Gods of Egypt

[SummerLite]

I saw this movie last night in 3d and really enjoyed it! If you like fantasy and all the imaginative imagery of shape shifting gods, elaborate temples, monsters of various sorts, beautiful costuming, jewelry and headdresses then you'll like this. The plot is simple but moves along well and there is constant change in interesting scenery. The special affects are very well done. Ra, (Geoffrey Rush) living in his outer space abode among the stars is fascinating, as he keeps the god of chaos from destroying the world. The iridescent wings of Nephthys where absolutely exquisite. I watched the credits at the end and the long list of artists involved was very impressive. A very creative project.

In the opening scene I was a bit put off that the "Gods" where predominately Caucasian but quickly forgot about this being pulled into the story and spectacle. At one point someones accent. British perhaps, stuck a incongruous note but was quickly over looked. This movie is apparently getting bad reviews and thats to bad I think. Definitely see it in 3d if you can. Good entertainment.


https://youtu.be/cMVxECWC-vk

 

[luke wilson]

I also recently watched this movie, I thought it was better than expected. Not that good though beyond relatively cheap entertainment. I don't think Hollywood knows yet how to make such types of movies. As an aside, the casting of this movie did indeed cause a bit of a furor.

 

[PhoenixToEmber]

I saw the trailer a couple months ago and I was honestly annoyed by it. Aside from just seeming like a terrible movie in general, having studied Ancient Egypt in college, I just can't stand the notion of a movie taking place in Egypt (that is, in Africa) starring pretty much all white people - even if it's obviously fantastical and fiction. It just smacks of more cultural-appropriation by Hollywood. This happens so often there's even a term for it now: whitewashing. I mean, is it really so difficult to cast equally good actors who are ethnically connected to the region a movie takes place in?

I think I'll pass on this one.

 

[luke wilson]

I saw the trailer a couple months ago and I was honestly annoyed by it. Aside from just seeming like a terrible movie in general, having studied Ancient Egypt in college, I just can't stand the notion of a movie taking place in Egypt (that is, in Africa) starring pretty much all white people - even if it's obviously fantastical and fiction. It just smacks of more cultural-appropriation by Hollywood. This happens so often there's even a term for it now: whitewashing. I mean, is it really so difficult to cast equally good actors who are ethnically connected to the region a movie takes place in?

I think I'll pass on this one.

The casting in the movie was indeed strange. The Egyptian God's were white and so was the population. You had the token minorities though. This did indeed cause some controversy and offense. The studio did something unprecedented, they apologised!

I think probably with Hollywood movies, the studios probably think their audiences would relate more closely to a white cast than minority ones. Or maybe they think they can generate more revenue that way.

There is another movie on the horizon that will cause a stir. Its the Nina Simone movie. Zoe Saldana, a Latin actress has been cast to play Nina Simone and as you can imagine, some people, including Nina Simones family do not approve. The studio said something about lining up the right sort of talent with the right roles I.e people shouldn't get so worked up over such trivial things as race. I do feel though, what they are saying is that they couldn't find an african American actress to play Nina Simone.

On top of being racist, I think it's just sexist. When it comes to African American male Cultural icons, or even black male icons who aren't American, these same studios don't have a problem casting black male leads, but when it comes to the women, apparently they do. Maybe I could be wrong and one day we'll have MLK, Nelson Mandela, Miles Davis etc being played by latino or white male leads.

I think Hollywood is probably not only racist, it's also sexist!

 

[SummerLite]

Hi PhoenixToEmber,

I agree that the film would have been much better if they had chosen ethnically correct actors. I suspect they chose the people they did because they are reasonably well known and thought this would be a selling point.

I have also studied ancient Egypt for a good part of my life, mainly their artistic contributions. I'm a real stickler for how this is portrayed in films and if its not done with quality, depicting the high standards (during certain periods) I'm turned off by the film considering it cheesy. This movie was acceptable in its presentation I thought. There where a few scenes that where questionable in this respect. For me it was a exercise in allowing my notions of how things should be presented to shift a bit allowing me to enjoy the film. Ancient Egypt was the base line for the story, gods, culture etc. but it didn't follow that in a realistic, authentically Egyptian fashion so it was portrayed with some newness and imagination, I liked that.

People have become somewhat jaded over the years with their movie criticisms I think. There was much about this film that was very well done, special affects etc. Years ago It would have gotten rave reviews, but these days we've seen it all already and have become quite picky. I'm going to watch it again when I get the chance to study all those little details I missed. A part of me is very visually orientated and it was that part of me that was taken with the movie, there is a lot to SEE. Cheap entertainment for me perhaps, $10.00 and 2 hours but the budget for this film was fairly high I expect.

