Land of the Pharaohs
by Howard Hawks
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Actor: Alex Minotis, Dewey Martin, Jack Hawkins, James Robertson Justice, Joan CollinsDirector: Howard Hawks
Brand: Warner Brothers
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 106 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2007-06-26
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Model: 114509
Studio: Warner Home Video
DVD Reviews of Land of the Pharaohs
DVD Review: An odd, interesting combination of ancient building techniques and lust, greed and treachery.
Summary: 4 Stars
Hollywood logic, lesson one: It doesn't matter how bad the dialogue is as long as the women wear uplift bras.
Hollywood logic, lesson two: Joan Collins became a joke. Therefore Joan Collins' movies are jokes. Therefore Land of the Pharaohs is a joke.
Both are wrong. The dialogue in Land of the Pharaohs is as clunky as an old man's shoes. It casts a mediocre pall over the movie no matter how little the women wear. But while Joan Collins did become something of a joke (although she also was a good light comedienne when given a chance), Land of the Pharaohs is not all that bad as an epic of ancient Egypt. Where it succeeds is that the grandeur of the story and the vast, scenic photography come from the construction plans of Vashtar (James Robertson Justice), an architect slave charged with building the Great Pyramid for the Pharaoh Khufu (Jack Hawkins). If you and several thousand of your friends ever decide to build a really big tombstone for yourself, this is the movie to watch. Director Howard Hawks paid a lot of attention to the latest theories on how the great pyramid was constructed. He shows us how three million stones weighing 5,000 pounds each were quarried, transported across the Nile and hauled into place; the techniques of using pulleys and counterweights; the organization of thousands of workers; the vast building site and the slow construction, level by level, of the only wonder of the ancient world that survives. It's almost like watching a National Geographic special, and I don't mean that as anything but praise.
To justify an expensive movie about ancient building techniques, Hawks gives us a melodrama composed of equal parts ambition, religion, treachery and Joan Collins' chest. The Pharaoh Khufu is a great warrior who is determined to ensure that his spirit in the after-life will have all that it needs. He conquers enemies and brings back to Egypt vast treasures of gold and jewels. All will be buried with him. He has captured a shrewd architect and he charges Vashtar with building a giant pyramid which will hold pharaoh's body and treasure and which will be impossible for grave robbers to break into. Pharaoh is a strong ruler who also relies on the advice of his childhood friend, Hamar (Alexis Minotis), who now is lord high priest of Egypt. But Pharaoh is also a man, and he takes as his second wife the cunning and treacherous Princess Nellifer (Joan Collins). Pharaoh realizes his mistake only when it's too late for him. Nellifer realizes her mistake in underestimating Hamar's cunning and devotion to Pharaoh only when it's too late for her. The last few minutes of the movie are apt, horrifying and, whether you prefer observing building techniques or melodrama, satisfying.
This is an epic without battles; perhaps that's why the movie did poorly at the box office. It's all pageantry and construction. Remember, this was made before Computer Generated Overkill. Those thousands of workers, soldiers and peasants aren't computer-generated pixels; they're thousands of live extras. They had to be organized, trained and directed with the care of a military operation. Howard Hawks makes this part of his movie work with a high level of professionalism and rhythm. But the personal stories of Pharaoh and Nellifer clunk about without much wit or energy. Jack Hawkins was a fine actor and he does what he can as Khufu. We can understand how this strong-willed warrior god, to whom everything and everyone in Egypt belonged, whose will doesn't just come from the gods but from himself as a living god, is also a powerful man seduced by his feelings of mortality and lust. James Robertson Justice as Vashtar brings an assured professionalism to his role. And Alexis Minotis, who looks something like Ben Kingsley, is interesting as a loyal friend and a shrewd priest. Unfortunately, Joan Collins is no actress. The movie's intrigue and melodrama is all about Nellifer, and Collins just doesn't have the skill to make it believable. Still, for a woman who now would be about 4,500 years old, she looks great.
Land of the Pharaohs is no lost classic, but it's not a joke, either. The building of the Great Pyramid is fascinating. The trio of Hawkins, Justice and Minotis make the movie at least interesting. The DVD looks very good. There is a commentary by Peter Bogdanovich I didn't listen to. There also are excerpts from an interview with Hawks.
For those who enjoy reading about intrigue and murder in ancient Egypt, you might want to look into the series by Paul Doherty featuring Amerotke (The first: The Mask of Ra), the series by Lynda S. Robinson featuring Meren (The first: Murder in the Place of Anubis), and the series by Lauren Haney featuring Bak (The first: The Right Hand of Amon).
The Mask of Ra
Murder in the Place of Anubis (Lord Meren Mysteries)
The Right Hand of Amon
Description of Land of the Pharaohs
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