While watching movies about the past can be entertaining, they are frequently inaccurate. When compared to what historians truly claim it was like, the history and style are occasionally wholly inaccurate or wholly made up.
With ancient history, such as Ancient Egypt, we witness that a lot. However, that does not imply that everything is entirely false. In order to make the film as authentic as possible, some filmmakers go into great detail.
Let’s look at a few of them down below.
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Agora (2009)
The film Agora pays close attention to the specifics of ancient Egypt. The Book of Exodus, which contains many myths and historical details from the time, is where it obtains the majority of its knowledge. The film focuses on a single historical figure, but you learn a lot about Ancient Egypt and how it managed to maintain its dominance for so long.
Hypatia of Alexandria, a STEM prodigy with specialties in arithmetic, astronomy, and philosophy, is the topic of the film. She was a teacher as well as a student of the subjects.
Anyone who enjoys reading will be familiar with the Library of Alexandria’s terrible end. Hypatia made every effort to protect as many old writings as she could from the Christians’ rampage through the library and destruction.
At the time, her job wasn’t a typical one, so the fact that she excelled in these sectors and taught others speaks volumes about what a remarkable lady she was.
Cleopatra (1963)
Cleopatra was initially intended to be split into two movies. The first was supposed to focus on her relationship with Caesar, and the second on her relationship with Antony, but they were ultimately combined to create a film on the Egyptian queen Cleopatra that lasted more than four hours.
The movie took a lot of time and thought to make, and when it was all said and done, it was one of the most expensive films ever created.
The makeup and the wigs were more historically correct, yet they were still greatly influenced by fashions of the 1960s when the movie was released, even if the garments themselves are quite different from what Egyptians would have worn at the time.
The historical veracity of Cleopatra is where it really excels. With some room for escalating drama, it rather closely follows the story of Cleopatra, her objectives, and her suitors.
Faraon (1966)
The film’s more well-known title is Pharaoh, while it was originally known as Faraon. This movie, despite its antiquity, tells a fairly realistic story.
Although the Pharaoh depicted in the film, Ramses XIII, is fictitious, the world, life, and attire are all fairly true to how we currently understand Ancient Egypt to have appeared.
This is largely due to the fact that the director hired Kazimierz Michalowski, one of the most well-known Egyptologists in existence. He served as the film’s technical advisor and ensured that the information was accurate. Shadi Abdel Salam, the costume designer, was also a film director who specialized in ancient Egyptian themes.
A novel by Polish author Boleslaw Prus served as the inspiration for the Polish film.
Gods of Egypt (2016)
A very recent film, Gods of Egypt, stars Chadwick Boseman and Gerard Butler among a sizable ensemble. You might be curious, though, about how theatrical the film was and how much of the information is true.
This film contains some accuracy, but there is also a lot of misinformation, which can be confusing. There isn’t much in the film regarding Egypt itself because it concentrates primarily on the mythology of that historical period.
It’s interesting how the minor aspects, like how the path to a happy afterlife varied depending on the ruler, were very true. However, as a whole, the film seems to make fun of mythology rather than genuinely adhering to it.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Although The Raiders of the Lost Ark has many issues with accuracy, there are certain historical details tucked away in the background.
The city in ancient Egypt where the Ark was discovered is one of the most notable. Even though the Ark was never within the city, it was a significant ancient metropolis. Due to its favorable position, it served as the capital of the 21st and 22nd Egyptian dynasties for a considerable amount of time before Alexandria took over.
Other historical accuracy exists, though, such as in regards to how people behaved. Important historical sites are frequently damaged by villagers and grave robbers in the vain attempt to unearth treasure. Additionally, the Nazis began as an esoteric organization before evolving into something far darker.
Although the booby traps are largely fictional, it is not uncommon to come across warnings concerning ancient curses that will befall anyone who opens the tomb.
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Stargate (1994)
A wormhole device is the main topic of the 1994 film that serves as the franchise’s debut entry. They use the Stargate to teleport back in time to Ancient Egypt, which is set in 1928 at Giza, Egypt.
The fact that several of the performers had to talk in a manner like that of Ancient Egyptians is the coolest aspect of the film. The filmmakers enlisted the aid of a Los Angeles-based Egyptologist by the name of Stuart Tyson Smith to accomplish this.
Even then, he had to make educated estimates because no one knew the Ancient Egyptian language, but he was able to do so because to his labor and study. Although certain translations needed to be somewhat modified, this made the movie feel lot more authentic and the translations much more believable.
The Loves of Pharaoh (1922)
The Wife of the Pharaoh, sometimes referred to as Das Weib des Pharao, or The Loves of Pharaoh, is a classic film made in Germany. It is regarded as a historical epic movie.
Eduard Kunneke composed the music for the film, which was directed by Ernst Lubitsch. This film, his final in Germany before he headed to Hollywood, was allegedly made by Lubitsch to demonstrate to Hollywood that he could produce epics.
Although the film is ultimately a comedy and is largely based on a factual story, Lubitsch added intricate costumes and a plot that was extremely accurate to what was known about Egypt at the time.
Although the whole version of the movie is sadly thought to be destroyed, a digitally recreated version was released in 2011.
The Mummy
The Mummy, like the previous films on this list, got some things dreadfully wrong while nailing others. Strangely, the crew opted to concentrate on precision by paying attention to the slightest things.
Examples include the mummification techniques used and the items these characters might have had in their tombs. Based on the information we now possess, the masks worn by those who are undergoing the mummification procedure are also accurate. The names and logos of the group that researches Ancient Egypt are also precise, despite being nearly impossible to see on a standard screen.
Therefore, even though the majority of the movie’s primary plot may not be accurate, it is intriguing to note that some of the little elements were well investigated.
The Prince of Egypt (1998)
Despite being animated, The Prince of Egypt is a fairly historically accurate film.
In two aspects, it is true to history. The first is how the Bible and Exodus stories are portrayed. It closely resembles Moses’s narrative.
Furthermore, it portrays ancient Egypt very accurately. The fact that it doesn’t speak as much about the wars and bloodshed that were taking place at the time is one of the few ways it isn’t entirely accurate, but that is probably because it was designed to be largely family-friendly.
The dress depicted, even down to the ceremonial crown worn by Ramesses, was extremely typical of the Late Bronze Age at the time, as were the weapons you see see.
even the specifics of monument construction. How the Egyptians were able to construct pyramids has long been shrouded in mystery. The wheel hadn’t been created yet, despite a thrilling horse and chariot race near the beginning, therefore people often carried large objects using sand ramps because the sand could be readily cleaned or blown away over time. These specifics are captured as accurately as feasible in the film.
The Ten Commandments (1956)
The 1956 epic The Ten Commandments is based on the biblical narrative of Moses found in the Book of Exodus. In addition, On Eagle’s Wings, Prince of Egypt, and Pillar of Fire were loosely included into the story.
The fact that the movie was shot in Egypt, more especially Mount Sinai and the Sinai Peninsula, is one of the major historical inaccuracies. It is regarded as being important historically, culturally, and artistically. In addition to being well received when it was first released, the directors put a lot of effort into making the film historically correct by consulting the Bible, numerous other books, and historical materials from the period.
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