Just what
is the moviegoer to think, when right at the beginning of this
pic there appears a big disclaimer saying that although artistic
license was taken, the film remains true to the essence of the
Bible story?
As Bill Clinton
might have said, "It depends what you mean by "essence."
There are
many things wrong with this feature, not the least of which is
the setting up of a completely bogus dramatic tension. In Exodus,
Moses is adopted by Pharaoh's daughter (not wife, as in the movie)
but there is absolutely no hint of any youthful relationship between
Moses and Rameses. Thus, the central theme in Prince, of Moses'
conflict between fighting his brother and family, and leading
his true people, the Hebrews, is a lie on its face.
Moreover,
Exodus 2:11-14, which describes the killing of the Egyptian, heavily
implies that Moses already knows his real origin. In Prince, Moses
gets this revelation from his siblings Aaron and Miriam.
The appearance
of Aaron and Miriam at this point is quite a departure from the
source material. In Exodus, Aaron joins Moses only after the Burning
Bush, and Miriam has no role until the very end, but, characteristically,
the movie misses this.
Zipporah,
the wife Moses takes in Midian, first appears in Prince as a captive
brought to the royal palace. No doubt, the writers thought that
she and Moses "meeting cute" would be a cool plot device,
even though they also include the Ex. 2:16-21 flock watering sequence,
where the meeting really took place.
The pic relates
Moses before Pharaoh in a series of montages and songs, with the
first nine of the ten plagues passing by in seconds. The death
of the first-born and the Passover night are handled as well as
a mass killing could be in animation, I suppose, but a genuine
opportunity for dramatic tension is lost when Prince omits the
striking exchange from Ex. 10:28-29, that occurs just before the
killing--
"Leave
my presence, "Pharaoh said to him, "and see to it that
you do not appear before me again! The day you appear before me
you shall die!" Moses replied, "Well said! I will never
appear before you again.
The departure
from Egypt and journey to the Red Sea occupy little screen time.
This is a pity, because the confirmation of Moses' leadership
role, the establishment of the Passover rites and feast days,
and the tradition of the consecration of the first-born, all key
moments in Jewish history, take place before the parting and crossing.
Prince covers none of this.
Nor does the
movie relate the faint-heartedness of the Israelites when they
see the Egyptians on the march in pursuit of them. Only days out
of slavery they complain to Moses, "Were there no burial
places in Egypt that you had to bring us out here to die in the
desert? Why did you do this to us? Why did you bring us out of
Egypt? Did we not tell you this in Egypt, when we said, 'Leave
us alone. Let us serve the Egyptians'? Far better for us to be
the slaves of the Egyptians that to die in the desert." (Ex.
14:11-12)
Finally, after
they cross the Red Sea, and Pharaoh's whole army is destroyed,
Ex. 15:1-21 is devoted to the Israelites thanking God for their
deliverance. Indeed, Miriam's only appearance occurs in verses
20 and 21--
The prophetess
Miriam, Aaron's sister, took a tambourine in her hand, while all
the women went out after her with tambourines, dancing, and she
led them in the refrain: Sing to the Lord, for he is gloriously
triumphant; horse and chariot he has cast into the sea.
That none
of this appears in the film is an outrage. God is effectively
expunged from the Exodus story!!
If many non-Jewish
religious leaders are praising Prince of Egypt, it might be because
they are willing to accept a secular re-telling of an essentially
religious tale, on the grounds that it at least speaks of grand
spiritual themes. Even this is craven at best.
But for Messrs.
Spielberg, Katzenberg, and Geffen, all at least nominally Jewish,
to emasculate one of their sacred books, when they could have
played it straight is stunning.
Tell me, Dreamworks
gurus, what's the point of being on top, if you still have to
sell out?