The 10 Commandments on DVD- Page 2

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 1/13/07 at 10:53am

Imagine if Brantley, Simon & the rest of the bunch got a chance to review this

It would be Pearl Harbor, Little Big Horn & The St Valentines Massacre all rolled into one

Updated On: 1/13/07 at 10:53 AM

[leefowler]

Posted: 1/13/07 at 11:59am

I've always had a theory that there no matter how terrible a show is, SOMEONE out there loves it and defends it.. Will no one speak up for the Ten Commandments?

By the way, I've always wanted to see Burke Moses as Moses, since the credit would look so cool on the Playbill.

[Pgenre]

Posted: 1/13/07 at 1:58pm

"Somethin' tells me that he's the one,
He's the one,
The one I've been waiting for."

Sorry... but, could this song be ANY catchier?

I've gotta say, as over-the-top and terrible as almost every aspect of this show is (save the AMAZING cast), "Is Anybody Out There?" and "Horns of Jericho" are BEAUTIFUL melodies, and almost ok lyrics (considering the rest of the lyrics are excreble - THE worst I've EVER heard on a professional stage).

This show is a textbook example of how amazing perfomers can temporarily transcend horrible material through sheer will. The two best examples being IAOT and HOJ.

Yet I must ask: why are the two best songs in the show given to (barely even) supporting roles?

I guess its useless to try to understand (at least while sober...) the decisions made in this production.

A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely,
P genre


Updated On: 1/13/07 at 01:58 PM

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 1/13/07 at 2:07pm

Will I be lynched/laughed at if I say that I like the original French version?

I heard clips from the English version though and it sounded terrible. Couldn't even believe it was the same show.

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 1/13/07 at 3:01pm

It's not so much that the music is bad (I actually liked some of it)as it is that this particular production is REALLY crappy. It's just so badly staged that it's a hoot to watch something that OBVIOUSLY cost a TON of money, but no one said, wait, this isn't working.

It's a train wreck on DVD!

[Dollypop]

Posted: 1/13/07 at 4:04pm

I just ordered it from Ebay. Can't wait to see it!

[lightguy06222]

Posted: 1/13/07 at 7:40pm

haha! 9 cant WAIT to buy it on DVD! I ALSO want joseph, just because of the horrid narrator! oh, and Gerry McIntyre

[Piercemn]

Posted: 1/20/07 at 2:39pm

I got it from Netflix and just sent it back. I really didn't think this could be as bad as you all said it was, but you're right. It was terrible. The score is ghastly, the acting doesn't exist, the production values are tacky and the whole thing is less compelling than that current car commercial that uses "So Long, Farewell" as its theme.

Val Kilmer has gotten fat, hasn't he? I don't get why there's a need to make stage musicals out of operas: this turkey, Aida, Miss Saigon. Why not just do the opera?

If you get it from Netflix (for goodness sake, don't spend money and buy it! It's not even a good novelty item) make sure you have a lot of work to do to distract you.

The burning bush is hilarious, the golden calf is so far upstage, if you blink, you miss it, and there's no parting of the Red Sea. The choreography is all hip-hop crap, and it's not entertaining in the least!

[Piercemn]

Posted: 1/20/07 at 2:44pm

At least the Kiss Me Kate, if it's the one I saw on PBS, is the London Production and Brett Barrett was a good Fred/Petruchio. I saw it at the Ordway in St. Paul, and Rex Smith is, along with Patti Lupone, the worst stage performer I've ever seen. They deliberately sped up the score to get him off the stage as much as possible. Were Thine That Special Face is a seduction song, but he never once looked at the woman. He was staring at the audience the whole time. Poor Rachel York was working hard, but for naught.

BTW: Victor/Victoria, Crazy For You, Oklahoma and Light in the Piazza have all been on television, so I suspect they'll be available on dvd eventually.

Updated On: 1/20/07 at 02:44 PM

[sondhead]

Posted: 1/20/07 at 2:47pm

How are any of the songs good? How can you even tell when a song changes? It sounded like one 2 hr long angsty pop ballad to me

My favorite is Lauren Kennedy directed to be sexy whilst singing about the loss of her son. Odd.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 1/20/07 at 5:52pm

Mine still hasn't arrived!

