The Egyptian (1954)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Philip Dunne (writer)
Casey Robinson (writer)

Release Date:

17 December 1954 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama | History

Tagline:

To Nefer, shameless temptress of Babylon, he surrendered his parents' hope of immortality!

Plot:

In eighteenth-dynasty Egypt, Sinuhe, a poor orphan, becomes a brilliant physician and with his friend...

Plot Keywords:

Plot | Historical | Monotheism | Poison | Bronze Age

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win

Cast

Jean Simmons	...	Merit
Victor Mature	...	Horemheb
Gene Tierney	...	Baketamon
Michael Wilding	...	Akhnaton
Bella Darvi	...	Nefer
Peter Ustinov	...	Kaptah
Edmund Purdom	...	Sinuhe
Judith Evelyn	...	Taia
Henry Daniell	...	Mekere
John Carradine	...	Grave robber
Carl Benton Reid	...	Senmut
Tommy Rettig	...	Thoth
Anitra Stevens	...	Queen Nefertiti
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Peter Reynolds	...	Sinuhe, age 10

Runtime:

139 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (f) | USA:Approved (certificate #16965) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Death Valley National Park, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

After shooting was completed, Fox made back some of the film's immense cost by selling many of the set pieces, props, and costumes to Paramount, which then employed them in an even bigger epic, Cecil B. DeMille's remake of The Ten Commandments (1956).

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In the scene where Sinuhe buries his parents with the help of the grave robber, they both use a shovel with a metal blade, not wood. Later on in the movie, iron is introduced to the Egyptians.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Sinuhe: [Older Sinuhe voiceover] I, Sinuhe the Egyptian, write this. In my place of exile on the shores of the Red Sea. There is no more desolate spot on earth. Soon the jackals and the vultures will make a poor meal of what is left of me. No monument will mark my resting place. I will leave only this...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Passion: Films, Faith & Fury (2006) (TV)

"Imortality? I hold it in My Hand."

It happens often, while growing up, a Hollywood movie impresses a youth. It not only lasts a lifetime, but inspire him to study ancient cultures as a career. Such was the case, with the 1954 film entitled "The Egyptian." Audience were awed with the sets, costumes and great acting of this film, so much so, other films soon followed in like vain. This is the story of a young Egyptian boy who was left parent less soon after he was born. With such a dubious beginning, it is not hard to wonder why he will spend his life, asking questions. The boy Sinuhe, (Sin-oh-way) which means, 'He that is alone'(Edmund Purdom) grows to manhood and continues asking why, even as he graduates from The School Of Life to become a physician. During his formative years he acquires a lifelong friend named Kaptah brilliantly played by (Peter Ustinov), and Horemheb (Victor Mature) who raises from a simple officer of the guard to Commander of the Armies. His life offers everything from a quick rise in social status to condemned criminal, to outcast, a wondering healer, and eventually to a station in life he never expected. Fine acting goes to Jean Simmons as Merit, Michael Wilding as Akhnaton, Bella Darvi as the temptress, Nefer, and John Carradine as a memorable Grave robber. Tommy Rettig, plays Thoth, the son of the Egyptian. In his final years, 'He that is alone,' finally discovers the answer he had been seeking all his life, which he bequeathes to his son, now in the care of his lifelong friend. Excellent Film! ****