HeвЂ™s a powerhouse as well, physically he is very imposing. Yul Brynner takes the best acting role for the film, heвЂ™s a multi dimensional character and I actually do have quite some sympathy for him.

The burning bush is also nicely done as is the menacing Mount Sinai with the smoke and red glow. One of my favorites is the angel of death descending near the moon like bony skeletal fingers. The set designs and the visual effects are bar none some of the most impressive ever done up to that time and they still mostly hold up.

Even though obviously meant to be family-friendly, they slip in some adult innuendo: I never noticed how much lascivious sexuality is used here as a mark of wickedness. He's also the ancient rationalist, explaining away the plagues, and the skeptic saying 'You priests made the gods.' Brynner never worked out or dieted, final proof that life is unfair. You can't help but feel his grief for the death of his son. The pesky Hebrews are messing up his life, as is troublemaker Moses (both as prince and prophet), and his wife turns out to be a real piece of work. It makes me like his character more: Rameses is born to be pharaoh and is obviously built for the job. Much as I like Charlton Heston, Yul Brynner gives a blazing performance, one of the few actors who looks like he belongs there. I don't know how many of the subplots are mined from the midrash or other ancient texts. Although I can be moved by Bible films (see David and Bathsheba (1951) and Ben Hur (1959)) this one is just too stiff and pompous to be more than spectacle. (According to the commentary track, he was going for a retro-epic look, evoking the pageants of his youth). Watching DeMille requires some mental adjustment: it's like a children's church pageant blown out to a tremendous, cast-of-thousands scale. No more stalling: the Blu-ray is gorgeous, one of the finest I have seen. DeMilleД®very now and then I say to my wife 'About time to watch The Ten Commandments again, eh?' She always responds by doing a breathy, spot-on Anne Baxter imitation: 'Oh, Moses, Moses!' Then we watch something else. The Ten Commandments (1956), directed by Cecil B. At third and fourth place in terms of acting are Yul Brynner and Edward G. Anne Baxter is very good too and extremely sexy in the role. The score is good, but not great and mostly just repeats the same epic theme over and over.Д¬harleton Heston gives a commanding performance, which is especially epic during the scenes where he is speaking for God.

The cinematography and art direction are excellent too. The parting of the Red Sea is a cool scene and looks terrific. The movie is awe-inspiring from a technical standpoint though and is remarkably well-paced for being nearly 4 hours long.В The vfx are mostly impressive for the time, though the fire stuff is sort of laughable. It just feels extremely silly.В The movie is a bit preachy during certain scenes and the pre-story opening with DeMille is bothersome if you aren't a religious person. The rest of the movie can be seen as literal, but if you take the final 20 minutes as literal it doesn't work at all. Overall it is a good movie, but the last 20 minutes is poorly done and has to be taken as metaphor within the movie.

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