Rating: 
Summary: A Movie For Everyone!
Review: This movie is truly "a movie for everyone", as it is a memorable movie, with even more memorable characters! And I'm taking this review a step further...
I am not Christian, Catholic, Muslim, or a follower of Judaism. I do not believe that Jesus was the son of GOD, nor do I believe that the world was created in 7 days. I am a wiccan, a pantheist, a pagan. But regardless of my religion/beliefs, I still found this movie to absolutely extraoridnary!!!
It did not bother me that is movie is about MOSES. Nor did it upset me when in the movie they spoke about a single god, the true god, the god of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob.
My point is that this movie has something for everyone, no matter a person's gender, religion, sexuality, or ethnic background. Everyone will love this movie!!!
Rating: 
Summary: ADOPTIVE PARENTS BEWARE!!
Review: As a soon-to-be adoptive parent, I was disappointed in this movie. In general, I did think the story was wonderful!! However, I feel that its handling of "adoption" was very poor & a young adopted child could read bad things into the situation & what is indirectly said about adoption. When Moses realizes he was adopted, he sees his current reality as fake & wants to go back to his true identity of being Hebrew. Granted... there's a lot more going on.... obviously Pharoah is the bad guy & Moses was supposed to go lead the Hebrews... But an adopted child might related to Moses as being adopted & feeling like he was living in a fake reality.... Moses even implies that his brother isn't *really* his brother, although he still considers him to be his brother in spirit... and then Moses leaves and refers to Pharoah as the man he used to call father (i.e., before he knew better). This part of the story is all contrived, as it is not in Scripture -- and it is very unfortunate that this is in there. A young adopted child may not see past it.
Rating:
Summary: Another Flop From Notorious Dreamworks Pictures!
Review: Honestly, the way I see it is that "The Haunting" was the only commendable production from Dreamworks Pictures. This feature animation, on the other hand, puts Steven Spielberg to a great deal of shame, I'm afraid; and it all the more proves how Jeffery Katzenberg can hardly survive without the expertise of the Walt Disney Company.First of all, it is terribly non-accurate in terms of restoring a "tale" of how Moses delivered his people. And secondly, eew...imagine how the people looked! Many praised this movie for its stunning background design; I personally feel horrible-looking CGI-animated people pale in accompaniment to how "stunning" the audience opines the animation to be - either in a positive or negative way. Why, I think even Don Bluth's "Anastasia" could do many times better! The soundtrack itself isn't all the more that fantastic, despite the several rather meaningful songs like "River Lullaby", "Through Heaven's Eyes" and "When You Believe", due to that familiar sensation from listening to scores of similar tones. I suppose this is the only portion of "The Prince of Egypt" which persuades me to only hang on to it with an unimpressive 3-star rating. Better luck next time, Dreamworks - looking forward to your much anticipated "The Iron Robot"!
Rating: 
Summary: not very good
Review: I know many rated it very high, but this movie was very disapointing. The graphics are not great, the songs are below average at best, the story "more or less" follows the biblical accounts, but worse, the characters are not attractive. I found Moses a reluctant participant, The Pharaoh a good guy and God a little sadistic (perhaps the authors should have emphasised what really went on with slavery, but then this is a film for kids). I shook my head a few times, wondering how such a wonderful and powerful historical account like Exodus could be rendered as lifeless and sadly my kids were just turned off by the story (as was I). My son's comment was "it is so much better when you read it from the Bible" and I have to agree. I am still waiting for a good account of the Exodus to show up on film. Perhaps (instead of using their imagination to fill in the gaps) the writers should just follow the biblical text when making their movie... It has lasted and will last longer than their films will anyway. Was the movie a good biblical account? Not bad, but not good either. The author took alot of his own inspiration when making the film. Is the movie good for kids? Perhaps some will like it... But most of the ones I know left the room before the end of the movie.
