The Ten Commandments
Short description
The Ten Commandments tells the story of Moses, a Hebrew child set adrift on the Nile to save him from a decree ordering the death of all newborn Hebrew boys. He is found and raised within Egypt's royal household, where he grows up as a prince, unaware of his origins. When he learns the truth about his heritage, he turns away from his privileged life and takes up the cause of the enslaved Hebrews, setting him against Rameses, the man he had regarded as a brother. Moses leads his people out of Egypt toward freedom; the film also covers his receiving of the Law on Mount Sinai.
Cecil B. DeMille directed and produced the film, working from a screenplay by Jesse Lasky Jr., Æneas MacKenzie and Jack Gariss. It was his second treatment of the subject, following a 1923 film of the same name and arriving near the end of a long career that also included Cleopatra, Samson and Delilah and The Greatest Show on Earth. Charlton Heston plays Moses, with Yul Brynner as Rameses, Anne Baxter as Nefretiri, Edward G. Robinson as Dathan, Yvonne De Carlo as Sephora and Debra Paget as Lilia. The production lists 115 credited cast members and 76 credited crew members.
Made for about 13 million dollars, the film took roughly 123 million dollars worldwide. It holds a 7.7 out of 10 critics' rating from 45 reviews. On TMDB it stands at 7.8 out of 10 from 1,934 ratings, while on IMDb it has 5 out of 10 from 219 votes.
What's left behind the scenes
- At least 14,000 extras and 15,000 animals were involved in the filming.
- When Yul Brynner (1920-1985) was told he would be playing Pharaoh Ramses II, that Charlton Heston (1923-2008) would play Moses, and that he would spend most of the film shirtless, he began to actively work out, because he didn't want Heston to look better on screen than him. This explains the physique the actor demonstrated in Walter Lang's (1896-1972) film 'The King and I' (1956), which he filmed immediately after completing work on this film.
- During filming, producer Cecil B. DeMille (1881-1957) suffered a heart attack after climbing 40 meters to a malfunctioning camera installed on the huge gates during the filming of the scene depicting the exodus of the Jews from Egypt. DeMille took a couple of days off, but then, ignoring the protests of doctors, returned to work.
- Cecil B. DeMille chose Charlton Heston for the role of Moses because he reminded him of the statue of Moses by Michelangelo (1475-1564) in Rome.
- Moses as a baby was played by Charlton Heston's son, future director Fraser Clarke Heston. DeMille specifically scheduled the filming of these scenes for a time when the baby would be around 3 months old (as stated in the Old Testament, Moses was the same age when his mother sent him floating down the Nile in a basket).
- Many scenes required the use of multiple cameras, and the Paramount Pictures film company placed an order with Mitchell Camera Corporation for additional VistaVision cameras. Decades later, these cameras were actively used by special effects companies because they allowed for shooting negatives on 35mm film.
- The film crew did visit Egypt, where some scenes and episodes were shot, but most of the film was still shot at the Paramount Pictures studio in Hollywood.
- The rain and hail were filmed in a pavilion. The hailstones falling on the palace of Ramses II were actually pre-painted popcorn (popcorn was very convenient to use – it was lightweight, did not harm Yul Brynner, and could be collected and reused again and again). Flames arose from the hailstones, which was also achieved through special effects. All the hailstones and all the actors were removed from the set, the cameras remained in place, and then some parts of the set were set on fire. After that, images of hailstones falling on Ramses II and flames on the ground were combined to create the impression that the flames were coming from the hail.
- The orgy was filmed over three weeks. It was difficult to film because Cecil B. DeMille wanted it to be clear that it was an orgy, but at the same time – there was to be no indecency on the screen (because the film could be seen by children).
- During filming in the desert, when Moses led the people of Israel out of Egypt, the visibility of sandstorms was created using Egyptian armed forces’ jet planes positioned on the ground.
- The scene of the invasion of creatures was filmed, but was cut from the movie during editing because Cecil B. DeMille decided it wasn't scary enough.
- The scene depicting slaves working in the quarries under the scorching sun was filmed in a pavilion that was very cold (this was necessary to prevent the dirt from drying out under the spotlights). During filming, the actors suffered from the cold, and they were also covered in oil, which looked like sweat on their bodies.
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