Poetic Film Review: Land of the Pharaohs (1955)

In the realm of grandiose artistry,
Where subjectivity reigns supreme and vast,
A film stands tall, a testament to time,
Howard Hawks' Land of the Pharaohs, a classic in its prime.

Set in ancient Egypt's golden era,
The Fourth Dynasty's rule, a tale to share,
Khufu, the pharaoh, with Jack Hawkins' might,
A ruler obsessed, with treasures in his sight.

Vashtar's plan, an architect of skill,
To seal the tomb with stone, an impregnable will,
A pyramid of grandeur, a marvel to behold,
A project vast, with a story to be told.

But Nellifer's charm, a Cyprian princess fair,
Weaves a spell, a second wife in royal lair,
A plot unfolds, of power and deceit,
A tale of ancient Egypt, with the pharaoh's feet.

Land of the Pharaohs, a spectacle to see,
A visual feast, in widescreen grandeur, it be,
With Cinemascope's majesty and Rome's Cinecitta's might,
Extras by the thousands, an Egyptian army in sight.

Dmitri Tiomkin's score, a soundtrack divine,
Exotic and otherworldly, a musical find,
A minor quibble, the lyrics' gibberish plight,
Forgiven for its time, in the realm of ancient light.

A sword-and-sandal epic, set in earliest days,
Ancient Egypt's customs, in serious ways,
A world immersed, in the film's exotic land,
A story of the Pharaohs, with a firm command.

Yet, the script, a flaw, with three writers' hand,
Lackslustre narrative, in a director's grand plan,
A melodrama's descent, into palace intrigue,
Casting choices, a factor, that can't be ignored or leave.

Joan Collins' villainess, a talent yet to grow,
A role marred by weight, in revealing attire to show,
A director's displeasure, a firing nearly in sight,
A memoir's blame, on pasta's excess and lack of discipline's light.

A box office flop, a setback to the director's might,
Land of the Pharaohs, a failure in the eyes of critics' light,
Yet, a film so bold, in its uncharted course,
A testament to Hawks, in its grand, epic force.

Admirers found, among critics and scholars' ranks,
A film of importance, with principles that rank,
Martin Scorsese, a fan, with praise in his heart,
Land of the Pharaohs, a classic, forever an art.

(Note: The review in its original form can be read here.)

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