[bryan]

Posted: 1/20/07 at 6:58pm

you guys do not know a good show if it bit you on our ass. i thought it was great. i am trying to get a cast cd.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 1/20/07 at 8:42pm

oh bryan! every message you post makes you seem more insipid!

[Jimmcf]

Posted: 1/29/07 at 3:29pm

I just rented from Netflix...and it was everything you all said and more!

It was so kitchy I had to order it for my collection......

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 1/29/07 at 3:43pm

"you guys do not know a good show if it bit you on our ass."

Is there a collective BWW ass? I didn't feel anything.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 1/29/07 at 3:58pm

OK, we've heard from the ONE person who enjoyed the show.

[sondhead]

Posted: 1/29/07 at 4:09pm

"BTW: Victor/Victoria, Crazy For You, Oklahoma and Light in the Piazza have all been on television, so I suspect they'll be available on dvd eventually. "

Victor Victoria and Oklahoma ARE available on DVD and Crazy for You and Piazza never will be.

[Mother's Younger Brother]

Posted: 1/29/07 at 4:16pm

I just watched it, and didn't find it nearly as bad as I was expecting. Granted, there's something wrong with nearly every aspect of the production -- with the exception of the performers.

The book is practically non-existent. It's a Cliff-notes version of the story, and assumes we all know more about the characters and plot points than the book gives us. Example, Moses' Egyptian mother simply appears with the released slaves, and stays with them for the remainder of the show -- with no explaination. Also, Moses' return to Egypt, all of the plagues, and Rameses' decision to free the slaves take place in the course of song.

The score is full of songs that are practically indistinguishable from one another. They are full of pop-ish sounds that give the talented cast plenty of opportunities to use their vocal abilities, but do nothing to advance plot. Even worse, most of them seem to function as monologue songs rather than book/action songs, leaving the poor performers nothing to do but stand there while singing them, and allowing little variety in the staging.

With the exception of the video projections, the set is basically a giant unit set that any community theatre with enough space could manage. Again, this doesn't allow for much visual variety.

Again, there was certainly more wrong than right about The Ten Commandments, but I've seen worse.
Updated On: 1/29/07 at 04:16 PM

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 2/11/07 at 10:01am

"Val Kilmer has gotten fat, hasn't he? I don't get why there's a need to make stage musicals out of operas: this turkey, Aida, Miss Saigon. Why not just do the opera?"

There's an opera called The Ten Commandments?

[Jovie24]

Posted: 2/11/07 at 11:52am

What is funny is that this show was so Hollywood...and we know that Hollywood is bigger and grand for it's things. Making more spectical than getting the message across. If other people (like NY directors, which I doubt they would touch the material to begin with) it might have been a better show. I just think when Hollywood gets involved they just make it look like a HALF-TIME show at the SUPER BOWL no matter what!

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 2/11/07 at 11:59am

How about taking the best 5 commandments & doing those numbers at next years superbowl?

[tazber]

Posted: 2/11/07 at 2:08pm

I am so happy this thread exists! There is a lot people can learn about what NOT to do when staging a musical.
Someone may have said this, but the way to musicalize this story is to go opera big. Like the Met big.
Oh, and that burning bush-priceless!

Updated On: 2/11/07 at 02:08 PM

[ScottInLA]

Posted: 2/12/07 at 4:02pm

This may be the happiest day of my life. I've been waiting for this debacle to hit DVD ever since I saw the show (on one of the nights they were filming, yet), so I can share the badness with all my friends. I somehow completely missed when it came out in November, and happened to see it in a Best Buy at lunch today. I can't wait to relive the majesty of Val Kilmer as Moses when I get home tonight!

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 2/12/07 at 4:27pm

>> There's an opera called The Ten Commandments?

Well, sorta. It's called Moses und Aaron, by Schoenberg.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 2/12/07 at 4:35pm

Ah yes, Moses und Aaron, an opera filled with gorgeous melodies and ravishing harmonies! NOT!!!!!