Ben Hur (1959)

I first saw BEN-HUR as a young boy at a theater; I was captivated throughout the three hours, thoroughly entertained and in awe of the majesty on the big screen. The film instantly became one of my favorites, and remains so to this day. Few things do I enjoy more than watching a beautifully crafted, well made movie, and my appreciation certainly was not unique, as the film won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1959.

The story is familiar to us all: Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston) is a young nobleman from a prominent Jewish family reunited with his childhood friend Messala (Stephen Boyd), who returns to Judea as a Roman tribune. There is genuine warmth and friendship between the two men, yet the clash of their cultures drives a wedge between them--a wedge that becomes a chasm as Messala banishes Judah to the slave galleys and sends his mother and his sister to prison. Thus Judah's life becomes a quest: a quest to survive, a quest for vengeance. Judah survives the galleys to become the adopted son of a Roman general (Jack Hawkins), and his triumphant return to Judea permits him to challenge and subsequently confront Messala in a chariot race--a breathtaking sequence of spellbinding, unforgettable scenes.

And although Judah's heart is twisted with anger, BEN-HUR is also the story of love, redemption, foregiveness--all depicted under the shadow of the crucifixion of Christ. And in the aftermath of the crucifixion we witness a miracle, a wondrous event that makes this movie so compelling.

A sweeping, extraordinary epic, BEN-HUR is highly recommended and well worth three hours of anyone's time.
--D. Mikels


Ben Hur----- DVD Bliss***********   March 4, 2001
G. Stanford (Mesquite,TX USA)
48 out of 51 found this review helpful

This film when it was released in 1959 saw it's studio MGM teetering on the edge of bankruptcy and the fact that this film cost in 1958 close to $15 Million dollars was most assuredly a make or break film for the studio.

William Wyler the film's director, in order to make this film unique as if a running time close to four hours was not enough, filmed it in an aspect ratio of 2.76:1 using what was called MGM Camera 65, an Ultra Panavision process.

This film was one of only two films that were filmed in that process which is the widest of processes used in film to date.

Filmed utilizing 8000 extras, 300 sets, and over 100,000 costume changes this film epitomizes the word grand and released a few years after the Ten Commandments, it helped quench the public thirst for Biblical films.

This new DVD release is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 and the LFE channel(Low Frequency Effects) is apparent on two standout scenes, the Sea Battle scene, and the now infamous chariot scene which last close to 11 minutes.

There are quite a few special features on this DVD release most of which appear on side two of this disc including a documentary, Ben Hur: The Making Of An Epic, which is just under an hour long.

There was an open casting call for the lead role in this film and they have included on this DVD the original screen tests by Leslie Nielsen, and Cesare Danova which are interesting to see even though the quality of the audio and video are not up to the level of the film itself.

Also included are storyboard art and posters as well as film biographies of the cast with pictures of them in character from the film.

Overall this film is an incredible piece of work and presented in it's original aspect ratio with the enhanced sound combines to make an experience that should not be missed.

This film on the small screen does lose a little bit of it's lustre especially if your television is under 27 inches in size but this film begs to be seen in it's broad presentation, so even if you would normally shy away from widescreen presentations, this is the only way to view this film in my honest opinion.

On a rating scale of Bronze to Platinum...This film receives my highest rating.....Platinum!!!! Run don't walk to pick this DVD up!!!


1925 Version On DVD At Last.   March 3, 2006
Chip Kaufmann (Asheville, N.C. United States)
48 out of 59 found this review helpful

There is a growing and welcome trend in recent months among DVD releases of classic films. If the title is a remake of a silent film version then the original is now being included along with the remake. Of course it's the remake that gets all the headlines but that is as it should be since most people aren't silent film enthusiasts. I was originally opposed to this idea on economic grounds as multidisc sets are expensive but then it occured to me that without the remake we wouldn't get to see the original at all and this way people can be exposed to the silent versions and hopefully learn to judge them on their own merits. Already we have the 1921 CAMILLE coupled with the 1936 Garbo version and the 1925 WIZARD OF OZ (plus other silent Oz films) newly restored with the classic 1939 version.