Rating:
Summary: not very good
Review: I know many rated it very high, but this movie was very disapointing. The graphics are not great, the songs are below average at best, the story "more or less" follows the biblical accounts, but worse, the characters are not attractive. I found Moses a reluctant participant, The Pharaoh a good guy and God a little sadistic (perhaps the authors should have emphasised what really went on with slavery, but then this is a film for kids). I shook my head a few times, wondering how such a wonderful and powerful historical account like Exodus could be rendered as lifeless and sadly my kids were just turned off by the story (as was I). My son's comment was "it is so much better when you read it from the Bible" and I have to agree. I am still waiting for a good account of the Exodus to show up on film. Perhaps (instead of using their imagination to fill in the gaps) the writers should just follow the biblical text when making their movie... It has lasted and will last longer than their films will anyway. Was the movie a good biblical account? Not bad, but not good either. The author took alot of his own inspiration when making the film. Is the movie good for kids? Perhaps some will like it... But most of the ones I know left the room before the end of the movie.
Rating:
Summary: well worth a viewing, and a discussion
Review: I really enjoyed this movie. It was rather dramatic for a children's film, but a good way to teach children the story of Moses and the Exodus. For the most part, I found it pretty accurate. Some artistic license was of course taken, but the themes and ideas and major events seemed to be all there. I watched this movie as part of a Bible study, and afterwards we had a discussion about it; if you are concerned about any inaccuracies or ideas presented, then I recommend doing the same with your kids.
The animation was absolutely beautiful. I particularly like Moses' dream, which is styled after Egyption drawings. The colors and scenery were also brilliant throughout the entire film. And the music was wonderful-- I believe Hans Zimmer was the composer...so if you enjoyed the music of Gladiator, you will like this score as well. Only one song irked me: "Playing with the Big Boys," which seemed cheesier than the rest of the movie and slightly out of place.
I admit, this movie is not for everyone. It is not a typical happy animated film, and thus is likely not a good choice for young children. But it is good for older children, particularly those who know the story of Moses. It is deeper than other animated movies, and so many adults will enjoy it as well.
Overall, I found the film very well-done and full of rich details. The only issues I can imagine people having with it are the few places where it strays from the story in the Bible, but as I said before, this opens the door to some good discussions, and I highly recommend giving it a try.
Rating:
Summary: GREAT
Review: I wondered why this movie didn't get as much hype as most other Disney productions, then I realized- it's not Disney!!
The graphics were not nearly as spectacular as they're said to be and the story felt almost "choppy". The characters lacked emotion in all the wrong places. I would think that if I saw my first born killed, I'd be a bit more upset than Rameses was. Or if water became blood right before my eyes, my jaw would drop at least a little.
But my biggest problem with the movie was the soundtrack. Each song was very poorly written. No catchy choruses, no really lively numbers, nothing. One of the best parts of seeing a good animated film is that colors, gravity and the laws of physics are not an obstacle. The artists can create whatever song and put it to whatever setting. The imagination of the songwriters and illustrators definitely fell short.
One song in particular, "You're playing with the big boys now" was the most dissapointing. The lyrics merely repeated the name of the title over and over again and I found that the animation for the number itself was scary and just disturbing. I wouldn't let my children see if for fear of them having nightmares.
I think that the animated movies should be left to Disney, because they alone seem to know how to do them right.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Animation and Story
Review: The Prince of Egypt is an excellently animated movie from Dreamworks, with
great storytelling and characters and usually very good music. One doesn't
have to be religious to appreciate this movie (I'm not at all) -- the
emotions expressed by the characters are touching and the conflicts still
relevant. As far as the animation in the movie goes, it is never less than excellent.
Besides the special effects sections (the parting of the Red Sea being the
most ambitious and breathtaking of all), the character animation is superb.
