Excruciating Exodus Movie Exudes Errors
Exodus: Gods and Kings reeks with wretchedness
Note: This discussion of Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014) contains spoilers.
Colossal expense equals colossal waste for the new Ridley Scott movie Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014). The story has been changed so much from the Biblical narrative that it is barely recognizable.
My mother always taught me that if I don’t have anything nice to say, I should say nothing at all. If I were to follow her policy, this review of Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014) would end now.
I should say I am not a purist. I understand that Biblical material needs to be added to in order to make a motion picture. After all, very rarely does the Bible give a physical description of a character. I also understand that changes might need to be made for technical reasons or to make the story flow—though Scott’s explanation for the racial make-up of his casting falls flat. Heck, I even like Dan Brown books. Sure, I notice the inaccuracies, but the man tells good stories. So why am I annoyed that Exodus: Gods and Kings bears almost no resemblance to the Biblical narrative? Because it pretends to be something that it is not.
It is beyond me to understand why one of the most action-packed, intense Biblical narratives needed such dramatic altering by writers Adam Cooper, Bill Collage, Jeffrey Caine and Steven Zaillian. Their story was so different that if they didn’t use the Biblical names and released the same movie with a different title, I might not have even recognized it—especially with all the Arthurian mythology woven in—though the caricature and stereotypes that ran through the film shoved the viewer in that direction.
Not only have the exciting Biblical elements, such as a lonely baby floating down a raging Nile, a hero with a speech impediment sent to speak to the most powerful leader in the world, a brotherly side-kick, been edited out of the movie, God has been turned into a petulant child. This is the precise opposite of the narrative, which depicts a God who has control of every element of nature, including death and Pharaoh. But movie Moses’ exasperated cry, “Who are you punishing?” misses the textual point that the Hebrews were not subjected to the majority of the plagues. I should not be surprised as it seems no one involved with this movie has ever read the Biblical account. This comic visually demonstrates the plague of darkness that affected the Egyptians but not the Israelites (Exodus 10:22–23). Image: bit.ly/1C3fxnd courtesy Barer at Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies.
The movie is manipulative in its anti-religious polemic. All the supernatural elements of the story (which are in the Bible to make theological points about the God of the Hebrews and thus are literarily important to the characterization of God, regardless of one’s faith position) are stripped away or given a “scientific” explanation within the dialogue. It’s amazing that the movie had time for that when it rushed through the plagues. To my count, only eight or possibly nine were depicted (though the alligator plague might be an improvement on the text). The Egyptian priestess (apparently there was only one in Memphis) and the prophet are slain for incompetence. Moses is a firm atheist until he suffers a traumatic brain injury which makes him hallucinate a boy-god. Which brings us to the petulant, malicious boy-god, who plagues the Hebrews alongside the Egyptians, ignores Moses’ pleas for mercy and binds the Hebrews to him without choice in the final plague. All of these alterations were designed to make religion look senile. This is misdirection at best considering the blatant attempt to attract religious viewers with the movie’s “Biblical” subject matter.
My intention was to create a list of all the changes made to the text, the historical inaccuracies and the archaeological brutalities, but there are just too many of them. To do this would result in a review that was twice the length of the script itself. Even where I might be able to offer praise at the movie’s use of paleo-Hebrew (a single rudimentary mem), it was written on a full sheet of papyrus by a slave. Seriously?! What slave can afford to buy papyrus? Not to mention can read or write? I know I am not supposed to ask these questions, but I am also supposed to find at least something nice to say about everything. I guess I am just not very good at doing what I am supposed to.
Leaving aside the mutilations to the text, the historical record and the archaeological remains, the melodramatic nature of the characters made them phony and dislikable. Thus, even if you can put everything else aside, I would still recommend you skip this incredible waste of time and money.
For more on Hollywood movies, read “The ‘Gods of Egypt’ Movie: A Mess of Anachronisms and Exoticization,” “Rock Giants in Noah” and “Blending into One: The ‘Left Behind’ Movie, the Book of Revelation and the Rapture.”
Ellen White, Ph.D. (Hebrew Bible, University of St. Michael’s College), is the senior editor at the Biblical Archaeology Society. She has taught at five universities across the U.S. and Canada and spent research leaves in Germany and Romania. She has also been actively involved in digs at various sites in Israel.
More on the Exodus in Bible History Daily:
Exodus in the Bible and the Egyptian Plagues
Who Was Moses? Was He More than an Exodus Hero?
Out of Egypt: Israel’s Exodus Between Text and Memory, History and Imagination
Searching for Biblical Mt. Sinai
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Is it like Noah which did not depict wat really in the bible.
