Review: 'Exodus' Is God-Awful

http://www.forbes.com ^ | December 5, 2014 | Scott Mendelson

[Haiku Guy]

First Impression: The title is off-putting.

Exodus: Gods and Kings

Gods - Plural

Kings - Plural

Of course, in the story of Exodus there is only one God and only one king.

Who is the other god? The god of the Egyptians? That is a false god. God is the one true God. That is the whole point, isn’t it?

Who is the other King? Moses? Moses is not a king. Moses is the son of Hebrew slaves and could never be king. Again, that is kind of the whole point.

It seems like the assumption of the movie is that it was a battle between two gods and two kings, and God was the better god and Moses was the better king, so the Israelites prevailed. This is a perversion of everything in Exodus.

This is a lot of analysis for four words, of course. Maybe it is a fine movie. But if they can’t even get through the title without going astray, I am going to bet against it.

[Jimmy Valentine]

Wrong movie I think. This is really a reprise of “The Ten Commandments” with Charleton Heston. Tough sandals to fill

[tbpiper]

Russell Crowe’s atrocity film, Moses.

Don't you mean "Noah"?

[tbpiper]

The original Exodus movie came out in 1960 and starred Paul Newman.

"The Ten Commandments" circa 1954 w/Charlton Heston is the original movie about the biblical exodus. Newman's Exodus is about the founding of the nation of Israel. The current Exodus is also related to the biblical exodus, but not much farther than the name only. From the trailers, it looks be worse crap than Crowe's 'Noah'.

[rrrod]

Good point...I go to the movies just for entertainment....nothing more nothing less.

[circlecity]

This reviewer’s main problems with the film seems to be that it doesn’t cast black actors in the lead and that it sticks pretty much to the familiar bible story rather than taking a “new twist” like the Noah movie did. I consider these features not bugs.

[rusty millet]

“It is overly reverent to the sacred text yet offers no religious emphasis for the sake of not offending those outside the dogma.”

I hope that by “overly reverent to the sacred text” that he means it follows what the bible actually says.

Offering no religious emphasis is actually preferable, since explaining the whole “Moses as precursor of Christ Jesus” analogy is probably a bit more than what was budgeted for the film.

[LS]

I liked "Fury"---did not love it--- and while "Mockingjay" was not good, I understood it necessarily had to be a mere bridge to the final episode. I liked "Wolf of Wall Street" but ----WAAAAAYYYYY too long and I liked "American Hustle." The last movie I really liked in a theater was "Olympus Has Fallen".

I have to say I (necessarily) have watched our documentary "Rockin' the Wall" in theaters 20 times and I like it more every time.

[wbarmy]

Wasn’t that the movie “Noah”?

[Chainmail]

I liked the Nativity Story 2006, directed by Catherine Hardwicke. Follows the New Testament precisely, excellent acting, authentic settings and costuming.

Kind of a rarity among religious films - and a great Christmas movie if you haven't seen it yet.

[Dick Vomer]

I hated Fury. It made American troops look like burnt out murdering thugs. Don't get me started on someone getting OUT of a tank and repelling a company assault on a immobile tank..... then getting shot multiple times in the chest with a Mauser and talking....

even my 20 year old daughter rolled her eyes and laughed "Maybe we should have seen "Gone Girl". hahahaha. I liked the tank battle scenes but it just didn't ring true and looked like it was written by what someone "thought" war was like and not actual messy combat.

someone should start a FReeper film critic thread. Save some of us money and time.

[T-Bone Texan]

"...sorry but on movies, most of you do not have any credibility....

FReepers tend to live by their values, rather than an agenda.

I agree with the OP on this one.

We are in the middle of a full blown culture war. Time to pick sides is long past.

[LS]

We used to have one, but it was overrun with the "I-never-go-to-Movies/I-hate-Hollywood" crowd.

These same people have completely ceded pop culture to the enemy. I, for one, choose to fight on that battlefield.

Anyway, despite its flaws, I liked "Fury." Give it a B+ for the tank action scenes.

[Jeff Chandler]

Man, that's so zen.

[trisham]

"I think the man was likely schizophrenic and was one of the most barbaric individuals that I ever read about in my life..."

Christian Bale (regarding Moses)

[jersey117]

Bale has already been making the interview rounds trashing Moses as a terrorist. I’ll pass.

[NKP_Vet]

In this latest Exodus movie the director has the Red Sea parting as a result of an earthquake, God had nothing do with it.

[circlecity]

I would assume God just used an earthquake to part the sea.

[NKP_Vet]

Point I was making is an earthquake is not mentioned in Genesis.

[circlecity]

"Point I was making is an earthquake is not mentioned in Genesis."

I assume you mean "Exodus" and that was just an unintentional slip. In any event, a certain amount of dramatic license is allowed when making a two hour biblical movie as long as it is consistent with scripture. There was lots of non-biblical material included in the movie "The 10 Commandments". If the authors want to suggest God used an earthquake to part the sea that doesn't bother me - especially if it occurs in response to Moses' lifting of his rod.