Gods of Egypt

I saw this film without expecting anything in particular, the trailer full of action scenes piqued my curiosity in addition to the director's name : Alex Proyas whom I discovered thanks to the very good I, Robot with Will Smith. I must admit that I did not go there without worry in view of the (very) negative reviews, from the press as well as spectators, but I came out of the screening more than satisfied. For once I don't understand why this film is being taken down on all fronts...

Admittedly, it's far from being a great movie but still there are a lot of things to take. Gods of Egypt is therefore a successful action/adventure film, skillfully combining fantastic with the peplum genre in an odyssey in the heart of ancient Egypt, at a time when gods rubbed shoulders with mortals. The atmosphere, the sets and the costumes transcribe well the features of Egyptian mythology, arid deserts with their sandstorms and majestic tombs, all with a mysterious aspect that makes us want to know more about its legends.

The story does not look very far in terms of originality, we approach themes such as wars of power and conquest, heredity, the initiatory journey with a touch of essential romance, but we can forgive this narrative facility with respect to the action. Alex Proyas is not Michael Bay in this field but hé comes out with honors by staging fights between titanic gods in animal/metal armor. So in terms of special effects, we appreciate spectacular good quality. The rhythm of the narration is sustained for 2h10 even if 2-3 timeouts affect the quality the story.

Frankly, even if it remains imperfect, Gods of Egypt is nonetheless a good entertainment , coupled with a rather pleasant little history lesson on Egyptian mythology. A pleasant surprise, I don't approve the bad reviews. 7/10.

There's simply no justice in this world. This world where safe, sanitary entertainment is king. This world where audacity is roundly mocked and true vision garners sneers of contempt. Alex Proyas has made something ridiculous with his ancient Egyptian VFX extravaganza, Gods of Egypt. He's also made a visionary piece of summer blockbustasia. Weighed against the sterile ephemera slipping into and out of theaters today, Gods of Egypt proves its worth.

It is not Egypt-the geographic region in Northern Africa-that is represented in Gods of Egypt. Maybe this is an important point to consider for those puritanical air wasters who successfully raised a fuss over this film's racial demographics. It is a mythical Egypt where ten-foot-tall humanoid gods live among their creations. The fuss is moot. One of these gods is Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Horus, the heir to Egypt. Another is Set (Gerard Butler) the jealous uncle who wants what any jealous movie uncle wants; power over the kingdom. The very basic adventure outline even makes room for a thieving street rat and his puppy dog romance. This story isn't going to surprise, move, or enlighten anybody. But you know what? Neither will Captain America 5.

Coster-Waldau is a serviceable hero; Brenton Thwaites is a serviceable sidekick. But Gerard Butler is the most entertaining of the cast. Butler has softened into one of our most lovable movie rogues in recent years, but we forget that his break out role was as 300's King Leonidas; a hyper-masculine icon. With Set, Butler gets another go at straight savagery, and he's as committed to the character as any he's played. There are other fine actors present; all of whom get a chance to look or sound patently preposterous. To give you an idea, Geoffrey Rush shows up with a white ponytail and a flaming headdress to shoot sun bombs at a cloud with teeth. But who cares about the actors? This ain't 12 Angry Men.

A movie like this, without imagination, is Avengers: Infinity War. Bland, weightless, flat, grey, tepid, digital runoff. It's true that Gods of Egypt is stuffed with computer generated effects, digital backgrounds, lots of action, and wall to wall green screen. But there is a vision behind all the effects, and that is an all-important distinction. Alex Proyas has a passion for image-making. It's a through line in his career. In Gods of Egypt, he uses special effects not to expedite or enhance, but to create. There is a tendency to think of all CGI, all action, as the same. That's not true. Gods of Egypt uses CGI to CGI's best cinematic potential; to create worlds, wonders, images that spring right from the imagination of the filmmaker. You can see in the crowds of thousands, in the surrealist landscapes, and in the striking ancient-Egypt-on-LSD architecture, that there is a real filmmaker at work here. There is creativity on display. Wild unhinged visions of a world that only exists within Gods of Egypt's two hours.

