The Ten Commandments (1923)

No, this is not the Charlton Heston epic you are thinking of. In fact, unless you are a film nut, you are probably among the majority of people who don’t even know this film exists. Instead of Cecil B. DeMille’s three-and-a-half hour Technicolor masterpiece, this is Cecil B. DeMille’s two-and-a-half hour black and white silent film masterpiece.

Unlike the eventual remake, this version of The Ten Commandments is not just about the life of Moses. Not quite split into equal parts, the first portion of the film covers Moses’ deliverance of the Hebrew people from Egypt. This part is full of lush visuals, including the use of California’s Nipomo Dunes to recreate Egyptian wastelands. While rudimentary by today’s standards, DeMille’s use of molded Jell-O to create the parting of the Red Sea must have been fantastic at the time. I was even impressed with some of the layering, blending and editing techniques employed to pull off this ambitious picture.

The second, longer portion of the film is a modern day morality tale (well, modern for the 1920s). Two brothers grow up in a strictly moral home, with their mother ingraining the importance of following the Ten Commandments. As the boys grow up, only one sticks to the Commandments, leading to a modest living as a carpenter. The other boy rejects the Commandments and becomes very rich and powerful but morally bankrupt. The brothers keep in touch over the years and their philosophies continue to be at odds until the film’s tragic final minutes.

The first half of the film is much more impressive in terms of scope, design and technique. This will likely cause viewers to be bored by the second half’s emphasis on story over style but there are points of interest in DeMille’s morality tale. While the mother clings to the angry God of the Old Testament, her Bible-abiding son chooses to emphasize the New Testament teachings of a loving and forgiving God. This difference in biblical interpretation between the generations intrigues me because it shows that those varying views of God were both running as strong in the early 20th Century as they are today. It’s interesting to realize that neither side has won out in the last 100 years.

Part of the fun of watching DeMille’s first go at The Ten Commandments is seeing which elements of the Egypt story he retained and expanded upon in his 1956 remake. While technological advancements would help DeMille fully realize his vision years later (and make a ton of money at the same time), there is no denying that the craftsmanship on display in this film is brilliant.

Nowadays, silent films aren’t exciting for moviegoers and the morals of the 1920s will seem dated, if not humorous, but The Ten Commandments was an early indicator of what the new medium of film could become.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5