Christian Bale must have thought to himself, “How can I play a character more beloved and iconic than Batman?” And then the role of Moses came along. Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings tells the story of Moses (Bale) leading the Hebrew slaves out of Egypt against his brother, the Pharoah Ramses (Joel Edgerton). The film opens December 12th, but Bale and the filmmakers gave press a sneak peek at some 3D footage from the film in 20th Century Fox’s Zanuck theater.
Of course, the scale of Scott’s latest epic is extraordinary, but what struck me the most about the scenes is the dialogue. Hearing the biblical characters discuss and debate felt very natural, still authentic to what we’re used to in historical epics (British accents in Egypt), but they address these extraordinary situations like real people might. Moses scoffs at occult beliefs like reading bird entrails and warns Ramses of impending plagues like a politician. “Something’s coming, I don’t even know what, but it’s going to be bad.” But Ramses takes it as a threat. He’s all ego.
So, onto the epic stuff. We got to see a chariot battle against an army encamped in the desert. Blacksmiths drop whatever they’re doing to fight Egypt’s forces. How can Scott top the opening battle of Gladiator or the storming of Jerusalem in Kingdom of Heaven? Putting the soldiers on chariots is one way. The chariots crash through the front lines, it’s hardcore fighting, and Ramses dumps his wingman right off the chariot once he’s shot with an arrow and no use to him.
We got to see four of the plagues too. Of course, it’s Ridley Scott so a river of blood isn’t just a small puddle of water. It’s miles and miles of epic crimson full of dead fish. Again, what made the plagues real more than the visual effects was seeing regular people try to deal with them.
If you were living in ancient Egypt and the water turned to blood or locusts swarmed your crops, you’d have to try to clean it up. The reaction makes it more real than just reading a list of plagues in a book. Can’t wait to see what the Red Sea parting looks like.
In some of the more textual biblical parts of the story, Moses visits Python where he meets Nun (Ben Kingsley), who seems to recognize the name Moses as if he’s been waiting for him. Nun shares his belief that God will lead his people to Canaan, but Moses doesn’t buy it. He knows Canaan is full of violent tribes.
Later that night, Moses meets with the Jewish elders and sends his guards outside. Nun tells him the true story of his parentage, how he was floated down the river to save him from the slaughter of firstborns. Moses’ critique of the story we’re all so familiar with is refreshing.
Bale nails the everyman quality of Moses, the reluctant hero in an extraordinary situation. Edgerton is beefed up beyond his Warrior look, bronzed and wearing guyliner too. He’s scary when he’s threatening people. We saw a glimpse of Sigourney Weaver in Cleopatra hair, but she wasn’t central in the scene.
Even in the simple dialogue scenes, there was a sense of the biblical scale of Exodus. Wide shots present the entirety of ancient cities, even when the foreground focus is simple and intimate. The Pharoah’s kingdom is expansive and features towering statues as the chariot army launches. Even though we know the story of Exodus, this footage from Gods and Kings proves there is still a new way to approach it and bring it to life.