I don't want to be carried away by hyperbole. Just because Gods of Egypt is visionary, doesn't mean it's great. In the end, this is still a modern VFX blockbuster, complete with many of the smaller problems that entails. There is ample room for bathroom breaks when the action stops and the dutiful business of humor, exposition, and "true love" is addressed. But it is hard not to go to the mat for a VFX blockbuster that actually amazed and delighted me. Gods of Egypt debunks the theory that huge CGI summer spectaculars are inherently stale. With a director that doesn't care about looking silly, blockbusters can still be astonishing. Gods of Egypt is a great blockbuster. I had genuine fun. Not a manufactured, conglomerate approved good time, but an actual imagination high you can only get by experiencing a work of passion and artistry.

79/100.

The film is a good Fantasy that has a decent story and allot of action. Effects are pretty good and suited the Egyptian vibe.

There was a bit of cheese here and there and it is not a film with great depth, but the acting was pretty good.

Not sure why it got such bad reviews, I can only suspect it was the political correct media who did not like the fact it had white actors playing all the main Gods (which some believe the ancient Egyptian elites were in fact Caucasian anyway, which is a debate) And also it may not pamper to the growing and irritating Femiwood thing, as it was strong men leading the roles, and with effeminate women, a little traditional in that sense. So it would not surprise me if all this was the true motivation behind its poor media reaction, which is a shame.

It was not the greatest fantasy there is, But its a decent film that had a bit of originality to it and if they done a squeal I would be happy to go see it.

Already from the trailer alone, you know that this is going to be a special effects movie. And with that in mind, you might already be setting yourself up for a movie that doesn't really require much thinking from you as an audience.

Well, that is partially true actually. The movie is a spectacular display of visual effects, both in CGI and props. And these dazzling effects do carry the movie a great long way, I will say that much. And the story, while it is simplistic, actually did turn out to be entertaining. Sure, it wasn't a brain challenger, not by a long shot, but you know what you are getting into with "Gods of Egypt".

While we are on the CGI and special effects, then I must admit that it was the selling point for me, because I was blown away how they had managed to bring ancient Egypt and their ancient Pantheon to life with today's CGI and special effects.

As for the cast, well, they could have opted for someone a bit more thespian, considering the talents of both Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau and Gerard Butler. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that they did it poorly. Actually far from it, but they are more of a physical kind of acting in terms of action, more than they are set in ways of deeper character portraying through acting.

There is a lot of action throughout the entire movie, and you are constantly being bombarded with visual effects, to the point where it brims on being over-used. But it worked for me.

If you enjoy a good fantasy movie with roots in actual ancient history, then "Gods of Egypt" is definitely worth your time and money. I do think, however, that "Gods of Egypt" is the type of movie that you can watch every now and again with some years in between each watching.

I am rating "Gods of Egypt" a well-deserved seven out of ten stars. This was good, wholesome entertainment wrapped up in a visually impressive package.

Gods of Egypt is simply a 'popcorn flick', and a very good one. Don't let the title make you feel it has a similar mood to 'Clash of the Titans'. It doesn't take itself too seriously, yet it manages to provide some kind of 'wow' factor.

The story is pretty straightforward: a god is jealous of king brother and decides to end matters when the king doesn't consider him to be the next heir. Things never get too complicated, but it is interesting to see a 'new' take on such characters. This is probably where the movie is so good. The fascination of how things are shown gives one even more to look forward to as the movie goes on. The CGI looks great most of the times, but sometimes it just looks OK.

Where the movie does lack is the acting department: the characters don't show enough emotion when they're supposed to, and the jokes aren't too original. Gerard Butler does great job and overshadows the rest in my opinion.

All in all, a great movie to watch in the theaters and to have a good time.