Ben-Hur

"Ben-Hur" is the lavish and classic 1959 film by MGM that is based on an 1880 novel by Lew Wallace, "Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ." It is a remake of MGM's 1925 silent film that had the full title of the novel. The story is a fictional adventure set in the time of Christ. The religious aspect is toned down and subtly built into this adaptation of Wallace's story, beginning with an opening scene of the nativity.

The film plot centers around the family of Judah Ben-Hur during the time the Roman Empire occupied Israel. The main characters are Judah and Messala. The latter is a Roman soldier who grew up as a boyhood friend of Judah. The Ben-Hurs were a wealthy family with a trade business. Now, in adult times the two men become enemies - until Judah's interior conversion. That occurs after chance encounters with a mysterious man. He later learns that this is Jesus of Nazareth, whom Esther and some others think may be the promised Messiah.

The film has a great cast of the day. Charlton Heston gives an Oscar-winning performance as Judah Ben-Hur. And Hugh Griffith won best supporting actor for his role of Sheik Ilderim. All of the cast excel - Jack Hawkins as Quintus Arrius, Stephen Boyd as Messala, Martha Scott as Miriam, Sam Jaffe as Simonides, Frank Thring as Pontius Pilate, and more. In its day, this film was the most expensive movie ever made, at just over $15 million. But its box office was nearly 10 times that amount. "Ben-Hur" was the first film to win 11 Oscars at the Academy Awards. Only two more films have accomplished that since then. They are "Titanic" of 1997 and "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" of 2003.

From the time MGM first announced it would remake the film in color, it took several years to get it done. It went through a number of planned casting changes, and screenplays and rewrites. If for nothing else, this movie likely always will be known for its spectacular chariot race. It took nearly a year just to plan the race, acquire the horses, build the chariots, and train and practice for the race.

At 18 acres, the race arena was the largest film set ever made to that time. It took 1,000 men a year to make the track in a rock quarry. That was done so it would look real -- like the historic circus that had been in Jerusalem. It took more than 40,000 tons of sand from the Mediterranean to cover the race track. Numerous other aspects made the chariot race so unique and unlikely ever to be repeated for real. Charlton Heston was an accomplished rider and horse handler already. But when he got to Rome he took daily three-hour lessons in chariot driving. He had special contact lenses to protect his eyes from injury by the dirt kicked up by the horses.

The chariot race is an historic feature of this film. It's not likely that modern moviemakers would ever again go to such lengths to have and film such a realistic race. Just look at the 2016 revised "Ben-Hur" film with its heavy use of CGI. The crash scenes in that chariot race are almost laughable.

This tremendous film was greatly condensed and adapted from a novel of more than 500 pages. And, the story of the book author himself, is fascinating. Lewis Wallace (1827-1905) was a man of many talents and careers. He was a soldier, a lawyer, a politician and a diplomat. His writing career overlapped all of these. Wallace served in the Mexican-American War and fought in the American Civil War. He commanded an Indiana regiment of the Union Army and took part in several battles. He later rose to the rank of Maj. General. He served nearly four years as governor of the New Mexico Territory (1878-1881). And he was U. S. minister to the Ottoman Empire from 1881 to 1885. After that he retired to continue his writing career which began with publication of his first book in 1873, "The Fair God."

Wallace wrote his adventure novel, "Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ," as a story of revenge and redemption. He worked on it for several years during his military postings. When it was published in 1880, the book made Wallace famous and wealthy. It was translated into seven languages and became popular around the world. It sold more than 400,000 copies in less than a decade. By 1900, it had become the best-selling American novel of the 19th century.

This is an epic film with a message that is subtly delivered in a most entertaining package. The actors all show the right amounts of various emotions throughout. The sets and settings, and filming and color are superb in all respects. Audiences should enjoy this film for generations to come.

When I first saw 'Ben Hur' I was 8 years old and hadn't seen many films, since we were hardly ever allowed to watch television. Imagine what an impact this film had on me (my movie diet had so far consisted of Chaplin and Disney films - which, of course, is not at all a bad thing).

