“The Prince of Egypt” is a 1998 American animated musical drama film produced by DreamWorks Animation. The film is an adaptation of the Book of Exodus and follows the life of Moses from being a prince of Egypt to a prophet chosen by God to carry out his ultimate destiny of leading the Hebrews out of Egypt. The first feature film from DreamWorks to be traditionally animated, it was released by DreamWorks Pictures. Directed by Brenda Chapman, Steve Hickner, and Simon Wells, the film features songs written by Stephen Schwartz and a score composed by Hans Zimmer.
Let's delve into what made this film a masterpiece, focusing on its talented voice cast and the elements that contributed to its enduring appeal.
The Making of The Prince Of Egypt
The Voice Cast: Bringing Characters to Life
The success of "The Prince of Egypt" is due in no small part to its stellar voice cast, who breathed life into the iconic characters. Here's a rundown of the main actors and their roles:
- Val Kilmer as Moses/God: Kilmer voiced both the protagonist Moses and the voice of God, providing a unique depth to both roles.
- Ralph Fiennes as Rameses: Fiennes portrayed the conflicted Pharaoh Rameses, Moses' adoptive brother, with nuance and emotional complexity.
- Michelle Pfeiffer as Tzipporah: Pfeiffer voiced Tzipporah, Moses' wife, bringing strength and compassion to the character.
- Sandra Bullock as Miriam: Bullock lent her voice to Miriam, Moses' sister, capturing her unwavering faith and determination.
- Jeff Goldblum as Aaron: Goldblum voiced Aaron, Moses' brother, portraying his initial reluctance and eventual support.
- Danny Glover as Jethro: Glover voiced Jethro, Tzipporah's father and a Midianite priest, offering wisdom and guidance to Moses.
- Patrick Stewart as Seti: Stewart voiced Pharaoh Seti, Rameses' father, portraying his authoritative and often ruthless nature.
- Helen Mirren as The Queen: Mirren voiced Queen Tuya, Seti's wife and Moses' adoptive mother, adding regal grace to the character.
- Steve Martin as Hotep: Martin voiced Hotep, one of the high priests who serves as an advisor to Seti, and later Rameses.
- Martin Short as Huy: Short voiced Huy, Hotep's fellow high priest.
- Ofra Haza as Yocheved: Haza voiced Yocheved, Miriam and Aaron's mother and Moses' biological mother.
The voice tracks were to become the primary aspect as to which the animators built their performances. For the film, the actors recorded individually in a studio under guidance by one of the three directors.
Accolades and Impact
Reviews were generally positive; critics particularly praised the visuals, songs, score, and voice acting. The film grossed $218 million worldwide in theaters, which made it the most successful non-Disney animated feature at the time. The song "When You Believe" became a commercially successful single in a pop version performed by Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey.
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The song won Best Original Song at the 71st Academy Awards, making The Prince of Egypt the first animated film independently outside of Disney and Pixar films, as well as the first DreamWorks Animation film, to receive Academy Awards, succeeded by Shrek (2001) and Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005).
The film's success led to the direct-to-video prequel and spin-off Joseph: King of Dreams (2000), and a stage musical adaptation which opened in London's West End in 2020.
The accompanying marketing campaign was aimed to appeal to adults, who at the time were perceived as being averse to animated films.
Production and Animation Techniques
To make the project, DreamWorks employed artists who had worked for Walt Disney Feature Animation and Amblimation, totaling a crew of 350 people from 34 countries. Both character design and art direction worked to set a definite distinction between the symmetrical, more angular look of the Egyptians versus the more organic, natural look of the Hebrews and their related environments.
The animation team for The Prince of Egypt, including 350 artists from 34 different nations, was primarily recruited both from Walt Disney Feature Animation, which had fallen under Katzenberg's auspices while at the Walt Disney Company, and from Amblimation, a defunct division of Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment.
Read also: Exploring The Prince of Egypt's Impact
Music and Soundtrack
Composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz began working on writing songs for the film from the beginning of its production. As the story evolved, he continued to write songs that would serve both to entertain and help move the story along. Composer Hans Zimmer arranged and produced the songs and then eventually wrote the film's score.
DreamWorks Records released three soundtrack albums simultaneously for The Prince of Egypt, each of them aimed towards a different target audience. While the other two accompanying records, the country-themed "Nashville" soundtrack and the gospel-based "Inspirational" soundtrack, functioned as film tributes, the official The Prince of Egypt soundtrack contained the actual songs from the film.
This album combines elements from the score composed by Hans Zimmer and film songs by Stephen Schwartz.
Read also: "When You Believe" analysis
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