Exodus – Gods and Kings: Naïve & Devoid of Content

This movie was selected by our Patreon Supporters over at the Cinematic Doctrine Patreon. Support as little as $3 a month and have your voice heard! 

Shirleon joins Melvin to discuss our latest Patron-Selected movie, Exodus: Gods and Kings! Can Ridley Scott give this paramount Bible story the Gladiator treatment? Does it play fast and loose with the historical account? Was it, at the very least, enjoyable? Tune in to find out!

Topics:

• (PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 33-minutes discussing the various drama leading up to Snow White (2025)’s release as well as it’s Rotten Tomato Score debut. (PATREON EXCLUSIVE)
• Shirleon, “I hated it. I hated the direction that it went.”
• Melvin, “It’s super rare to find movies that feel like they’re devoid of content.”
• What deflates the material is how remedial it is compared to the rich complexities of the Biblical text.
• A follow-up to criticism’s mentioned in the Journey to Bethlehem episode regarding bible-reading statistics.
• The film doesn’t just mischaracterize historical figures, it mischaracterizes biblical figures, texts, and God Himself, all in ways that can’t be considered concessions of the medium.
• Melvin talks about the one scene in the movie he liked.
• The two agree: It’s not just a bad biblical adaptation, it’s also a bad movie.

Recommendations:

• Read Exodus from the Bible
• The Prince of Egypt (1998) (Movie) (Cinematic Doctrine Episode)
• The Ten Commandments (1956) (Movie)
• The Midnight Meat Train (2008) (Movie)

Exodus: Gods and Kings is Rated PG-13 for violence including battle sequences and intense images. It features Christian Bale, Joel Edgerton, Ben Kingsley, Sigourney Weaver, John Turturro, Aaron Paul, Ben Mendelsohn, Zipporah, Isaac Andrews, Hiam Abbass, and Indira Varma. Directed by Ridley Scott. Exodus: Gods and Kings is available here.

Consider supporting Cinematic Doctrine on Patreon! As a bonus, you can gain access to a once-a-month movie poll where you decide a movie we discuss on the podcast, early unedited episodes of the podcast, and merch!!

Melvin Benson is the Founder, Editor-In-Chief, and Lead Host of Cinematic Doctrine. Whether it’s a movie, show, game, comic, or novel, it doesn’t matter. As long as it’s rich, he’s ready and willing to give it a try! His hope is to see King Jesus glorified as far as the east is from the west!

Cinematic Doctrine is available on iTunes, Spotify, YouTube, and other major podcast apps.

It Ends – horror in lower case – Cinematic Doctrine: A Movie Review Podcast Hosted by Christians

Send us a Question!MOVIE DISCUSSION: Kathryn joins Melvin to discuss a little-seen existential horror, It Ends, a film about a car that drives on and on… and on. From its curious hook to its Gen Z attitude, the two explore what works, what doesn't, and what it has in common with its modern contemporaries.Topics:(PATREON EXCLUSIVE) 42-minutes discussing The Hollywood Reporter's "Top Genre Filmmakers of 2026: From Curry Barker to Guillermo del Toro", whether its top 10 actually makes sense, why we think these directors are revered so well, and more. (PATREON EXCLUSIVE)In honor of the film; Choose two who will attack you and two who will defend you: 50 hawks, a rifleman, 5 gorillas, or 10,000 rats.Kathryn feels the movie is "fine", and found the film both easy to understand and not necessarily engaging.Melvin feels the first act is the strongest, while the second and third act start to meander and run out of ideas.For Kathryn, she didn't connect with the film because she's self-proclaimed, "unc". Melvin, however, feels the characters aren't strong enough to carry the film.Choosing when and how to grow up.Melvin has a few complaints, although some people may call them nitpicks.How the ending probably would have been better if it was part of the second act, and the third act was entirely different.Recommendations:Hidden (2015) (Movie)Reread your favorite book! Support the showSupport on Patreon for Unique Perks! Early access to uncut episodes Vote on a movie/show we review One-time reward of two Cinematic Doctrine Stickers & PinsSocial Links: ThreadsWebsiteInstagramLetterboxdFacebook Group 

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