Regardless of your religious beliefs, the Biblical story of Moses is one of the most influential stories of all time. Allusions to the Exodus story appear everywhere in modern culture–in works as varied as plays like Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, films like Disney’s The Lion King, and masterpieces like Michelangelo’s ceiling fresco in the Sistine Chapel. Throw in references to the Ten Commandments, and you have a story with which all students should be familiar.
More often than not, the book is better than the movie, but sometimes a film captures the essence of a written work and transforms it into an amazing, multisensory experience. That is exactly what DreamWorks’ The Prince of Egypt (1998) does. Students may mistakenly equate film in class with “free day,” but teaching a film is more than simply showing a movie. Film is literature, and when it is taught in the right way, it can be a powerful learning experience. So without further ado, here are five reasons to teach The Prince of Egypt.
- DreamWorks created a masterpiece of animation. When Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg first formed DreamWorks, an animation studio to compete with juggernaut rival, Disney, they knew they wanted an epic story for their first film. “Something like the Ten Commandments,” they jokingly said. The more they thought about it, the more they realized the story of Moses would be the perfect choice for their studio. The result is a masterpiece. Featuring gorgeous animation and wonderful music, the film ranks alongside the best of Disney. The Parting of the Red Sea, a spectacle that has appeared in film multiple times, is best represented here. Turns out, animation is the perfect medium to tell this story.
- The story is an epic with a personal core. Although the story of Moses is epic in scope, the filmmakers made the brilliant decision to focus on the relationship between two foster brothers: Moses and Rameses. Taking some artistic liberties with the original story, the film dramatizes the deterioration of their brotherhood–a mature, but wise, choice for a children’s film. This adds gravitas to the proceedings. As Moses frees his people, he also loses his brother.
- The film respectfully adapts the source material. Adaptions can be tricky. Adapt too much, and you risk offense. Adapt too little, and you fail to entertain. The filmmakers consulted hundreds of religious leaders, Egyptologists, and biblical scholars to make the film as faithful as possible to the original story. The film even had a wardrobe director, similar to a live-action film, to make sure the costumes were as historically accurate as possible. The result is a rarity: a faithful adaptation that also entertains.
- The film confronts the issue of slavery. Students may be unaware that slavery has been an issue since the beginning of time. The Exodus story is the oldest story of liberation for an enslaved people, and The Prince of Egypt shows how Moses moves from an oppressor to a liberator. He denies the culture in which he was raised, one built on the backs of enslaved people, in order to follow the commands of God. Rousing musical numbers like “Deliver Us” and the showstopper “There Can Be Miracles” accentuate the themes of enslavement and liberation.
- It delivers a powerful theme. Moses’s personal journey, dramatized throughout the film, is a pattern many young people can (and should) follow. Leaving behind his privileged and pampered lifestyle, Moses chooses the path of truth over his selfish desires, and through that, achieves true success. Learning to live for something bigger than ourselves is a sign of maturity–and a source of true happiness. Sometimes in life, we must do the right thing at the expense of losing relationships we hold dear.
Prince of Egypt Viewing Guide Our 4-page The Prince of Egypt viewing guide gives students thought-provoking questions to answer as they view the film. Between these questions are bits of trivia about the making of the film. The download also includes an answer key. Click here to find out more about our The Prince of Egypt viewing guide.
Combine this film with our Reader’s Theater script-story collection of The Bible as Literature. We also have a whole page of resources for teaching the Bible as literature HERE.