This is probably the most beautiful of all the Moses films, and the poor colors of the film is rather an asset to its substance and character than a failure, like a sepia haze veiling the whole film in desert colors. Ben Kingsley makes a very different Moses from Burt Lancaster and Charlton Heston, much more human and sensitive, which could be nearer to the truth. His doubts and shortcomings are more convincing than Charlton Heston's icon and Burt Lancaster's authoritarian hardness. Like in "Moses the Lawgiver" with Burt Lancaster, Aaron is here given an important prominence and is impressively played by David Suchet, who almost transcends Ben Kingsley. Pharaoh is impressively played by Frank Langella and couldn't be more convincing, although, just like in "Moses the Lawgiver", he is entirely wrong. Ramses II was the Pharaoh at the time, Merenphtah ruled only for a short time after his death as an already old man, and Yul Brunner remains the best Pharaoh on film in "The Ten Commandments", which by general consent remains the best Moses film even after almost 60 years. Ennio Morricone succeeds even better in this film with the music than he did in the Burt Lancaster version, it guilds and caresses every scene in perfect moods and colors and adds to the very sensitive portrayal of the Moses complexities, which remain inexplicable to this day. This is perhaps the only Moses film to really love.
Moses
(1995–1996)
The whole Moses story from his troublesome beginning to the end of his life.
3 January 2015