Believe it or not, the 90's wasn't just a renaissance for strictly Disney animation. Back before they were playing second-fiddle to Pixar and licensing every children's book under the sun, Dreamworks Animation was one of the few studios whose films proved to be worthy competition for those coming out of the Disney Animation Studios at the time. The best strategy for co-existing with a media empire as massive as the House of Mouse, I've found, is to embrace the things that are simply too risky for Disney to touch; the best parts of non-Disney theme parks are always the thrill rides and PG-13 elements that you'd never find within the walls of the Magic Kingdom. The same could be said when it comes to making movies; The Prince of Egypt is an exemplary example of an animated musical that goes directly for straight-faced drama instead of action, adventure, and comedy. Dreamworks Animation got its start, comprised mostly of ex-Disney animators, making films like The Prince of Egypt; gorgeously animated with a distinctly non-Disney edge. Then Shrek came along, won an Oscar, and ruined everything. Still, no amount of mediocre computer-generated comedies starring pop stars who can't act can erase the fact that Dreamworks has made some truly amazing animated films, and The Prince of Egypt is most definitely one of their best.
The film is a re-telling of the story of Exodus; after the Pharaoh Seti (Patrick Stewart) calls for the death of all newborn Hebrew males, a desperate mother named Yocheved (Ofra Haza) hides her son in a basket and sends him floating down the Nile River. The baby is discovered by the Queen of Egypt (Helen Mirren), who adopts him as her own, naming him Moses. After years of living as Egyptian royalty, Moses (Val Kilmer) is shocked to discover his true heritage. He goes on to become the chosen messenger of God (Kilmer and various others), attempting to convince his brother, Rameses (Ralph Fiennes) to free the Hebrew slaves so that they may be delivered unto the promised land.
The film hits many of the same beats as its original inspiration, The Ten Commandments (Jeffery Katzenberg originally pitched the idea to Disney, who rejected it); however, this take on the story trades raw spectacle for a much more intimate, human story. The film focuses less on biblical scale and more on the relationship between Moses and Rameses, two men raised as brothers, made reluctant enemies by the circumstances they find themselves in. While a fair amount of the film focuses on ideas like hope and faith (sometimes to a fault), the core conflict plays out like a melancholy tragedy. Rameses is portrayed as downright sympathetic, forced to pay for the sins of his father. He's torn between affection for his brother and his desire to live up to his duties as Pharaoh. We're treated to an excellent scene early on that establishes Rameses' entire character, as his father warns him how "one weak link can break the chain of a mighty dynasty". This becomes his driving motivation for the rest of the film. We not only understand what Rameses wants, but we understand why he holds such aspirations.
We're given a similarly intimate look at Moses' struggle; as one would expect, the story ends more-or-less happily. Moses is successful in liberating his people and they begin their journey to the promised land. However, Moses' victory hardly comes without a cost. Every plague that the almighty bestows upon Rameses' empire falls on Moses' conscience; the film goes to great lengths to illustrate just how overwhelmed Moses is with the burden of being God's chosen messenger. Like Rameses, he is forced into conflict out of circumstance. However, unlike Rameses, Moses hopes to atone for his past, rather than live up to it. Our protagonist and antagonist are reluctant reflections of each other, making for an extremely resonant emotional core to this larger-than-life tale.
This is of course helped along, not only by the stellar cast (Fiennes is electrifying), but by the incredible animation. Subtle use of CGI mixed with fluid traditional animation creates a gorgeous, timeless art style that holds up nearly twenty years since the film's release. Everything is animated as if it were a live-action film, employing dynamic angles and meticulous framing that is only enhanced by the animation. It's a thematic feast for the eyes that makes Dreamworks' eventual decline into dated pop-culture references and bland CGI all the more depressing (thankfully more How to Train Your Dragon films are in the works and Captain Underpants at least looks visually interesting, but I digress). The songs are also tonally-consistent, which is of monumental importance in an animated biblical epic. If but a single musical number was too juvenile or silly or (god forbid) dated, the entire film would have suffered. Thankfully, the songs end up making for some of the most striking, iconic scenes in the entire film (particularly The Plagues). Even the most "comical" song in the movie (sung by Steve Martin and Martin Short, playing a duo of scheming court magicians) comes off as contextually appropriate and even somewhat foreboding.
Really, if I must criticize the film for anything, it's that the ending isn't as melancholic as I would have liked. The entire conflict is scaled down to focus on Moses and Rameses; in the end, the main difference between them is that Moses still feels sorrow over coming into conflict with his brother while Rameses has been consumed by vengeance and rage. The cost of freedom for his people is constantly weighing on Moses' shoulders, yet the ending is lighter than one would expect given the tense, emotionally-charged climax. For as well-developed as both of these characters are, some more conflict and emotion on Moses' part would have gone a long way in the grand scheme of things. He's cursed to not only be the protagonist, but to also be the voice of God; any chance of him making a mistake or failing in his mission is more or less out the window after his encounter with the burning bush, making him the less-interesting of the two main characters. I would have liked to have seen a little more gloom and struggle in that regard, but this hardly sinks the film or makes the conflict any less hard-hitting.
The Prince of Egypt is, in many ways, an underrated gem. This time of year, it seems like something of a tradition to take in a viewing of The Ten Commandments; while it's undoubtedly a classic, I feel as though there are many ways in which this telling of the story of Moses manages to top the original. It's an adaptation which deserves to escape the shadow of its predecessor and shine on its own numerous merits. This film is the complete package; a powerful story conveyed through powerful performances and powerful visuals, all set to a powerful score. If you want to see a strong example of the maturation of animation from an era where classics were made and released annually, look no further.
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