Gods of Egypt

The one thing the gods of Egypt cannot save anyone from is this film. It may have a star-filled cast, of almost exclusively white actors – living proof of Hollywood’s diversity problem – but this latest would-be epic falls short in almost every way. The movie’s only saving grace is its unintentional humour: it is so bad it has to be laughed at.  

The plot is as unoriginal as it sounds. Director Alex Proyas appears to lack any knowledge of Egyptian mythology other than knowing there were pyramids and that gods could transform into winged beasts. The story follows a war between two gods. There is the “goody” Horus (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), lord of the air, who is also ironically referred to as the Lion Slayer (no typecasting here it seems). On the day of his coronation his father is killed by his uncle, the desert god Set (Gerard Butler), and the remaining hour and a bit follows his attempts to overcome Set and regain the crown. The actor’s performances are as uninspired as the characters; Coster-Waldau often seems to be on the verge of laughter when delivering his more memorable lines. There is a lot of fighting – too much – all of which is overly CGI’d.   

Running alongside this storyline of usurpation and revenge is the sickening love story between two mortals Bek (Brenton Thwaites) and Zaya (Courtney Eaton). Thwaites is loveable but this is perhaps more because of his cheeky smile than the depth of his performance. Rufus Sewell makes a brief and uninspired appearance as a subservient follower of Set. Whilst Geoffrey Rush has his turn as the Creator of the World, sat in a glass boat and brandishing a flaming sword to beat back the essence of chaos – in the form of an intestine.  

It is difficult to say if the CGI helps or hinders: it depends how you want to watch it. If you view this as a serious film then it is probably the root cause of why it fails to have any emotional depth, even when almost all the mortals of Egypt are enslaved or killed. Unlike fantasy series’ such as Game of Thrones this feature fails to blend CGI with reality. It does, however, add to the comic flavour of the film, making it so cheesy it is impossible not to smile. Either way be warned, do not tackle Gods of Egypt if you want to watch a good movie.  

Georgie Cowan-Turner

Gods Of Egypt is released nationwide on 17^th June 2016.  

Watch the trailer for Gods Of Egypt here: