Ben-Hur (1959)

Neha says
300 lavish set pieces, thousands of extras, impressive period costumes, a dramatic sound score- BEN-HUR in all of its 220 minutes running time transports you into another era with a sweeping epic of how one man’s destiny (Judah Ben Hur) and another man’s divinity (Jesus Christ) criss-cross with one another in a precious few, highly anticipated moments. I was riveted by the silent transcendental power of that relationship and director William Wyler’s treatment of it- We never see Christ’s face, we never hear a dialogue exchanged between Judah and Jesus but yet we sense the omnipresent force of Christ’s campaign and it’s impact on the common man-Judah being one of them.

But this is not Christ’s story- let’s get that straight-it’s a tale of Judah Ben Hur played by the charismatic, even a melodramatic Charlton Heston. When his childhood Roman friend Messala played by Stephen Boyd returns as the new commanding officer and unsuccessfully urges Judah to turn informant-long time friends turn foes and Messala, given an opportunity banishes Judah and his family to the gallows. During transportation, Judah meets Christ for the first time as he offers the tired, thirsty Judah a sip of water. Enslaved, tied to the oars of a battle ship and serving his time, Judah saves the life of Roman Counsel Quintus Arrius played by Jack Hawkins when their ship is attacked by the enemy- gaining his admiration, trust and subsequently Judah finds himself a career as a renowned circus charioteer in Rome. But Judah decides to return to Jerusalem and on his journey back home he meets a gregarious, horse-harem owning Sheikh played by Hugh Griffith who shares his hatred for Messala. What ensues is a tale of revenge, a gripping chariot race, touching reunions with lost ones and a divine experience of sorts that humbles Judah, making him reconnect with the man he once was.

There’s a character and then there is this world in which he belongs- and while the first half is seeping in reality with themes of war, the Roman verses Jews conflict, historical exposition, the tragedy of betrayal and the treachery of Roman dictatorship-the second half sweeps you off your feet with ideas of destiny, miracles, forgiveness and redemption, never loosing sight of Ben Hur’s journey-each relationship that he develops and every experience he encounters on land, in the desert or at sea shapes him and defines the next turn in the tale.

And while there is no shortage of melodrama, intense dramatic pauses and performances that seem Shakespearean in nature, there is a curiosity to know “how” Ben Hur will react, conform or lead by example. Sometimes the dialogues seem a little too scripted but let’s face it-it’s really about the spectacle-and on that count it’s a delicious and dramatic cinematic beauty. Be it the chariot race that’s gripping with detail and menace or the sequence in which Ben Hur, tied to his oar, responds to the silent challenge of Arrius. The way in which this centerpiece gets edited with alternating close-ups, intense glares, the musical cues... it all comes together to create a steamy tension like one in a ring fight only minus the physical combat.

I wonder what Ben Hur would be like if it was remade today? Maybe a Gladiator like Russell Crowe cast as Ben Hur would enhance the overall performance experience of the film. But think of substituting the wonderfully dynamic set pieces and raw visual experience for the CGI Hollywood experience and that just makes me cringe with dread. I admire BEN-HUR for being untainted by technology and I love it for its epic spectacle.


Ira says
I remember watching BEN HUR as a child; an image of CHARLTON HESTON on a chariot of snow white horses has stayed with me ever since (of course this is the image from popular culture most associated with the film but I kid you not!). Still one of the finest action sequences in Hollywood history, with astounding set pieces and a fiery energy, the Chariot race in act 2 of the film with actors BOYD & HESTON doing their own riding and stunts, is a mesmerizing cinema going experience in itself. Watching the film over a dozen and a half years later, I found (as always in a good classic) that I picked up things and nuances that had slipped past me the first time, some of which, were quite remarkable. Amidst the rousing crowd, the sound of furious hooves and the images of the 2 men riding, sweating, and charging ahead are 2 quick close shots of Boyd’s black horses and Heston’s white ones. The sheer look on each set of horses said more than anything in the sequence about the journeys, personalities and destinies of the two men riding them. The black looking ahead with deadened, glazed over, steely eyes, and the white, panting, alive and brilliant. We know who’s the hero and who’s the villain, right? But director Wyler ensured we never forgot.

No one can deny that this 1959 adaptation of LEW WALLACE’s literary work, “Ben Hur -the Tale of the Christ”, with its majestic, weighty title and over three hour length, is an epic of mammoth scale. Winning 11 academy awards (equaled only by the similarly larger than life TITANIC in 1998) and coming at a time when Hollywood had to face the advent of television invading American homes in a big way, the emphasis was on making movies bigger, better, larger and grander. So a revenge epic set in the time of Christ would be just the right subject matter for audiences and who would be a better director than the very versatile, master craftsmen William Wyler (Wuthering Heights, Roman Holiday, The Best years of our Lives). And the man delivered, giving us a film that may not seem spiritually profound, but was still path-breaking at the time, remains visually breathtaking (lets leave aside the open sea bit with HAWKINS & HESTON on an odd wooden raft), and will certainly not be forgotten for its technical achievement and universal themes.

Wyler and his writers enjoy drawing things out and, because of its scope and scale, the film tends to meander between sections that are almost complete within themselves; going from politics to war, friendship to love, religion to deprivation conveniently. Extremely intelligently edited however, strongly performed and directed with focus and a minute attention to detail, the beauty of this one, which for me was reaffirmed by this 3rd close watching, is that WYLER knew exactly what he was doing. Resting on the steady, arresting shoulders of his leading man (a somewhat pained looking but intense HESTON), he makes this story the journey of one man and respectfully keeps the spiritual inclinations of the story in the background; we never see or hear JESUS. But Christian themes like forgiveness, redemption, resurrection, the hand of God, and good versus evil are omnipresent and everywhere, echoing under the grandeur of spectacle, the flourish of war and pageantry, the drama of love, loss and longing, and the misery of tyranny and slavery. Despite the melodrama, the heavy dialogues, and the length of the film, to me BEN HUR is a Hollywood blockbuster of its time and carries the always relevant appeal of Christian values as its most lingering stamp. Even now, it is hard to forget the scene of CHRIST when he meets his fate towards the end of the film, one of the simplest and most symbolic, poignant images of the film, and it is hard to ignore how life affirming yet entertaining the film is and will always be for any audience across the globe.