Dear Rabbi,

Shalom. The Tampa Tribune gave a very good review of the film "Prince of Egypt" and said that it was very biblically correct. After seeing the movie, I went back and reread the story in Exodus. The text is very short covering the time Moses was born until the Hebrews left Egypt. As far as I can tell, most of the story is not taken from the Scriptures. Question: Is this story referenced elsewhere; either in Scriptures or on the walls of the ancient ruins of Egypt?

Dear Martin Kleiner,

I've never seen the film "Prince of Egypt," so I can't vouch for its accuracy. However, the account of the Exodus is greatly expanded upon in the Talmud, in many Midrashic texts, and in the Haggada which we read on Passover Night. These texts supply tremendous amounts of description and detail which were left out of the Torah text.

For example, the Midrashim tell us that Pharaoh actually apprehended Moses and tried to kill him, but that Moses' neck miraculously became hard as rock upon which the executioner's sword could have no effect.

But even if some of the film's details are accurate, it's hard for me to imagine that a Hollywood cartoon would accurately portray the personality of G-d's holiest prophet.

Source:

• Devarim Rabba 2