The first full-length trailer for Exodus has been released and while it hits all the expected notes of a blockbuster, it still seems like it’s treating the time period and the geographical area it conveys as a British fable.
There’s been plenty of controversy around the film already because of the casting decisions…many people have expressed concern that the film has been whitewashed, with characters who should be played by people who are clearly North African or Middle Eastern instead being played by white, primarily British, actors. Another element that has been brought up is that at least some of the servants in the film are obviously darker-skinned than the upper-class leads, creating a racial dichotomy that can, at best, be called innaccurate to the film’s time period. Scott issued a response to questions about whitewashing, but it didn’t so much address the problem as attempt to sidestep it. You can read more about this conversation, including Scott’s thought, here.
The trailer is structured very much like last spring’s Noah, in which a story from the Hebrew Bible was turned into a giant blockbuster-style fantasy epic with dramatic speeches, massive armies, and a slight connection to the source material. So far it seems that Exodus will continue this trend.
