Image Courtesy of Amazon.com
Director:
Cecil B DeMille
1923 Cast:
Theodore Roberts……….Moses
Charles de Rochefort………Rameses
Estelle Taylor………Miriam
Julia Faye………The Wife of Pharaoh
James Neill………Aaron, Brother of Moses
Lawson Butt………Dathan, The Discontented
Clarence Burton………The Taskmaster
Noble Johnson………The Bronze Man
Edythe Chapman………Mrs. Martha McTavish
Richard Dix………John McTavish
Rod La Rocque………Dan McTavish
Leatrice Joy………Mary Leigh
Nita Naldi………Sally Lung
Robert Edeson………Redding
1956 Cast:
Charlton Heston………Moses
Yul Brynner………Rameses
Anne Baxter………Nefretiri
Edward G. Robinson………Dathan
Yvonne De Carlo………Sephora
Debra Paget………Lilia
John Derek………Joshua
Cedric Hardwicke………Sethi
Nina Foch………Bithiah
Martha Scott………Yochabel
Judith Anderson………Memnet
Vincent Price………Baka
John Carradine………Aaron
Olive Deering………Miriam
Douglass Dumbrille………Jannes
The Movies:
In this era of remakes and sequels, it’s hard to fathom a director redoing one of his own classic works as opposed to someone else’s. That’s generally the job of someone inspired by the material like Steven Spielberg was with 2005’s smash hit War of the Worlds and Martin Scorsese’s yet to be released The Departed (a remake of a Hong Kong film) or someone who previously directed music videos being handed the reigns to a classic like The Longest Yard. Cecil B DeMille got that shot 30 years after his original Ten Commandments came out to remake the epic film from 1923. Following up to his Oscar winning The Greatest Show on Earth. It would be his last directorial effort, as he would die from complications in his heart that arose following a massive heart attack he suffered on the set of the 1956 version of The Ten Commandments, which at the time was the most expensive film to ever be made.
Both films follow the Biblical story of Moses, the hero who led the Jews out of Egypt and came down from Mt. Sinai with the foundations of law that have defined mankind for the last 5,000 years.
The original 1923 version starts with Moses (Theodore Roberts) battling to free his people from the Pharaoh of Egypt Rameses (Charles de Rochefort). It’s a warp-speed look through Biblical history and scholarship as in less than twenty minutes Moses has gone from being in front of Rameses to leading the exodus out of Egypt. From there it’s a trek through the desert, eventually being chased by Rameses to the big climactic scene where Moses parts the Red Sea, allowing the Israelites through and crushing the chasing Egyptians. Continuing this mad descent through the Book of Exodus, the film parlays this into the Roaring twenties and uses the Ten Commandments to help teach a morality fable in that time period. It’s an interesting viewing, showing how completely turned around Hollywood has become in regards to how it portrays traditional morality.
The 1956 version is more of a straight-forward telling of the Book of Exodus, but its size and scope are what makes it so special. In what would be the defining role of his career, Charlton Heston would take on the mantle of Moses opposite Yul Brynner’s Rameses. Unfolding over nearly four hours of screen time, with an intermission and a brief introduction by DeMille, it’s a massive epic of a film. DeMille shows an amazing attention to detail, recreating the time and story known by billions worldwide. Heston, who would later win an Academy Award for Ben-Hur several years later, is always remembered for his amazing performance as Moses that seemingly was over-looked at the time. DeMille has one of the greatest stories ever written to use as his template and crafts one of the most memorable films of all time that still stands up.
1923 version : 8.5 / 10
1956 version : 10 / 10
The Video
Re-mastered from its original, both films have been cleaned up for this newest edition on DVD. Both films look markedly better than they have in editions past. The 1956 version is presented in a widescreen format while the 1923 version is in a full-screen format.
The Audio
While the 1923 version is a “silent” movie, the original organ music meant to accompany it during showings is present on the audio track as well as the epic score of the 1956 version is back and booming, as both are presented in Dolby Digital sound. The 1923 version is in stereo and the 1956 is in Dolby Surround and both sound really good.
The Extras
6-Part Documentary is a six-tiered look at aspects of the films, mainly focusing on the more famous 1956 version. Running 36 minutes combined, it’s the beginning of a great look at the film but doesn’t go deep or long enough to break enough ground on both films, it’s more of a tease about information than any sort of in-depth look at the film.
Newsreel: The Ten Commandments – Premiere in New York is the archival footage from 1956 of the film. In black and white footage, it’s a rare look at a different era in Hollywood.
Trailers for the film are included as well, with the 1956 “Making of” trailer, the one for its re-release in 1966 as well as its 1989 re-release.
Score : 6.5 / 10
