The Ten Commandments (1956)

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7.4	Rating (474 ratings)
7.9	IMDB rating

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Directed by

Cecil B. DeMille

Starring (View all)

Charlton Heston
Moses

Yul Brynner
Rameses

Anne Baxter
Nefretiri

Edward G. Robinson
Dathan

Yvonne De Carlo
Sephora

Debra Paget
Lilia

John Derek
Joshua

Cedric Hardwicke
Sethi

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The Ten Commandments (1956) Videos

Moses meets Jethro's daughters - "The Ten Commandments" - Charlton Heston

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Bithiah finds Moses - "The Ten Commandments" - Charlton Heston

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The Ten Commandments - Movie Trailer

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Reviews

Masterpiece!!

15 years, 3 months ago at Jan 31 10:15

SJMJ91

After seeing The Prince Of Egypt as a child and hearing that it was a remake of The Ten Commandments, I realised that when watching it, it is no remake at all because both have the same story but the way the characters are with each other in each of the films are totally different. I had extremely high expectations for The Ten Commandments because of it being such a classic, all of the Oscar nomin... read more

An old classic

14 years, 1 month ago at Mar 22 14:30

johanlefourbe

Last year (2014), I saw ‘Exodus: Gods and Kings’ and since it was directed by Ridley Scott, I had some pretty high expectations but, unfortunately, it turned out to be one of the most disappointing movies released that year. The main reason was probably because this tale has been adapted so many times before and, above all, way better. This version directed by Cecil B. DeMille is already almos... read more

The Ten Commandments

13 years, 5 months ago at Nov 30 6:09

bharath

The film covers the life of Moses from his discovery in a basket floating on the Nile as a baby by Bithiah, a childless young widow and daughter of the then-Pharaoh, Rameses I, to his prohibition from entering the land of Israel in the wake of God's judgment on him at the waters of Meribah. In between, the film depicts the early adulthood of Moses as a beloved foster son of Pharaoh Seti I (brother... read more

View all The Ten Commandments (1956) reviews

Description: The Ten Commandments is a 1956 American religious epic film produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille, shot in VistaVision (color by Technicolor), and released by Paramount Pictures. It dramatizes 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. It stars Charlton Heston in the lead role, Yul Brynner as Rameses, Anne Baxter as Nefretiri, Edward G. Robinson as Dathan, Yvonne De Carlo as Sephora, Debra Paget as Lilia, and John Derek as Joshua; and The Ten Commandments is a 1956 American religious epic film produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille, shot in VistaVision (color by Technicolor), and released by Paramount Pictures. It dramatizes 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. It stars Charlton Heston in the lead role, Yul Brynner as Rameses, Anne Baxter as Nefretiri, Edward G. Robinson as Dathan, Yvonne De Carlo as Sephora, Debra Paget as Lilia, and John Derek as Joshua; and features Sir Cedric Hardwicke as Sethi, Nina Foch as Bithiah, Martha Scott as Yochabel, Judith Anderson as Memnet, and Vincent Price as Baka, among others.
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. At the time of its release on November 8, 1956, it was the most expensive film made up to that point.
In 1957, the film was nominated for seven Academy Awards including Best Picture, winning the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects (John P. Fulton, A.S.C.). Charlton Heston was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture (Drama) for his role as Moses. Yul Brynner won the National Board of Review Award for Best Actor for his role as Rameses and his other roles in Anastasia and The King and I. It is also one of the most financially successful films ever made, grossing approximately $122.7 million at the box office during its initial release; it was the most successful film of 1956 and the second-highest grossing film of the decade. According to Guinness World Records, in terms of theatrical exhibition it is the seventh most successful film of all-time when the box office gross is adjusted for inflation.
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". It is now considered one of the greatest films of all time. In June 2008, the American Film Institute revealed its "Ten Top Ten"—the best ten films in ten American film genres—after polling over 1,500 people from the creative community. The film was listed as the tenth best film in the epic genre.
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Legendary silent film director Cecil B. DeMille didn't much alter the way he made movies after sound came in, and this 1956 biblical drama is proof of that. While graced with such 1950s niceties as VistaVision and Technicolor, The Ten Commandments (DeMille had already filmed an earlier version in 1923) has an anachronistic, impassioned style that finds lead actors Charlton Heston and Yul Brynner expressively posing while hundreds of extras writhe either in the presence of God's power or from orgiastic heat. DeMille, as always, plays both sides of the fence as far as sin goes, surrounding Heston's Moses with worshipful music and heavenly special effects while also making the sexy action around the cult of the Golden Calf look like fun. You have to see The Ten Commandments to understand its peculiar resonance as an old-new movie, complete with several still-impressive effects such as the parting of the Red Sea. --Tom Keogh ... (more)

Release date: 5 October 1956
UPC: 097361550879

Tags: Epic (14), Drama (13), Religion (12), Adventure (10), 1956 (10), Biblical (8), 1950s (7), Temple (7), Moses (7), Christian (6), Bible (6), Judaism (6), Desert (6), Historical (5), God (5), Jew (5), Slavery (5), Exodus (5), Religious (4), Egypt (4)

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" Notes: Back in 2014, I saw ‘Exodus: Gods and Kings’ and since it was directed by Ridley Scott, I had some rather high expectations but, unfortunately, it turned out to be one of the most disappointing movies released that year. The main reason was probably because this tale has been adapted so many times before and, above all, way better. This version directed by Cecil B. DeMille is already 60 years old but it still considered as one of the best. To be honest, from the same era, I actually"

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