I wrote my first comment here last night when I was a bit tired and struggling for words and descriptions. It wasn't Ra and the actor portraying him that was fascinating to me but where he lived. The part would have been better portrayed by someone else, once again. The casting was the main issue in this film I think. But if you can put that aside you may like it, I did obviously :) Yea, to many white people!

 

[mkrnhr]

I do not intend to watch this movie, but... ancients Egyptians were not white or black, they were orange :D
Ancient Egyptian cities were cosmopolitan with a majority of Egyptians. However, it's just a science-fiction movie for entertainment, not even a documentary, and the actors act, which means they pretend to be an imaginary someone else. Male actors in ancient Greece played men, women, gods, and goddesses, and nobody complains as far as we know (maybe the gods and goddesses but that's another story).

 

[SummerLite]

Luke:

The casting in the movie was indeed strange. The Egyptian God's were white and so was the population. You had the token minorities though. This did indeed cause some controversy and offense. The studio did something unprecedented, they apologised!

I had no idea this movie made such a stir and apologies where given! I hadn't read any reviews before seeing it. As I said, the opening scenes where disappointing because of the casting and I made some quick adjustments not to be bummed out by that.

I've heard about this controversy concerning the actress playing Nina Simone. Yes, it does seem to me, they thought, they couldn't find a suitable black actress to play the part! Pretty dumb. Or maybe this actress is someone they want to promote, their "new find". A rising star in movie land. Anyway, Hollywood has gone off the track with these casting blunders. Perhaps they've become a little detached from reality.

 

[luke wilson]

I do not intend to watch this movie, but... ancients Egyptians were not white or black, they were orange :D
Ancient Egyptian cities were cosmopolitan with a majority of Egyptians. However, it's just a science-fiction movie for entertainment, not even a documentary, and the actors act, which means they pretend to be an imaginary someone else. Male actors in ancient Greece played men, women, gods, and goddesses, and nobody complains as far as we know (maybe the gods and goddesses but that's another story).

I agree.

Hollywood though has a responsibility as its productions do have a very strong potential to influence large swathes of the population not only in the US but around the world. In ancient Greece, their productions were only consumed by a relatively local population.

I do sometimes side with those who choose to complain based on casts or how specific groups of people are represented in Hollywood movies. Another movie which did cause another stir was a romcon called Aloha! where the lead female character in the book was of Hawaiian descent but in the movie was not! In this case, the book as far as I know was a work of fiction but some people raised the issue? Why could they not cast someone from that background?

I think these sorts of depictions do have the power to influence and not only that, they do have the power to oppress. Now, with the Gods of Egypt, I don't think more African Americans should have been cast (horrendous movie, not good for careers), but I do think the casting wasn't correct and I think people were right to complain. The casting was indeed sort of oppressive.

Hollywood is powerful and it's influence runs deep, so people should not just take what it dishes out without scrutiny because it's just 'entertainment'.

 

[Andrian]

I do not intend to watch this movie, but... ancients Egyptians were not white or black, they were orange :D
Ancient Egyptian cities were cosmopolitan with a majority of Egyptians. However, it's just a science-fiction movie for entertainment, not even a documentary, and the actors act, which means they pretend to be an imaginary someone else. Male actors in ancient Greece played men, women, gods, and goddesses, and nobody complains as far as we know (maybe the gods and goddesses but that's another story).

A good decision, i've watched but except entertainment, nothing to gain from it, just for pure entertainment purposes you can watch it, but nothing inspiring to get from it, there are other older movies who are worth to watch( Gladiator, Robin Hood- Russel Crowe, The Matrix, V for Vendetta, Equilibrium, The Cloud Atlas, The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Master of Tai Chi- this one is very inspiring at least for me).

 

[luke wilson]

Luke:

The casting in the movie was indeed strange. The Egyptian God's were white and so was the population. You had the token minorities though. This did indeed cause some controversy and offense. The studio did something unprecedented, they apologised!

I had no idea this movie made such a stir and apologies where given! I hadn't read any reviews before seeing it. As I said, the opening scenes where disappointing because of the casting and I made some quick adjustments not to be bummed out by that.

I've heard about this controversy concerning the actress playing Nina Simone. Yes, it does seem to me, they thought, they couldn't find a suitable black actress to play the part! Pretty dumb. Or maybe this actress is someone they want to promote, their "new find". A rising star in movie land. Anyway, Hollywood has gone off the track with these casting blunders. Perhaps they've become a little detached from reality.

Regarding the Nina Simone movie... The reason they are complaining is more poignant... Zoe Saldana is well known but her features don't look at all like Nina Simone... I know African American women have a hard time regarding beauty standards as Hollywood goes for women with certain features. Zoe got the role due to sex appeal and that she could pass as Africa American. That's the reason. Now, for a lot of these women who are complaining, they are doing so because Hollywood is saying the real Nina Simone was ugly and that those with her features are also ugly to. That's the issue and its sad that Zoe Saldana, a decent enough human being looking to play an iconic figure and potentially propel her career based on a powerful performance is caught in the middle.

