Film Review

this review is late due to the fact that i did not feel that my first review, that was based on a different film, was as good as this one. sorry for the delay.


Product analysis: The Prince of Egypt

The Prince of Egypt is based on a story from the Bible about a man named Moses and how God saved the hebrew slaves in Egypt through him. The story is told using a linear narrative however there is a part of the film where a dream of an event in the past could be seen as a sort of flashback; this makes the story seem almost non-linear however as the dream is a part of the chronological series of events it can be confidently stated that this film is in fact linear in it's narrative.

The film can be said to be aimed at religious audiences (christian, jewish, and muslim mainly as these all have this story as a part of their religious history), however as it is an animated musical it could also be aimed at children and families.

The film is brilliantly made; has a magnificent, memorable, and well known score; displays unique and beautifully artistic animation and special visual effects; and portrays a well known and much loved story with emotion and power. the only 'bad' point of this film (and saying this film has a bad point is almost preposterous) would probably be the fact that due to 'creative license' some details of the story were changed and aspects of the spiritual implications of the story were dampened to suit a wider audience, besides this it is one of the best films of all time (at least in my opinion).

It's prequel, Joseph: King of Dreams, which came out at a later time, did not seem to reach the highly majestic and cinematic standard that The Prince of Egypt did, the only similarities seemed to be the animation style (which was only slightly different), the musical aspect (the songs themselves were actually very good), and the fact it was based on a story from the Bible (how the hebrews got into Egypt in the first place). Another comparison i'd like to make, in terms of storyline, involves the movie The Lion King. The story of a royal prince who runs from a murder, learns to live a better life out in the wilderness, has a calling from his 'Father' (another title for God), and returns to free his people from a tyrant is present in both The Lion King and The Prince of Egypt (the makers of The Lion King actually admit this similarity aswell).

The Prince of Egypt (which is a musical) opens with a song that shows the painful and bitter lives of slavery and bondage that the hebrews have lived for nearly 400 years. Part way through the song we move to another part of Egypt (Goshen) and there we see the mother of Moses who is singing to her son as she gets ready to hide him from the egyptian soldiers who are raiding the town for all male hebrew babies (to kill them). After singing the child her "last lullabye" she lays him in a basket and sets him adrift on the river. Eventually he is found by the egyptian Queen who takes him in to raise him as her own.

We see Moses' life as a young man and how he and his 'brother' Rameses enjoy the freedom and other benefits that come with being a prince of egypt. However one night Moses encounters his biological siblings Miriam and Aaron. Miriam tries to reveal to Moses the truth of his origins (with use of the "last lullaby" his mother sang to him), which Moses doesn't accept until it is confirmed by a dream in which he sees the horrifying events of the day his mother put him on the river (his egyptian mother also admits to finding him).

Later, among the hebrew slaves, Moses notices an elderly hebrew being severly mistreated and whipped violently. Moses suddenly feels pity for the slave and anger against the egyptian task master. In his surge of emotion he attacks and kills the egyptian. Terrified at what he had just done he runs away and leaves Egypt, even after Rameses pleads with him to stay.

This moment in the film (Moses killing the egyptian and running away) would be the first 'plot point' and the end of act one (known as 'the setup') of the three stage narrative.

After a sad farewell Moses wanders the desert until he comes across some girls being harrased by some mean shepherds. He rescues them and is welcomed into their family by their father Jethro who teaches Moses that to stop focusing on his past mistakes and feeling worthless he must look at his life "through Heaven's eyes". Moses then spends the next 40 years living as a shepherd with his midianite wife Tzipporah (Jethro's daughter).

One day Moses came across a strange burning bush whose fire din't consume it. From the bush a voice called to him. When Moses asked the voice who it was, the reply came from the fire in the bush, "I am that I am.". He told Moses that He wanted him to be the man He would work through to free the hebrew slaves in Egypt and bring them to the land He had promised was theirs. I believe this could be a second plot point in the film however there are a couple other moments which could be main plot points also.

Moses returns to Egypt after being absent for forty years and now Rameses (who rejects God's command to let his people go) is Pharoah. He hardens his heart in stubborness against Moses and against God. Then ten events (that God warns Pharoah of through Moses) plague Egypt, and bring it to ruin; each event showing not only the lack of power of Pharoah and the egyptian gods but also the superior might of 'the one true God'.

Pharoah conitues to stubbornly refuse to admit that he is not 'God'. One last plague looms on the horizon and after Moses warns Rameses of it the Pharoah decrees death to the hebrews.

That night the first born sons of the egyptians die, (the hebrews were protected from this fate by the symbol of the lamb's blood on their door posts, which biblically symbolises the Messiah who would die in their place and pay 'the wages of sin' (Jesus§).

Rameses is heartbroken at the death of his son, and in his greif and reluctant realisation of a higher power than himself allows the hebrews to go free. This could be seen as the second or third plot point and end of the second act which is known as the 'confrontation'.

The hebrews leave full of joy and hope and arrive at the red sea. Whilst here they notice that pharoah and his army have come after them. This moment in the narrative is known as the 'the crisis'. Trapped against the sea they panic, but God stands as a pillar of fire that prevents Ramases from reaching the hebrews. Moses then raises his staff over the sea and God parts it providing a path along the sea bed for the hebrews to cross. Eventually the egyptians are also permitted access to this path but God allows the waters to drown them. The hebrews are now free and with Moses as their leader (under God) they begin their journey to the promised land.

Thus the third act (known as 'the resolution') is completed, as is the film.