The experience was simply mesmerizing. Awe and wonder filled me as I watched this story of shocking betrayal, revenge and forgiveness unfold on screen - and by the time the heart-stopping chariot race was over, my fate as a future movie addict was sealed.

Despite its 212 minutes running time, this is storytelling at its finest that knows how to entertain; as we follow Judah Ben-Hur's dramatic journey from Jerusalem to Rome and back again, the film just never lets up and immerses you completely.

It's hard to imagine anything more cinematic, especially at the time: if ever there was an epic that was meant to be seen on the big screen in all its bombastic glory, it's Ben Hur. And even now, after I've seen the film many, many times, I feel like this story has a certain sense of greatness to it that is touching (and I don't mean that in a religious sense).

My verdict: this film was and is nothing like the many "sandal and sword" or bible films of that era; it is (at least to me) the ultimate film epic. With its touching story and fantastic action sequences - which I think hold up amazingly well - Ben Hur is among the milestones of its era and part of film history.

Pure cinema and a must see. 10 stars out of 10.

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We are by nature a cynical and critical group.

With the attention span of a bumblebee, moreso the current generation than the earlier ones, because of exposure to mobile devices and other modern disposable non-repairable tech.

It is probably for that reason that epics like this one have become forgotten over time. Even the late CH has become more a societal joke and less of an icon over time. Michael Moore made Heston's participation in the NRA a joke. (If Heston's concerns over where society is headed prove to be true, the final joke may be on Moore.) Back to the film. It is almost perfect. Then, as now. The script continually builds. Modern writers could learn from that. No matter what is presently on screen as you watch, the inevitability of the final climax beckons.

The acting is perfect.

The mixture of myth and drama is perfect.

True the Roman dialog did not benefit from the verbal tricks that Stephen McKnight used in Spartacus (bending the script to match the flow of actual Roman) but it is more than enough to entertain and entrance.

From the "accident" early in the film which starts the flow of events, to the chariot race WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN EQUALLED IN THE HISTORY OF FILM, to the reunion with lost family at the end, this is one of the most powerful and entertaining films of all time

The same quality that made epics like "Gone with the Wind," "Lawrence of Arabia," "Doctor Zhivago," and, ultimately, "Titanic" the memorable stories they were is present in spades in "Ben-Hur." These are stories, though told on canvases far vaster than the CinemaScope- or Panavision-sized movie screens they were meant for, succeed because, in their best moments, they focus on the interaction between and history of as few as two characters.

What begins as a childhood friendship between a Roman boy and a Jewish boy in Roman-occupied Palestine, becomes, briefly, a politically-charged rivalry, and ultimately, a search for revenge by one upon the other.

Charlton Heston and Stephen Boyd deliver the performances of their careers, and get to chew up scenery and sets of such grandeur that Hollywood could never afford their like again.

This film, the greatest epic film ever made, deserves every accolade heaped upon it. The modern viewer may have to apply some patience, but at the end of the nearly four hour running time will find themselves to be vastly rewarded for it. You will find your life changed by both the scale of the film and the intimate message of friendship, betrayal, revenge--and the power of forgiveness.

There are movies, and then there are epics. Ben-Hur is one of the greatest Hollywood epics ever made. It won more Academy Awards than Gone With the Wind. Even Charlton Heston won an Academy Award for Best Actor, and he was never really that good an actor.

This story of a man who came from a rich family and was friends with a powerful Roman commander, has survived the ravages of time. Ben-Hur loses his best friend, his status, and his freedom, as he becomes a slave on a Roman fleet vessel. In passing, we also see the suffering of Christ on his way to Calvary. The film has several thrilling scenes, including the naval battle and the chariot race. In the beginning of the film, Heston challenges Messala to a race, but Messala refuses.

Ben-Hur then says 'What's the matter, are you Chicken Messala?" Actually, this never happened in the film, but it was an opportunity for a bad joke. Be sure you include this one in your want to see list.