100 Movies Every Catholic Should See #98: The Ten Commandments (1956)

Directed by Cecil B. DeMille. Starring Charlton Heston.

And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians, and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where one was not dead. (Ex 12:30)

The 1950s were the latter part of the Golden Age of Hollywood, during which studios swung big and won (or sometimes lost) big. Films got bigger, with bigger casts, sets, costumes, and even wider screens. This description fits DeMille’s 1956 remake of the Ten Commandments perfectly and despite being the third longest film on this list.

The Ten Commandments is DeMille’s epic, star-studded summary of Exodus. Not too long ago on this list, we discussed The Prince of Egypt, another (far shorter) musical epic recounting Exodus, with a pretty focused and optimistic telling of Exodus. With The Prince of Egypt being essentially a remake of The Ten Commandments (which happens to be a remake as well), there are a lot of familiar grounds and liberties taken within DeMille’s vision of Exodus, and some quite different than Prince of Egypt. The Ten Commandments is a far different approach to Moses’s second book, providing us with different portrayals of biblical figures and sometimes its own plot lines that add to the detail in this 220-minute giant. Despite its massive run time, it feels as though not a moment iss wasted, and it goes by with appropriate speed. Modern copies of the film start with the original roadshow beginning, with an opening monologue from the director about the film. We become acquainted with Demille’s iconic voice, which narrates the film. After the monologue, the story of Exodus that many of us are familiar with ensues. The whole film runs from Exodus 1 and concludes with a scene that combines the end of Deuteronomy and the beginning of Joshua, showing the entrance into the Promised Land. Moses’s life between being drawn from the river and fleeing to the desert remains as embellished as always, but develops him more into a man and adds a needed layer for a screen adaptation. Embellishments do not take away from the story necessarily, but rather can offer us the viewer something that may be more tangible to contemplate (when done correctly).

Joshua is a much more prominent character, despite going unmentioned in the Egyptian saga of Exodus, as well as his love interest. While this may seem like an odd choice, Joshua’s conflict with a higher-up Egyptian slave driver (played fantastically by the wonderful Edward G Robinson) comes back to serve a purpose with the Golden Calf at the end. Another prominent character not in Exodus is Nefritiri, played by the stunning Anne Baxter. She serves as the tortured love interest of Moses, and as the queen of Egypt at the latter end of the story. This melodrama was standard for the time period but still holds up to offer its own voice that is distinguishable from The Prince of Egypt. DeMille’s vision has no lack of strong performances from the leading roles, as Charlton Heston delivers a passionate and riveting performance as Moses, where he feels again as if biblical Aaron and Moses were combined into one role. The stand out is Yul Brynner, who coming off of his role from The King and I, gives my favorite iteration of Ramses II. Every scene with him is captivating, and scenes with both him and Heston really do feel like battles between acting titans.

The Ten Commandments takes the Old Testament approach of showing you both the good and bad of events that occur within the story and does not sugar coat the misdeeds of both sides. It simultaneously avoids secularizing the story, which so many Hollywood adaptations normally fall victim to. God’s awesome power is on as much display as can be given with groundbreaking special effects that still mostly hold up to this day (the Red Sea is still considered a milestone event in the VFX world and its evident why). The score is iconic, which is no surprise coming from the legendary Elmer Berstein, submerging us fully in an epic tale from the very beginning. I would be remise if I went without talking about the other major stars of this film; the costumes and sets. The sets of this film are enormous and extravagant, all shot on location in and around Egypt. Built to impress and done with incredible craftsmanship, the sets and design of the film really help convey that no expense was spared and that all that was spent was used. The costumes are all gorgeous and extravagant, which is to be expected from Edith Head (the Michael Jordan of costume designers). Edith Head displays here why she is considered the greatest that ever will do it, giving a masterclass for her art form.

The Ten Commandments is equal parts the spiritual epic that we have all come to know over our journey through the faith and a time capsule of cinematic history. This adaptation of Exodus does not secularize so it can “appeal to a wider audience”, but rather doubles down and treats all who watch it as believers, which cinematic adaptations of religious content should do. DeMille’s remake of his own silent epic takes itself serious and insists upon itself, displaying earnest belief in its source material. At the same time, The Ten Commandments serves as a prime example of the incredible feats of the Golden age of Hollywood. Every actor and actress is someone who had an illustrious career within the system, and every crew member involved in many other large and high-quality productions, and every shot reflects it. Aside from perhaps Ben Hur, The Ten Commandments stands as a prime specimen of the Sword and Sandal genre. It is even credited with helping solidify the subgenre as a massive box office draw until the failure of Cleopatra in 1963. This on top of groundbreaking special effects that continue to be referenced to this day intertwined with a mostly faithful and spiritual adaptation of Moses’s second book add up to a must-see for any Catholic movie fan.

Just make sure to take advantage of the intermission.