Ben-Hur
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Movie Reviews of Ben-Hur
Movie Review: Three and a Half Hours of Highlights
Summary: 5 Stars
When James Cameron accepted "Titanic"'s 11th Oscar with the words "Ben Who?" the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences should have risen as one and pelted him with copies of "Ben Hur". Unfortunately it was the Academy who handed him the Best Picture Oscar that year (for reasons known only to themselves)."Ben Hur" -- one of the greatest movies ever made -- consists of three and a half hours of highlights and two minutes of exposition. It is so well constructed -- it's story so well told -- that time flies by. At the same time, one feels one has experienced the struggles of Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston's best performance).
The wonderful moments are too numerous to mention: A customer stopping by Joseph's carpentry shop and inquiring after Joseph's negligent son; Joseph calmly replies that his son -- Jesus, of course -- is off walking in the hills (communing with His Father Who Art in Heaven). Reviews of "Gladiator" -- contrasting Ben-Hur's repeated references to Christianity with "Gladiator"'s non-mention of it -- failed to note that the subtitle of the book Ben-Hur is based on is "A Tale of the Christ".
Or when Judah meets up with a man who breeds and trains chariot race horses, especially the scene where the beautiful white horses arrive in the tent to "say good night."
Or Judah speaking to Esther on the roof of his house -- a wonderful scene of love and restraint (i.e., sexual tension).
This film has everything: A tender love story; humour; friendship; action; revenge -- one might think we were discussing "The Princess Bride".
Ben-Hur -- There isn't a dull or extraneous moment in the film.
Movie Review: Here is one of my fav 5 films
Summary: 5 Stars
Can't I give more than 5 stars? Well...I just tried to make 5 fimls list of my all time favorite (You know how difficult it is). Cleverly, I tried to choose 5 top movies which will stay in the list whatever happens instead of trying to choose solid five. After five filmes popped upt, I shut the door quickly. Here is the five (No order).
Ben-Hur
Chinese ghost story (I)
Jesus Christ Superstar
My life as a dog
The good, the bad and the ugly
The greatest Ben-hur has everything. Don't you agree? Epic, romance (not ugly though), history, God, chariots(!), battle at sea, revenge...but most importantly, everything was handled very well unlike the other so called epics. This is a real full range movie, greatest of all greatest. What can I say more? Well, here's my personal story though.
When I was a little boy, there was no VCR and my dad used to make me jealous by saying he and his girlfriend (turned out to be my mom, surely) watched it at a theater which had biggest screen in our country at that time. I'd have to wait until 1982. Until then I had to be satisfied with a book of ben hur which was not that great. When I finally got a chance to watch this, I was a middle school student. Wow! I still remember the excitement when I saw a poster of Ben-Hur. The day, though, I was late due to some reason which I cannot remember. When I entered the theater, the scene of underground prison scene was going on. Roman soldiers realize their prisoners (Judah's mom and sister) are SICK as I still remember so vividly. I cannot believe it was 20 yrs ago... This movie easily deserves the title of THE GREATEST. You would agree with me.
Movie Review: Bravo to Ben!
Summary: 5 Stars
Watching the beautiful restoration of "Ben Hur" on DVD makes you appreciate like never before just how much we've lost with the passage of years. During the 50s and 60s, these big spectacles of ancient Rome, Egypt, etc. were taken for granted. We all went to see them, loved them, and that was that. Now, everything is computerized, the story's are nothing, the cast are forgettable (quick, can anyone remember the name of the actress who portrayed Cleopatra in the TV mini-series?) The extras on the Ben Hur DVD can entrance you for hours or, if you're like me, you like to spread it over several days. One complaint: there's much too much time devoted to author Gore Vidal in the documentary on the making of Ben Hur. Vidal goes on and on, ad nauseum, about how he was forced to work on the script (yeah, sure, Gore, I mean, after all this was only MGM, the greatest studio in the world at that time)and how he agreed if only they would end his two-year contract. Oh, pu-leeze! Ego, thy name is Gore. One more minor quibble is that the color restoration for Ben Hur isn't as rich and vibrant as on the 5-star DVD version of "Cleopatra", another masterpiece that has finally been brought back to show a new generation of movie buffs what Hollywood used to do several times a year. Miklos Roza's scroe is beautiful. When there was a cast of hundreds, that really meant a cast of hundreds of human beings, and not computerized blurs. Now, if only someone would bring us the Five Star edition of "Gone With the Wind" and "Doctor Zhivago" to join these marvelous spectacles like Ben Hur, Spartacus, Lawrence of Arabia, Cleopatra, etc.Movie Review: Where Have All The Epic Films Gone ?
Summary: 5 Stars
1959: Ben-Hur swept the Oscars with 11 Academy Awards. It brought audiences into the evolving Roman Empire in the time of Jesus. The film was based on the book. It was a blockbuster then and is still impressive to see on DVD to this day. Charleton Heston was the definition of manhood in his day, and his film roles were always larger-than-life. He played Moses in The Ten Commandments only a couple of years earlier. In this epic drama, Charleton Heston portrays Judah Ben-Hur with convincing prowess. Judah Ben-Hur is a slave in a galley ship. After a sinking, he saves a Roman lord and is granted property and status. Due to certain differences, Ben Hur and his former friend, Messala, break their ties and become rivals for power. Ben Hur and Messala's relationship is integral to the story and is performed very believably rather than cliche friends-turned-enemies deal. Ben Hur's mother and sister fall victim to lepresy. As such, they must live in caves as outcasts.Eventually, Ben Hur's rivalry with Messala is tested on the chariot races. This scene is the most famous in cinema, some would claim. It is impressive, with masses gathered around a circular arena and with bombastic music in the background. Later, Ben Hur finds himself in Israel, in Jerusalem, when Jesus is being crucified. Through miracles, Ben Hur's mother and sister are cured of their lepresy. Ben Hur repents of his former ways and becomes a better person. This film has all the makings of an epic film. They don't do films like these anymore. Spectacular, dramatic, large crowds and a panorama of lush cinematography. On DVD, the experience is incredible.
Movie Review: A Masterpiece in Every Regard
Summary: 5 Stars
There are many reviews of Ben Hur here on Amazon, and those who say this is an incredible film are right on target. This is one of the all time masterpieces of film making. Superb acting, especially from Heston and Boyd (his finest performance), magnificently photographed in 65 mm wide screen, stereophonic sound and with one of the finest music scores ever written (Miklos Rozsa). What I wanted to add is that many have not seen this film because some see it as a "religious picture", and though it was written as a "tale of the Christ", it should be noted that when writing it, the author, General Lew Wallace, was NOT a religious man at all.. he was making a point of writing in defense of spirituality because he was upset with a man who was a "non-believer" (agnostic). In the process of writing the novel Ben Hur, he became a Christian. THIS FILM was made by a Jewish man, William Wyler... and intentionally written without showing Jesus' face or allowing the viewer to hear his voice. You never even see Jesus performing a miracle directly... only seeing the "miracle" at the end of the film INDIRECTLY through a heavy rainfall after the crucificion. THIS FILM is NOT about Jesus as much as it is about the futile and pointless exercise in revenge and anger. It is about loving thy neighbor and forgiveness.... Christian ideals for sure, but appealing to those of any faith that advocates peace, love and harmony. We are shown this by example in a fantasic story of epic proportions and that includes loads of emotion and tons of action. Easily a movie that deserves more than 5 stars.