Each character is different and distinct, with this quality most noticable
when Moses is leading his people. Every person walking behind him, most of
whom have only seconds of screen time, is unique. As an animation
enthusiast, I appreciate this unwillingness to cut corners. Also standout
in this production is the appropriate and effective combination of computer
graphics and traditional hand-drawn animation. The dream/history sequence that plays out in heiroglyphics on the palace wall is an effective use of
computer graphics in a 3-D setting that wouldn't work as well with
traditional animation, but the movie isn't overburdened by CG shortcuts
that just look fake. The storytelling is also very well done. I have read reviews that say it
changed the Bible story too much, but the movie flows well and has a good
sense of pacing. Although I've never read the Bible story, the key points
I've heard of are included, and it seems the spirit of the story is intact. The music, for the most part, is very good as well. "River Lullabye" and
"Through Heaven's Eyes" are beautiful in that they have a more
middle-eastern feel to them, with a broader range of instruments than the
hit "When you believe", which in the ending credits is sung by divas Mariah
Carey and Whitney Houston. One complaint: The Steve Martin/Martin Short scene is bad, bad, bad. The
characters seem borrowed from too many Disney movies: as snide, snooty
henchmen with no character development, they are also way too modernized to
fit the theme of the story. And their "Playing With the Big Boys" song is
terrible -- I just want to fast-forward through it. That scene
notwithstanding, I think the movie is worth watching, for both children and
adults.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Animation and Story
Review: The Prince of Egypt is an excellently animated movie from Dreamworks, with
great storytelling and characters and usually very good music. One doesn't
have to be religious to appreciate this movie (I'm not at all) -- the
emotions expressed by the characters are touching and the conflicts still
relevant. As far as the animation in the movie goes, it is never less than excellent.
Besides the special effects sections (the parting of the Red Sea being the
most ambitious and breathtaking of all), the character animation is superb.
Each character is different and distinct, with this quality most noticable
when Moses is leading his people. Every person walking behind him, most of
whom have only seconds of screen time, is unique. As an animation
enthusiast, I appreciate this unwillingness to cut corners. Also standout
in this production is the appropriate and effective combination of computer
graphics and traditional hand-drawn animation. The dream/history sequence that plays out in heiroglyphics on the palace wall is an effective use of
computer graphics in a 3-D setting that wouldn't work as well with
traditional animation, but the movie isn't overburdened by CG shortcuts
that just look fake. The storytelling is also very well done. I have read reviews that say it
changed the Bible story too much, but the movie flows well and has a good
sense of pacing. Although I've never read the Bible story, the key points
I've heard of are included, and it seems the spirit of the story is intact. The music, for the most part, is very good as well. "River Lullabye" and
"Through Heaven's Eyes" are beautiful in that they have a more
middle-eastern feel to them, with a broader range of instruments than the
hit "When you believe", which in the ending credits is sung by divas Mariah
Carey and Whitney Houston. One complaint: The Steve Martin/Martin Short scene is bad, bad, bad. The
characters seem borrowed from too many Disney movies: as snide, snooty
henchmen with no character development, they are also way too modernized to
fit the theme of the story. And their "Playing With the Big Boys" song is
terrible -- I just want to fast-forward through it. That scene
notwithstanding, I think the movie is worth watching, for both children and
adults.
Rating:
Summary: Epic animation like no other.
Review: The Prince of Egypt is easily one of my all-time favorite animated features (the other being The Lion King). It is visually stunning, bringing ancient Egypt to life in a way that no other film even comes close. However, the main strength of the film is to take an epic tale that defined a nation and make it relevant to viewers from all cultures everywhere. In less capable hands, Moses might have come across as lifeless as a certain chief of the NRA and about as sympathetic as any number of fire and brimstone prophets found within the pages of the Bible. But The Prince of Egypt turns him into a flesh and blood person, one who feels agony at having to unleash disease and destruction upon the Egyptians and their children in order to fulfil his duty to his people and his God. It is the age old dilemma of whether to take action that is necessary yet appears to be morally ambiguous. It is a theme that is as relevant to Hindus (re: Arjuna agonising before the Battle of Kurukshetra over having to fight and possibly kill his kinsmen in order to fulfil his duty as a warrior and to restore honour to his family in the Mahabharata) as it is to Christians, Hebrews and Muslims. The amazing score by Hans Zimmer only adds to the already impressive qualities of this film. The haunting voice of the late Ofra Haza in "Deliver Us" made me cry - one can almost feel the pain of the mother forced to abandon her baby to the elements. "The Burning Bush" and "The Red Sea" augmented the film's visuals well, making one feel as if one is really in the presence of the Divine. A superb effort, well worth adding to your DVD library.
|
