during which Hotep and Huy (voices of Martin Short and Steve Martin) are trying to upstage Moses and his 'trick' with his staff. We hear the names of Egyptian gods, voices chanting in the background, over top of which Short and Martin sing the main lyrics. (The lyrics themselves - "You're playing with the big boys now" - are not as strong as those in other songs, though.) Another fabulous sequence was a dream in which Moses continues to realize his Hebrew heritage. Although the sequence is not sung, it is dramatized through animated hieroglyphic-like figures. Moses as pictograph flees from legions of soldiers. Then in a stunning epiphany, Moses awakens and runs to the actual wall on which this verse from the book of Exodus is recorded (1:22): "Pharaoh then commanded all his subjects, 'Throw into the river every boy that is born to the Hebrews, but you may let all the girls live'." All his adoptive father can utter in explanation is, "They were only slaves."
The animation style is original and well-drawn. Many of the characters seem attenuated, rather Barbie-like in shape, but this is in keeping with the Egyptian imagery of the pictographs -dogs and gods of graceful slimness. Pharoah is done with kingly splendor, like the sphinxes and other likenesses modeled after him. Patrick Stewart lends an appropriately regal voice to this character. Most of the other actors perform admirably in their voice roles. They are, if nothing else, transparently efficient. Ones that draw positive attention to themselves include Stewart, Jeff Goldblum (you can see his cerebral fussiness in Aaron's mannerisms, too), Ralph Fiennes, and, in a tiny role, Danny Glover.
In all, 'The Prince of Egypt' is not to be missed. Forgo other holiday films for this one, regardless of your age. It is destined to be included in the canon of filmed Biblical literature and, besides, it's a lot of fun.
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