Now comes the celebrated 1925 version of BEN-HUR accompanying the even more celebrated 1959 William Wyler/Charlton Heston film on a 4 disc set and later this month the 1923 version Of Cecil B. DeMille's THE TEN COMMANDMENTS will be issued along with a restored version of the 1956 film for its 50th anniversary. As a silent film enthusiast I will comment on the 1925 film as very little has been said about it compared to all that has been said about the much better known 1959 movie. BEN-HUR was once regarded as one of the magnificent follies of the silent era. It took years to make and cost M-G-M around $4,000,000 (approximately half a billion in today's currency). although what they lost in money was more than gained in prestige. The film made M-G-M THE studio in Hollywood, a position they would not relinquish for 30 years. It made a star out of Ramon Novarro and gave Francis X. Bushman at the end of his career the role of a lifetime as Messala. It featured Technicolor sequences (lovingly restored in this presentation), mammoth sets as well as the expected cast of thousands and has the original version of the chariot race which remains just as exciting today as back in 1925. The sea battle between the Pirates and the Roman galleys is even more exciting as it was shot in Italy with real ships and not miniatures.

The one thing that really stands out about this version is how powerful its condemnation of anti-semitism is. The Christian aspects of the story are still there of course but they are on an equal footing with the plight of what it means to be Jewish in a hostile world. The orchestral score by Carl Davis is outstanding and really helps to elevate this into one of the best silent film viewing experiences especially for people unfamiliar with silent films. If only the money were available to treat all of the great silent films this way. Perhaps it will be someday.


Surpasses all others in the yBiblical Epicy genre   March 7, 2000
20 out of 23 found this review helpful

I've read that director William Wyler wanted to humanize the unwieldy scale of earlier Biblical films. He succeeded. The chariot race may be the hallmark of the movie, but it is the small, human elements that carry the story. Judah Ben-Hur's love for the slave, Esther; his devotion to mother and sister and his transformation from the vengeful slayer of Messalla to follower of Jesus on the road to crucifixion is a character saga of mythic proportions.

Ben-Hur abounds with stirring dialog and memorable imagery and establishes female characters in strong, defining roles. Mother and daughter endure degradation, imprisonment and disease, living only for the sake of each other and the faint hope that Judah is alive. The love between Esther and Judah is a study of restrained passion. The scenes where Heston and Haya Harareet are together work well, proving the axiom that good actors generate their own chemistry; (and, for Heston, it probably didn't hurt that Harareet was a stunning beauty.)

A warning to cultural nihilists: religious themes abound! This is, after all, a Biblical Epic. Nativity and Crucifixion scenes may remind you of those "Illustrated Bible" editions you might have seen in Sunday School. But, in the hands of director Wyler, they are splendidly and lovingly rendered. The Jewishness of early Christianity is never questioned; Esther refers to Jesus as "...a young Rabbi," a pacifist and healer who ultimately takes the sword from the hand of Ben-Hur. Overshadowing all is the heavy fist of Imperial Rome, its tyrannical rule driving the people to be, in the words of the departing Tribune, "obsessed with religion."

As with all great movies it's the secondary players who invite repeated viewings. Two lesser known examples: Frank Thring, as Pontius Pilate, in a speech rich with insinuations of realpolitik, cautions Judah against crossing the will of Rome, ("There are many small men of envy and ambition..."). And Wyler's decision to cast veteran actor George Relph as Tiberius was a stroke of genius. In contrast to the majesty of his surroundings, the Divine Emperor looks rumpled and flea-bitten; more like a neglected grandfather than the power behind the Empire.

Some of the SFX may be dated, but, in all the ways that count, Wyler's rendering of the Ben-Hur tale has improved with time.