Gods of Egypt

I saw this film without expecting anything in particular, the trailer full of action scenes piqued my curiosity in addition to the director's name : Alex Proyas whom I discovered thanks to the very good I, Robot with Will Smith. I must admit that I did not go there without worry in view of the (very) negative reviews, from the press as well as spectators, but I came out of the screening more than satisfied. For once I don't understand why this film is being taken down on all fronts...

Admittedly, it's far from being a great movie but still there are a lot of things to take. Gods of Egypt is therefore a successful action/adventure film, skillfully combining fantastic with the peplum genre in an odyssey in the heart of ancient Egypt, at a time when gods rubbed shoulders with mortals. The atmosphere, the sets and the costumes transcribe well the features of Egyptian mythology, arid deserts with their sandstorms and majestic tombs, all with a mysterious aspect that makes us want to know more about its legends.

The story does not look very far in terms of originality, we approach themes such as wars of power and conquest, heredity, the initiatory journey with a touch of essential romance, but we can forgive this narrative facility with respect to the action. Alex Proyas is not Michael Bay in this field but hé comes out with honors by staging fights between titanic gods in animal/metal armor. So in terms of special effects, we appreciate spectacular good quality. The rhythm of the narration is sustained for 2h10 even if 2-3 timeouts affect the quality the story.

Frankly, even if it remains imperfect, Gods of Egypt is nonetheless a good entertainment , coupled with a rather pleasant little history lesson on Egyptian mythology. A pleasant surprise, I don't approve the bad reviews. 7/10.

Alex Proyas' "Gods of Egypt" is a film that is boldly and unabashedly silly and preposterous. Few other words can describe it. It has the pratfalls that beset typical Hollywood fare. It is already the subject of controversy due to its preeminently Caucasian cast. It has both critics and audiences sharpening their knives, a film supposedly destined for failure.

Oh, but it works because the film truly bonkers. Truly insane. Truly out of its mind.

Proyas, a gifted and visionary filmmaker, is renowned for having thought-provoking and striking imagery in all of his films, and this film is without exception. Where in any other film do you get to see goddesses horse-riding giant fire-breathing serpents? Or wagons carrying infinite amounts of gold dumping their load in a funnel-like tube ala dump trucks? Or for that matter, gods bleeding gold? Or Gerard butler riding gold- chromed giant beetles into battle? Or gods that have body parts that, when disfigured, instantly become detachable jewelry? Or...

Admittedlly the plot is indeed silly even by blockbuster Hollywood standards, however a lesser Proyas film is still more visually inventive than the usual Hollywood movie factory output, and that is always a plus. Whereas a film like "Pan" bludgeons us over the head with its disgusting cynicism and disrespect for the source material by portraying its titular hero as a clichéd messiah figure, Proyas directs with the exuberance of a kid in Disneyland - with Disneyland replaced with an Egyptian museum exhibit – eager at the chance to create his own action packed tale while still respecting the gods as, well, gods.

What is there to say about the plot, except that it has gods and it has Egypt? You get exactly what's on the tin. You get a chiseled hero in the form of Horus (Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau), his athletic and quippy comic sidekick (Brenton Thwaites) and beautiful love (Courtney Eaton), who set out to defeat Horus' evil uncle Set (Gerard Butler, simultaneously parodying his "300" persona while being supremely sinister).

The whole thing sounds very Greek. But rather than eschewing the silly tone and making it "Gladiator"-style dark and dreary ala the recent "Clash of the Titans" movies, Proyas and the actors let loose and have a ball with the material, never being too self aware while being silly enough to make for compelling viewing. Even rising star Chadwick Boseman (terrific in both "42" and "Get on Up"), as Thoth the god of knowledge, relishes in chewing the scenery with every moment, never afraid of being campy. Not bad.

Look, it's clear that the film is a B-grade Saturday night matinée film straight from the 1950s. Ever heard your grandparents told you about those? The ones where there's usually a double feature showcasing silly low budget sci-fi/horror/fantasy plots with handsome men and gorgeous gals, supremely cheesy one liners and having no purpose other than to put a goofy smile on your face from start to finish, almost guaranteeing a good time out? Well, this is one such movie, but with a blockbuster budget and the added pleasure of having Proyas wrapping the fun around with his wonderful thought-provoking visuals and production design, and going wild with this thing. Two set pieces involving a gigantic worm-like demon and the Egyptian afterlife are visual marvels, triumphs of set design and visual effects, evoking senses of awe and wonder like films from yesteryear and other gifted visionaries. For mainstream filmmakers, CGI is the cheat sheet. For Proyas, it's his toy box. This is eye candy on a spectacular scale, and audiences won't get short-changed.

Bear with me here, but if you were to replace the cast with genuine Egyptian actors, I think the film would be mired in even bigger controversies because it will definitely look more inaccurate and seemingly insulting than it supposedly already is. It's stupid, yes, but it's gloriously stupid and never succumbs to taking itself ever so seriously. Proyas sort of knew what he was doing here, and he didn't give a damn about what others thought. And that's the kind of filmmaker I admire the most.

One of those (perhaps too frequent) oddball Hollywood epics where, the first time you see it, you go "what were they thinking?" But it deserves a second glance. This film is in the grand tradition of the famous 1940s fantasy films like THIEF OF BAGDAD 1940. Flaws and all, it also works as a love story, and you can never have too many of those. ((Designated "IMDb Top Reviewer." Please check out my list "167+ Nearly-Perfect Movies (with the occasional Anime or TV miniseries) you can/should see again and again (1932 to the present))

These films are neither as logical as a STAR TREK saga nor as linear as an Indiana Jones adventure. By nature, they tend to jump around, they tend to be a bit wacky, and they often encourage outlandish performances from their stars.

Which is what we have here. The #1 A-List name star, Gerard Butler has arguably never been more unrestrained in his career. He gives the impression that, after he takes over the world of the living and the world of the dead, his next target is Hollywood itself.

In fact, the lesser known stars give the better textured performances and connect with the audience.

Give it a chance -- as a love story that riffs off some extremely misunderstood Egyptian myths and succeeds in spite of itself, it works a treat.

The film is a good Fantasy that has a decent story and allot of action. Effects are pretty good and suited the Egyptian vibe.

There was a bit of cheese here and there and it is not a film with great depth, but the acting was pretty good.

Not sure why it got such bad reviews, I can only suspect it was the political correct media who did not like the fact it had white actors playing all the main Gods (which some believe the ancient Egyptian elites were in fact Caucasian anyway, which is a debate) And also it may not pamper to the growing and irritating Femiwood thing, as it was strong men leading the roles, and with effeminate women, a little traditional in that sense. So it would not surprise me if all this was the true motivation behind its poor media reaction, which is a shame.

It was not the greatest fantasy there is, But its a decent film that had a bit of originality to it and if they done a squeal I would be happy to go see it.

Gods of Egypt is simply a 'popcorn flick', and a very good one. Don't let the title make you feel it has a similar mood to 'Clash of the Titans'. It doesn't take itself too seriously, yet it manages to provide some kind of 'wow' factor.

The story is pretty straightforward: a god is jealous of king brother and decides to end matters when the king doesn't consider him to be the next heir. Things never get too complicated, but it is interesting to see a 'new' take on such characters. This is probably where the movie is so good. The fascination of how things are shown gives one even more to look forward to as the movie goes on. The CGI looks great most of the times, but sometimes it just looks OK.

Where the movie does lack is the acting department: the characters don't show enough emotion when they're supposed to, and the jokes aren't too original. Gerard Butler does great job and overshadows the rest in my opinion.

All in all, a great movie to watch in the theaters and to have a good time.