The Prince of Egypt Review

Whenever I went over to my grandmother's house as a kid I was always excited for two reasons: she had mint ice-cream and she had movies on VHS that I didn't have at my house. My favorite one was always The Prince of Egypt. If you handed me a bowl of ice-cream and The Prince of Egypt and told me to pick, I would first ask why I couldn't have both and then I would go watch The Prince of Egypt.

Growing up in a Christian house, I already knew the story of Moses, but I'd never seen it told like this. In the story, the pharaoh has decided that the Hebrews have grown too great in number so, he sends his soldiers out to murder every baby boy. But, one family sends their son/brother in a basket down the Nile River, where he's picked up by the queen and raised as a prince along side his step-brother, Ramses. Years later, Moses discovers his true heritage and runs away into the desert to live with a tribe of Midianites. He settles down, gets married, and finds a life of peace. It doesn't last long, though, because God comes to Moses and tells him that he has chosen him to be the deliverer of the Hebrews. Now, Moses has been pitted against Ramses, who is now pharaoh, and must make him let his people go.

First off, Dreamworks uses the story of Moses as a back drop for an emotional story between Moses and Ramses. And, honestly, that's not bad. In fact, it's very good. When you watch this, you actually feel the brotherly relationship between the two. Instead of feeling forced or awkward, the film gives us a brotherhood that feels very natural. And, when Moses is forced to go against Ramses, you can feel the tension between them; the conflict and pain is very real. While Ramses just wants things to go back to the way they were, Moses knows that can't happen because he and Ramses have new responsibilities now that keep them from becoming close again. Val Kilmer as Moses and Lord Voldemort himself, Ralph Fiennes as Ramses both deliver stellar performances and drive the movie to awesomeness.

Secondly, the movie is gorgeous. This is some of the best animated work I've ever seen. The shots and the lighting and the visuals that they go for are phenomenal. It's a real shame that animation like this has been replaced by CGI nowadays. You really just have to watch and see it to understand what I'm talking about. It just cannot be put into words.

Since this was made in the 90's when other studios were trying to take down Disney by doing exactly what they did, it just happens to be a musical. And, I thoroughly enjoy it. It helps that a lot of the songs aren't actually sung by the characters on screen. Instead, they play the songs in the background while the action is happening on screen. This not only keeps the tension on the images but it also accomplishes the almost impossible task of not distracting the viewer. Every song goes perfectly with each seen and helps to advance the movie. So, good job, Dreamworks.

Synopsis: This is one of the most cinematic-ally appealing kids films I've ever seen. The shots are professional, the animation is top-notch and the acting is fantastic. The emotion in this movie is expertly shown and you really feel for Moses and Ramses. This is also one of the most underrated films of all time; it was a big hit when it came out but, now nobody talks about it or has even heard of it. The Prince of Egypt is currently on Netflix and I recommend checking it out before they take it off. You won't be sorry.

Score: 10/10