“The stones of the pyramid will be cemented with blood and tears.”
At the time of its release, Land of the Pharaohs was so poorly received and commercially unsuccessful that its director, the notoriously prolific Howard Hawks, took a four-year sabbatical (before returning with the masterful Rio Bravo). But time has been kind to this sword-and-sandals epic. Elegantly paced, with large, lavish sets, some location shoots, a cast of thousands of costumed extras, and a beguiling score from Dimitri Tiomkin, it chronicles the prolonged effort to build a labyrinthine tomb in the form of a great pyramid.
Like many of Hawks’ films, it focuses on professional, competent men who face moral pressures with an air of dignity. The primary drama plays out between Pharaoh Khufu (Jack Hawkins) and his scheming second wife Nellifer (Joan Collins)—the pharaoh wants to enter the next life with all his treasure, the wife wants it for herself—but the heart of the film lies with Vashtar (James Robertson Justice), an architectural mastermind whose people are enslaved by Egypt. He agrees to design the monumental sepulcher in exchange for the freedom of his people, fully aware that his knowledge of Khufu’s secret resting place must die with the ruler. That he is going blind in his old age and must reveal the terrible knowledge to his son (Dewey Martin) makes his predicament even more heartrending.
The minutiae of the script are a bit clunky—a result of too many cooks in the kitchen, none of whom knew how to prepare ancient Egyptian cuisine—and the performances range from adequate to campy, but the story comes together nicely, with the devious Nellifer getting her comeuppance in an ingenious twist involving the high priest (Alexis Minotis) and Vashtar’s automatic sealing mechanisms. While it doesn’t stand toe-to-toe with other epics of its era (possibly because it avoids any spiritual element) and isn’t the masterpiece Hawks likely envisioned, the sheer ambition, evident fascination with the subject matter, and attention to authentic detail ensure it is much better than its reputation would suggest.