Cecil B DeMille's Religious Epics

***The Ten Commandments*** is an American silent religious, epic film and produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille. Released in the US on November 23, 1923, the film is divided into two parts: a prologue recreating the biblical story of the Exodus, of Moses leading the Jews from Egypt to the Promised Land, his receipt of the tablets and the worship of the golden calf. The second part shows the efficacy of the commandments in modern life through a story set in San Francisco. Two brothers, rivals for the love of Mary, also come into conflict when John discovers Dan used shoddy materials to construct a cathedral.

Lauded for its "immense and stupendous" scenes, use of Technicolor process 2, and parting of the Red Sea sequence, the expensive film proved to be a box-office hit upon release. It is the first in DeMille's biblical trilogy, followed by The King of Kings (1927) and The Sign of the Cross (1932).

### The King of Kings (1927)

> *"Supreme in Theme! Gigantic in Execution!"*
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***The King of Kings*** is an American silent epic film produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille. It depicts the last weeks of Jesus before his crucifixion and stars H. B. Warner in the lead role.

Mary Magdalene becomes angry when Judas, now a follower of Jesus, won't come to her feast. She goes to see Jesus and becomes repentant. From there the Bible story unfolds through the Crucifixion and Resurrection.

Featuring the opening and resurrection scenes in two-colour Technicolor, the film is the second in DeMille's biblical trilogy, preceded by The Ten Commandments (1923) and followed by The Sign of the Cross (1932).

### The Sign of the Cross (1932)

> *"A picture which will proudly lead all the entertainments the world has ever seen"*
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***The Sign of the Cross*** is a Pre-Code Hollywood epic film released by Paramount Pictures on February 10, 1933, produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille from a screenplay by Waldemar Young and Sidney Buchman, and based on the original 1895 play by Wilson Barrett.

Both play and film have a strong resemblance to the novel Quo Vadis, and like the novel, and take place in ancient Rome during the reign of Nero. The art direction and costume design were by Mitchell Leisen who also acted as assistant director. Karl Struss was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Cinematography. The film stars Fredric March, Elissa Landi, Claudette Colbert, and Charles Laughton, with Ian Keith and Arthur Hohl. It is the third and last in DeMille's biblical trilogy with The Ten Commandments (1923) and The King of Kings (1927).

### The Ten Commandments (1956)

> *"The greatest event in motion picture history!"*
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***The Ten Commandments*** is an American biblical epic film produced, directed, and narrated by Cecil B. DeMille, shot in VistaVision (colour by Technicolor), and released by Paramount Pictures. The film is based on Prince of Egypt by Dorothy Clarke Wilson, Pillar of Fire by J.H. Ingraham, On Eagle's Wings by A.E. Southon, and the Book of Exodus. The Ten Commandments dramatises the biblical story of the life of Moses, an adopted Egyptian prince who becomes the deliverer of his real brethren, the enslaved Hebrews, and therefore leads the Exodus to Mount Sinai, where he receives, from God, the Ten Commandments.

Filmed on location in Egypt, Mount Sinai and the Sinai Peninsula, the film was DeMille's last and most successful work. It is a partial remake of his 1923 silent film of the same title, and features one of the largest sets ever created for a film. The film was released to cinemas in the USA on October 5, 1956 and, in the UK, on November 28, 1957. At the time of its release, was the most expensive film ever made.

In 1999, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

#### Plot Summary

To escape the edict of Egypt's Pharaoh, Rameses I (Ian Keith), condemning all newborn Hebrew males, the infant Moses (Fraser Heston) is set adrift on the Nile in a reed basket. Saved by the pharaoh's daughter Bithiah (Nina Foch), he is adopted by her and brought up in the court of her brother, Pharaoh Seti (Sir Cedric Hardwicke). Moses gains Seti's favor and the love of the throne princess Nefertiri (Anne Baxter), as well as the hatred of Seti's son, Rameses (Yul Brynner). When his Hebrew heritage is revealed, Moses (Charlton Heston) is cast out of Egypt, and makes his way across the desert where he marries, has a son and is commanded by God (voice of Heston) to return to Egypt to free the Hebrews from slavery. In Egypt, Moses' fiercest enemy proves to be not Rameses, but someone near to him who can 'harden his heart'.

#### Notable Cast

* Charlton Heston - Moses and the voice of God
* Yul Brynner - Rameses II
* Anne Baxter - Nefretiri
* Edward G. Robinson - Dathan
* Yvonne De Carlo - Sephora
* Debra Paget - Lilia
* John Derek - Joshua
* Sir Cedric Hardwicke - Sethi
* Nina Foch - Bithiah
* Vincent Price - Baka
* John Carradine - Aaron