My, my, it amazes me that so many critics, not of the film but of the religion of the Hebrews are in such abundance on this site. I especially like the remark about religion created to control the masses — that is rich. Some said it out loud, while others suggest it, and was that, then, and original thought? Now, who is being controlled? Some of the mindless religious bigots try to talk down to believers as if they are some kind of ignorant masses. What dribble from brains of mush looking at themselves as some kind of Einstein of religious thought, all the while parroting the oft used and abused words of disbelievers who in their arrogance are so much smarter than the masses — themselves being part of the masses that will stand with their mouths when their stupidity is unveiled for them to see. Sorry, Ellen, like you I have trouble following my mother’s words, like your mother’s word about not saying anything if you cannot say something nice. This forum is for Biblical Archaeology, right? I would expect believers to be sharing, and some are, but where did the stone heads come from that have nothing to contribute but their own asinine opinions that too many of us fail to ignore — me included. Peace to all that look to BAR as a source of intellectual property doing some serious Biblical research.
Thanks Dr White for your article. I was hoping you or someone with some level of professional expertise couple address the following question:
Based on the timing of Exodus/Moses it was my understanding that the pyramids were already ancient structures as well as the sphinx. There seem to be scenes in the trailers that depict the pyramids being built as well as the sphinx. There is also a scene where there are two step pyramids and one smooth sided pyramid like those at Giza. Can you address the accuracy of location/timelines for exodus relative to some of the movie scenes for accuracies?
Not only did the imbeciles who created this pile of crap have Moses and company riding horses… they are using stirrups….TWO THOUSAND YEARS BEFORE THE INVENTION OF THE STIRRUP, 1000 YEARS BEFORE THE INVENTION OF THE SADDLE, AND AT LEAST 500 BEFORE THE EARLIEST DEPICTION OF SOMEONE RIDING A FULL-SiZE HORSE. This compost heap of a movie is about as credible as “300” was as a depiction of the Battle of Thermopylae or “Troy” was in its depiction of a penteconter. (Hint: rowboats, even big ones, don’t have holds.)
Interestingly enough an Islamic co-worker just told me that this movie is exactly like the Islamic teaching of the Exodus story. Can anyone confirm this?
An interesting side note on this time frame and Egyptology that the Bible provides. Ex 1:8 states “Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.” (ESV). Has someone ever looked into the significance of the “setting” of this event? If you had, you might have come across this interesting verse in Isaiah 52:4, “My people went down at first into Egypt to sojourn there.”… (Ask when & what event is the LORD referencing here?)…”and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.” Also, if you’re still having problems with the “context” of this verse, read Is 52:6. There is a school of thought that believe there was a short (less than 100 years) “break” in the linage of the Egyptian Pharaohs…when a conquering nation from the north invaded with something brand new, horse drawn chariots, re-curve bows, and armor. If you take God’s Word literally in its normal, grammatical usage, as I do, this verse in Isaiah, along with Paul’s in Galatians about Sinai being in Arabia, help make sense of this great “historic” event. Besides, geo-politically, ask why Saudi Arabia today would have ANY interest in validating the Biblical, historical account of the Jewish nation?
So Hollywood castrated the Bible fairy story?
The traditional interpretation that Moses and the Exodus occurred alongside the building of the pyramids and Ramesses II is generally considered incorrect – the bible or more specifically the biblical story in the written Torah does not give names or sufficient references to be certain of when or even if it happened (the use of fictional stories, or altered interpretations of actual events, to reinforce beliefs has been common practice throughout history).
Well, this is nothing new from “Hollywood” of movies produced that are supposed to be based on historical events.
To victor: Noah is based on a supernatural comic book, and depicted Noah as a psychopath, which turned a lot of the viewers off, and possibly affected the other bible based film, Exodus.
Me and Wife saw it on New Year’s Day, really enjoyed it. We know it’s an “adaptation” of the bible, and the main themes, characterization and stories are still there. The Red Sea confrontation part was well done, sticking to the bible, and different to the trailer. If people want word to word adaptation, then they are just like comic book geeks, complaining about costumes, Superman’s hair, Batman’s voice, Wonder Woman’s boobs. This is a movie, not a documentary. I understand Lincoln the movie was quite accurate, and people down here in NZ didn’t bother with it.
Unfortunately, how many non believers watched the Christian documentaries? This movie at least got millions to watch it, and appreciate at least the character of Moses. Folks like me, and there are a lot of us, like to compare original literatures to the actual films, and a lot of non believers would be checking out the bible because of this, and is that a bad thing? Heck, me and wife spent the last two days reading up Exodus, archeology, science of Red Sea parting etc, and we haven’t done that for ages! This movie at least, portrayed Moses as a good man, a hero, not like Noah, or Dogma, or Simpson’s Jesus etc.
It is a movie that introduces you to the world of Egypt, what it’s like to go through the ten plagues, what it’s like to see all first borns die, I had tears in my eyes watching that scene, it is not just, words that people mumble through reading the verses in class, it’s real, brutal and emotional. I doubt people will lose their faith because of a movie, or if people are gonna hate the bible because of this neither.
Thank you Dr. E. White,
Today is my lucky day. First Murphy-O’Connor saves me from reading a bad book, “First Paul”, and now Dr. White saves me from a bad movie. Perhaps I should consider myself truly ‘saved’?