But the bottom line is that the casting is wrong. They have no problem casting Don Cheadle to play Miles Davis in an upcoming movie yet they have a problem casting an African American woman to play Nina Simone (who was African American!)... It's kinda messed up if you ask me! Google Nina Simone and google Zoe Saldano... Google Miles Davis and google Don Cheadle... Cant turn people blind! This is an example of oppression emanating from Hollywood.

 

[SummerLite]

Hi Luke, thanks for elaborating on this further. I dont really follow what is happening in the movie industry much at all. I dont give Hollywood and most of their productions much credit for being politically correct, insightful, altruistic, realistic or promoting higher standards. What your saying isn't surprising but I'd think they should have a clue by now.

This movie is definitely NOT in the same category as Cloud Atlas, The Matrix and all the others mentioned by Andre. It not a GREAT movie with lasting appeal. It may be inspiring for some people in some ways as it was for me. I figured I'd be going against the grain here by saying I enjoyed it... . But what the heck! Its not the first time. Just a entertaining movie with lots of good eye candy. And I LOVE that stuff...pretty shallow of me I guess! Yes, I admit I can be shallow. Oh well... Give me some good visuals and you've got me.

A very well done documentary showing how Native Americans have been portrayed in Hollywood movies is "Reel Injun" and can be seen on Netflix. This is a good example of whats being discussed here and I recommend it.

 

[luke wilson]

I figured I'd be going against the grain here by saying I enjoyed it... . But what the heck! Its not the first time. Just a entertaining movie with lots of good eye candy. And I LOVE that stuff...pretty shallow of me I guess! Yes, I admit I can be shallow. Oh well... Give me some good visuals and you've got me.

:D :D :D :D

Don't feel guilty for liking the movie! It worked for you and it looks like it tapped into your sense of awe and wonder!

http://www.sott.net/article/311544-Amazed-by-the-media-The-importance-of-awe-and-why-its-manipulated

Psychologists refer to awe as an intense emotional experience that overwhelms individuals with a sense of vastness or greatness. It often transforms individuals' sense of what is possible.

Although they can be laced with fear, and thus may evoke an avoidance reaction, experiences of awe invariably also fascinate. People often seek awe experiences, and remember them vividly and powerfully. In fact, an emerging body of psychological research reveals that awe encourages a sense of personal well-being and promotes various prosocial acts.

I liked the movie to (ignoring the casting!), but movie snobs all around the world will talk down about it! :P

 

[SummerLite]

ah ha! the use of awe and spectacle! Yep, this movie had it. Although, I would prefer to attribute my appreciation to my highly developed and finely tuned sense of aesthetics and beauty :P.

I liked the movie to (ignoring the casting!), but movie snobs all around the world will talk down about it! :P

OH, lovely! You liked it too! Thats a breath of fresh air. I saw this film with a friend who is an artist and she really enjoyed it also. She called last night to tell me about all the rotten reviews we weren't aware of. Part of my reason for writing here was to counter-act that a bit, and give some value even though I had intended to write before hearing the reviews. Movie snobs can be so annoying.

I dont feel guilty at all for liking the movie Luke. Maybe you read that in a way I didn't mean. I accept my experiences as having a certain meaning and validity for me. Of course, others will see it differently at times and thats fine. Its just the way it is.

 

[SummerLite]

I do not intend to watch this movie, but... ancients Egyptians were not white or black, they were orange :D
Ancient Egyptian cities were cosmopolitan with a majority of Egyptians. However, it's just a science-fiction movie for entertainment, not even a documentary, and the actors act, which means they pretend to be an imaginary someone else Male actors in ancient Greece played men, women, gods, and goddesses, and nobody complains as far as we know (maybe the gods and goddesses but that's another story).

I was just thinking about what you said here mkrnhr. My response to this movie was probably similar to what the Greek people experienced while watching those plays. Quick adjustments are made for the actors playing the parts so the story can be enjoyed. Thats it!

Ancient Egyptians where orange? So, when this movie comes again, on HBO or somewhere, I'm going to have a much closer look at the background scenes. How the statues where done, hieroglyphics, temples etc. I was focusing on the action, 3d affects and over all scenes and not seeing the details as much. That will also be of mixed quality I expect. I really know nothing about how digital scenes are made, its interesting though.

 

[DavidHP]

I did like the movie because is entertaining.... that's it,
is just a movie
is fantasy
is not real
no, the stuff in the movie did not really happen
but was fun to watch, once was enough! As an aside, do we really know what the ancient Egyptians really looked like? like 10k years ago.?