I'm starting to have an increasing appreciation for the films of Cecil B de Mille - he was a showman who liked to give customers their money's worth. This has got everything: religion, babies being killed, lots of handsome men walking around barechested and beautiful women with plunging necklines (I had no idea Ann Baxter was so well endowed), a cast that includes a combination of established stars (Charlton Heston, Baxter), recently blacklisted veterans (Edward G Robinson, Vincent Price), exciting new comers (Yul Brynner), teen idols (John Derek), stage knights (Cedric Hardwicke), sexpots (Yvonne de Carlo), starlets (Debra Paget) and lots and lots of extras.
The first part of this was the most enjoyable as drama - it's pulpy Biblical family drama with Moses being sent down river in reeds and raised among Egyptians. The story of Moses resonates so much because it's such a great yarn - an orphan raised with wealth, becoming aware of his origin and the plight of his people, deciding to take their side no matter what the cost and winding up a slave, then eventually leading them to freedom. (Ben Hur surely borrowed from it - as did much Disney).
Once Moses hears the call, the film becomes a lot less fun, with all these firebrand statements and Charlton Heston looking ridiculous in his beard and robe. God is such a hard arse in this story - killing Egyptian children, bringing on locusts and plagues... But once the Hebrews are allowed home, de Mille unleashes some tremendous spectacle: masses of extras, bright colours, a still-impressive Red Sea parting, a terrific orgy around the fattest calf (de Mille was always a lot more comfortable with sexy, decadent entertainment than serious religion)
Moses isn't an easy role to play and one could mock Heston's stiff performance but he does have the right gravitas; de Carlo and Baxter impressed me in roles that you would have expected them to have swapped; Derek is mainly handsome and that's it; Paget has quite a big role (a woman who becomes a mistress then becomes redeemed); Robinson and Brynner are really excellent - Robinson has intelligence, humour and shrewdness despite being a villain and adds some much needed cynicism, while Brynner is very charismatic.
It's big and goes on forever and is a bit creaky but still impresses.
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