The Ten Commandments is a 1956 epic biblical drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. The film tells the story of Moses, played by Charlton Heston, who was born to Hebrew slaves in Egypt during the reign of Pharaoh Seti I. Pharaoh Seti I orders all Hebrew male babies to be killed, but Moses's mother saves him by placing him in a basket and setting it adrift on the Nile River.
Moses is discovered by Pharaoh's daughter, Bithia, who takes him in as her own son. Moses is raised in the royal household and trained in the ways of the Egyptians, eventually becoming a prince. However, when Moses learns of his true heritage as a Hebrew, he becomes conflicted and eventually chooses to stand with his people.
After he kills an Egyptian overseer who was mistreating Hebrew slaves, Moses flees Egypt and settles in Midian. While there, he marries a Midianite woman named Zipporah and becomes a shepherd. One day, while tending his flocks, Moses encounters a burning bush and hears the voice of God, who commands him to return to Egypt and lead the Hebrew people out of slavery.
Moses returns to Egypt and demands that Pharaoh, now Ramses II, release the Hebrew people. When Ramses refuses, God sends a series of plagues upon Egypt to convince him to let the Hebrew people go. Eventually, Ramses relents and allows the Hebrews to leave Egypt, but he changes his mind and sends his armies in pursuit of them.
At the Red Sea, Moses holds out his staff, and the waters part, allowing the Hebrew people to escape while the Egyptian armies are drowned. Moses then leads the Hebrew people to Mount Sinai, where God gives him the Ten Commandments. Moses dies before he can lead the Hebrew people to the Promised Land, but his legacy lives on, and he is remembered as a great liberator and prophet.
