Movie Review: The Bible: In the Beginning...

The Bible: In the Beginning... 

Dino de Laurentiis Cinematografica, Seven Arts Pictures, Thalia AG, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, USA, Italy, 1966. 

When the Biblical epics got bigger and bigger in the end of 1950s, producer Dino de Laurentiis and John Huston decided to ambitiously film three movies based on the Old Testament. Only one was made and the filming took five years. Thus was the twilight of the golden era of great Biblical epics.

After the Creation God creates Adam (Michael Parks) & Eve (Ulla Bergryd). Eve eats an apple and you know what comes next. (Rhetorical question: what would have happened if she had eaten the snake instead?) Next is the story of Cain (Richard Harris) and Abel (Franco Nero). 

Adam & Eve

Cain kills Abel

Noah (John Huston) and his sons build the Ark. This is the most entertaining and even humoristic episode with slightly goofy Noah and cute animals. It has also dark imagery about the flood (Darren Aranofsky had almost directly similar scene in "Noah" where drowning people cling to peak of mountain while Noah and his family hear their wailing, after some digging for information it seems that both films took inspiration from woodcut "The Deluge" by Gustave Doré). 

"The Deluge" by Gustave Doré (from Wikipedia)

Noah's Ark

Noah and the animals

Then we meet proud King Nimrod (Stephen Boyd) who is building the Tower of Babel. God teaches them humility by confusing their language. Later Abram (George C. Scott) travels to Promised Land. However the Canaanites already live there so they have to conquer the area. Abraham has a love scene with his wife Sarai (Ava Gardner) utilizing dialogue from "The Song of Songs." Abram and his nephew Lot (Gabriele Ferzetti) separate because the land is not big enough for them both. Lot chooses Jordan, area near evil towns of Sodom and Gomorrah. Renamed Abraham and Sarah want offspring but both are already old. 

Tower of Babel

Nimrod

Abram and Lot

Later God sends Three Angels (Peter O'Toole) to see if Sodom and Gomorrah should be nuked. Lot's wife looks directly at the mushroom cloud and turns into salt. This segment actually has some delightfully weird scenes. Finally God plays a practical joke on Abraham and his son Isaac (Alberto Lucantoni).

Three Angels

Kinky folks of Sodom

Film is plodding at times to point of being an effective sedative (it took me three days to sit through this movie). The movie is three hours long but feels like three weeks. It follows the original stories very rigidly and except for Noah's Ark segment it lacks liveliness. However at the segment with Isaac and Abraham there seems to be some off biblical questioning of divine justice as also innocent children died in Sodom & Gomorrah. Despite the slowness the film has some good moments though. There is nice cinematography and goodd soundtrack. Good effort but not one of the best Biblical epics.

Rating: Average 

Starring: Michael Parks, Ulla Bergryd, Richard Harris, John Huston, Stephen Boyd, George C. Scott, Ava Gardner, Peter O'Toole, Zoe Sallis, Gabriele Ferzetti, Eleonora Rossi Drago, Franco Nero, Pupella Maggio, Robert Rietty, Peter Heinze, Roger Beaumont, Gianluigi Crescenzi, Maria Grazia Spina, Angelo Boscariol, Claudie Lange, Anna Orso, Adriana Ambesi, Eric Leutzinger, Michael Steinpichler, Gabriella Pallotta, Alberto Lucantoni, Rossana Di Rocco, Luciano Conversi, Giovanna Galletti, Paola Ambrosi, Flavio Bennati, Salvatore Billa, Giovanni Di Benedetto, Alberigo Donadeo, Aviva Israeli, Flavio Nennati, Marie-Christine Pratt, Ivan Rassimov, Amru Sani, Elisabetta Velinska 

Director: John Huston