Judah Ben-Hur
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Filming commenced on May 18, 1958, and wrapped on January 7, 1959, with shooting lasting for 12 to 14 hours a day and six days a week. Pre-production began in Italy at Cinecittà around October 1957, and post-production took six months.
- Overview
- Production notes and credits
- Cast
- Academy Award nominations (* denotes win)
Ben-Hur, American dramatic film, released in 1959, that was arguably the best of Hollywood’s biblical epics. In addition to being a huge commercial success, it set a record for most Academy Award wins (11).
The story traces the plight of Judah Ben-Hur (played by Charlton Heston), a young Jewish prince from an influential family. As the film opens, he is reunited with his boyhood friend Messala (Stephen Boyd), who is now a Roman tribune exerting great control over Jerusalem. The two men enjoy reliving old times, but when Messala asks Ben-Hur to help stem the increasing number of protests by Jews against Roman rule, Ben-Hur declines. The resulting rift boils over when an accident leads to Ben-Hur’s being accused of trying to kill a Roman official. Although Messala knows that Ben-Hur is innocent, he allows him to be convicted of the crime; Ben-Hur’s mother and sister are imprisoned. Ben-Hur is made a slave on a Roman galley, and during a fierce battle, his ship sinks. He manages to save a high-ranking Roman official, Quintus Arrius (Jack Hawkins), who shows his gratitude by adopting him. Ben-Hur begins competing in deadly chariot races, and he gains fame for his courage and skill. During this time, he searches for his mother and sister and is told that they are dead. Seeking revenge, Ben-Hur agrees to face Messala in a chariot race. The contest is particularly grueling, but Ben-Hur emerges victorious. Messala, however, is mortally wounded, and with his dying words, he informs Ben-Hur that his beloved mother and sister are actually in a leper colony. During his quest to save his family, Ben-Hur, who has found Jesus Christ to be an inspiration in his life, witnesses the crucifixion. Soon thereafter, both his mother and sister are cured of leprosy.
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•Studio: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
•Director: William Wyler
•Producer: Sam Zimbalist
•Writer: Karl Tunberg
•Music: Miklós Rózsa
•Running time: 212 minutes
•Charlton Heston (Judah Ben-Hur)
•Jack Hawkins (Quintus Arrius)
•Haya Harareet (Esther)
•Stephen Boyd (Messala)
•Picture*
•Director*
•Lead actor (Charlton Heston)*
•Supporting actor (Hugh Griffith)*
•Special Effects*
•Costume design (colour)*
- Lee Pfeiffer
Ben-Hur: Directed by William Wyler. With Charlton Heston, Jack Hawkins, Haya Harareet, Stephen Boyd. A Jewish prince is betrayed and sent into slavery by a Roman friend in 1st-century Jerusalem, but it's not long before he regains his freedom and comes back for revenge.
- William Wyler
- 3 min
Judah Ben-Hur lives as a rich Jewish prince and merchant in Jerusalem at the beginning of the 1st century. Together with the new governor his old friend Messala arrives as commanding officer of the Roman legions.
Ben-Hur is an epic movie of the sword and sandal genre released in 1959. It was directed by William Wyler. It stars Charlton Heston as Ben-Hur and Stephen Boyd as Messala. It is set in Ancient Rome and Ancient Judea. It tells of two men - one a Jewish prince and the other a Roman tribune - whose friendship turns to bitter hatred.
Ben-Hur is sentenced into exile to the slave galleys, and forced to join other prisoners chained together on a forced march across the desert in the searing hot sun to Tyrus. Along the way under the heat and lash, many prisoners die.
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“The biggest and best of Hollywood’s super spectacles.” Time magazine, 1959 MGM’s 1925 version of Lew Wallace’s hugely popular novel Ben-Hur was one of the biggest hits of the silent era, but they outdid themselves with this lavish 1959 remake.
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