Exodus: Gods and Kings

Moses Decimus Meridius

After being banned in Egypt, one might expect Exodus: Gods and Kings – an updated version of the story of Moses for 2015 -to be full of controversial plot lines and hotly contentious character interpretations. In fact, what we get is a fairly straightforward and even slightly clichéd version of the Bible tale that actually doesn’t deviate a great deal from the source material.

The most controversial aspect of the film could be that Moses (Christian Bale) is introduced to us as a tough and rather merciless general in the Egyptian army. Then again, when we remember the film is directed by Ridley Scott; the man who gave us Gladiator, that decision becomes at least a little clearer. The ‘influential lone warrior’ device has comprised Scott’s bread and butter for more than a decade so who better to give new form to the original freedom fighter than the Brit director?
However, there are more than a few similarities between Exodus and Scott’s first foray into the swords n’ sandals genre, which sets the film at a disadvantage from the start and diminishes its own strong points as mere carbon copy.

So we have Moses/Maximus, a supremely competent military leader and close confidant of the Pharaoh Seti/Marcus Aurelius, who secretly favours Moses as his successor as opposed to his own ambitious and emotionally detached son, Ramses/Commodus. When the Pharaoh dies and Moses’ Hebrew heritage is discovered, Ramses banishes Moses who then does what any self-respecting exile would do and becomes a shepherd. As luck would have it he manages to marry a ridiculously good looking woman (lord have mercy Maria Valverde) from a tiny village in the middle of the desert.
This idyllic life is disrupted however when God (Proximo?) appears one day and demands Moses return to Egypt/Rome to free his own people, who under Ramses’ iron rule are suffering more than ever. Moses obliges and sets off to exact revenge in this life or the next and lead the Hebrews to the Promised Land.

Though the many similarities aren’t necessarily a bad thing, especially for those who haven’t seen the likes of Gladiator, when dealing with a classical tale which has been told innumerable times it often helps to switch the approach. As it is, Exodus seems at times like Scott simply going through the motions.

Despite the Middle Eastern setting and the cast being noticeably dominated by white/Caucasian actors, overall most of the players do a moderate to good job. Joel Edgerton is adequate as the stubborn Pharaoh Ramses – a man whose position relies on the established order and who is prepared to maintain it with all the megalomania of the worst kind of tyrant.

Elsewhere though, Aaron Paul is largely wasted as Moses’ sidekick (he gets little else to do other than look confused when Moses convenes with a God only he can see) as are Sigourney Weaver who turns up as Ramses’ mother and Ben Kingsley in his turn as a Hebrew elder who sees Moses as fulfiller of an ancient prophecy. Also curious, is the decision to have several of the actors use different accents; something which turns out to be highly distracting and a mistake that Scott should have learned from Oliver Stone’s slapdash Alexander.

On to the main man and thankfully Bale’s performance is solid. The actor shows he is comfortable swinging swords and riding chariots, imbuing physicality to his version of the original prophet.  His greatest contribution however is not his mettle, but the flashes of meekness and the believable portrayal of doubt in his character. Bale’s Moses knows deep down that he has a part to play in a higher cause, even while he struggles to accept it. This injects much needed humanity and allows the film to touch upon interesting ideas about where faith ends and simply obeying orders begins. Is it faith or fear which drives Moses to do the bidding of a God who seems just as bloodthirsty and tyrannical as the Pharaoh he opposes?

The film never really goes to any great length to answer such questions, which some may criticise. After all, for a film about a pivotal point in religious history it would have benefited from a little more substance; a little more spirit. But really, it’s obvious the purpose of the film is less about the philosophy of the sacred script and more about the spectacle and imaginative power of the story.
As well as all that tasty wrath.

Scott has gained a reputation in his time as a visionary director and in his hands the ten plagues make for some truly impressive visuals. It may grate that the miracles have been rationalised to a degree (the water of the Nile turns into blood because the Crocodiles eat a few people for example), but overall they do a grand job of bringing a sense of scale and to justify the film being marketed as being influenced by the epics of yesteryear.

If you go into Exodus: Gods and Kings expecting a Sunday School dissection of the Old Testament story then, you’re in for a disappointment. However, if you’re willing to be swept away (sorry) by a grand and mythically resonant version of the events found in the good book, you’ll be more than convinced.

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