3,500 Years of Egypt in 24 Movies
Friday’s Gods of Egypt may have drawn early criticism for its mostly white cast, but moviemakers have always viewed the country with a fantastical bent. From biblical stories to historic archaeological delights to springboards into tall science fiction tales, this week’s 24 Frames takes a look at all that, along with modern and true-to-life depictions of Egypt as it is today.
Year: 1956
Tomatometer: 91%
The most famous biblical epic ever, filmed on location at Mount Sinai.
Year: 2014
Tomatometer: 27%
Moses (Christian Bale) leads the Hebrew people through plagues, parts the Red Sea, and writes the Commandments in Ridley Scott’s telling of the story.
Year: 1998
Tomatometer: 79%
The story is told once more in digestible children’s format.
Year: 1963
Tomatometer: 52%
An opulent look at one of the most famous pharaohs ever, infamous for its budget overruns that nearly bankrupted 20 Century Fox.
Year: 2010
Tomatometer: 53%
Set in 391 A.D., Rachel Weisz stars as the Neoplatonic philospher Hypatia at the height of Roman rule in Egypt.
Year: 1969
Considered one of the most vital homegrown Egyptian movies ever, this drama about people who sell mummies on the black market is set in 1881, a year before the British Empire takeover.
Year: 1966
Tomatometer: 100%
A dramatization of the Egyptian-held city that fell to Sudanese forces in 1885, starring Charlton Heston and Laurence Olivier.
Year: 1981
Tomatometer: 88%
Australian boys sent to the North African front during World War I had a stopover in Egypt to visit brothels and climb the Pyramids.
Year: 1932
Tomatometer: 93%
Universal bolstered its legendary lineup of creature features with Boris Karloff playing the titular monster.
Year: 1999
Tomatometer: 55%
Once again set in the 1930s, Universal successfully rebooted its franchise starring Brendan Fraser and Agora‘s Weisz.
Year: 1981
Tomatometer: 96%
Set in 1936, Indiana Jones’ greatest adventure took him through the city of Tanis in search of the chest that once held the Ten Commandments stones.
Year: 1978
Tomatometer: 80%
A Hercule Poirot mystery written by Agatha Christie set in the ’30s, starring Peter Ustinov as the title sleuth.
Year: 1996
Tomatometer: 84%
Sweeping romantic drama set during World War II that also won Best Picture.
Year: 1977
Tomatometer: 79%
Globetrotting MI6 Employee of the Month takes a tour of Egypt in the tenth movie of the Bond series.
Year: 1980
Khartoum‘s Charlton Heston returns to the country as an archaeologist in search of an Egyptian queen’s tomb.
Year: 1994
Tomatometer: 48%
An interdimensional warp unearthed in Giza, as featured in Roland Emmerich’s sci-fi adventure film.
Year: 2008
Tomatometer: 16%
Hayden Christensen stars as a young man with the power to teleport anywhere in the world.
Year: 2009
Tomatometer: 19%
Autobots and Decepticons take the fight overseas.
Year: 2010
Tomatometer: 81%
Patricia Clarkson stars as a married woman who potentially falls for her husband’s friend while vacationing in Egypt.
Year: 2010
Tomatometer: 81%
A Pyramid gets taken in the opening to Illumination Entertainment’s animated franchise.
Year: 2012
Tomatometer: 77%
Ron Fricke’s follow-up to Baraka captures human beauty all over the globe, making three stops in Egypt (a musuem and the City of the Dead in Cairo, along with the Great Pyramids).
Year: 2013
Tomatometer: 100%
The populist Arab Spring uprising is captured in this Oscar-nominated documentary.
Year: 2014
Tomatometer: 13%
The protests make up the backdrop to this horror movie of archraeologists seeking to unlock the mysteries of a lost pyramid (but waking up a monster instead).
Year: 1997
Tomatometer: 71%
Fast forward to 2263, where the power of love fends off a planet-eating evil force.
