Movie Review – Ben-Hur (1959)

Today we’re taking a look at 1959’s Ben-Hur, an epic historical drama and one of the biggest films in the history of Hollywood.

Ben-Hur tells a classic tale of Judah Ben-Hur, a wealthy Jewish merchant who is falsely imprisoned and made into a slave, his heroic actions that set him free, and his return home to seek revenge against those who wronged him.  The film also features highlights from the life of Jesus Christ, from His birth to His life as a carpenter to His teachings and finally the crucifixion and death.  Judah Ben-Hur witnesses many of those events, and he becomes one of Jesus’ followers in the end.

Directed by William Wyler, Ben-Hur stars Charlton Heston in the lead role of Judah Ben-Hur.  Supporting him are Stephen Boyd as Messala, Haya Harareet as Esther, Hugh Griffith as Shiek Ilderim, and Jack Hawkins as Roman Consul Quintus Arrius.  The film’s score was conducted by Miklos Rozsa.  Ben-Hur has a running time of a whopping 212 minutes.

Ben-Hur begins with a brief overview of the land of Judea and how the Jewish people were being ruled by the Roman Empire.  The Jewish people are enduring it and looking forward to the long-awaited arrival of a redeemer, a person to finally bring them salvation and freedom.

One night the people throughout Judea see a star moving across the sky.  This is taken as a sign that their redeemer has finally arrived.  They follow the celestial object and discover that, sure enough, a child, Jesus of Nazareth, was just born.

Ben-Hur then advances to 26 A.D.

Roman citizen Messala (Stephen Boyd) returns to Judea as part of a Roman Legion.  After serving his time with the Roman Empire, Messala has returned to his home as the new commander of the Roman garrison.  Recently Judea has been a problem area for the Roman Empire, and Messala’s instructions are to keep the Jewish people in order.  At the garrison he’s visited and reunited with Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston), his old childhood friend who is a Jewish prince and a wealthy merchant.

Ben-Hur invites Messala to his home and reunites them with his mother, Miriam (Martha Scott), and sister, Tirzah (Cathy O’Donnell).  Also at Ben-Hur’s lavish home is his loyal slave, Simonides (Sam Jaffe), and his daughter, Esther (Haya Haraeet).  As Messala walks through the estate, he clearly remembers many fun memories that he and Ben-Hur shared as children.  He also discusses his ideology of the glory of Rome and all of its power, while Ben-Hur focuses on his faith and the freedom of his fellow Jewish people.

Later that night, Esther confesses that she’s in love with Ben-Hur, but she is betrothed to another man.

One day Valerius Gratus (Mino Doro), the new Roman governor of Judea, arrives and is given a parade through town.  Ben-Hur and Tirzah watch the parade from the roof of their house.  Just as Gratus is passing their home, some loose tiles accidentally fall to the ground and spook Gratus’ horse.  The horse throws Gratus and nearly kills him.  Roman soldiers immediately rush into Ben-Hur’s home and seize everybody.  Messala arrives, but to Ben-Hur’s surprise, he has Ben-Hur arrested along with his mother and sister.  He then goes to the roof and notices that the tiles are loose, just as Ben-Hur claimed.

In the prison, Ben-Hur escapes from his bindings, grabs a spear, and confronts Messala about the incident and the arrest of his family.  The governor will survive his injury, but neither Ben-Hur or his mother or sister will be allowed to walk free.  Messala explains that by condemning an old friend, the people will fear and respect him.  Miriam and Tirzah are kept in prison while Ben-Hur is sentenced to slavery on board a Roman galley.

Ben-Hur is then marched across the scorching desert while being shackled to other prisoners.  It’s a brutal march and not everybody survives.  To make matters worse, the guards are instructed to inflict extra punishment to Ben-Hur by denying him any water.  Just as Ben-Hur is dying of thirst, he falls to the ground and asks God for help.  Help arrives when a local man (Jesus of Nazareth) gives him some much-needed water.  The guards make an attempt to stop Jesus, but they stop and think twice about their actions.

Three years pass and now Ben-Hur is an experienced rower on a Roman galley warship.  When the Roman fleet’s new commander, Quintus Arrius (Jack Hawkins), tests the slaves, he sees something special in Ben-Hur.  Instead of accepting his fate as a slave and simply giving up, Ben-Hur has a burning passion to continue to fight and live.

Quintus Arrius has been tasked with destroying a fleet of Macedonian pirates and making the waters safe for Roman ships.  When the pirates are finally spotted and the fleet prepares for battle, all of the slaves except for Ben-Hur are chained to their posts.  The battle begins and ships begin ramming and trying to sink each other.  At one point Arrius’ ship is rammed by a Macedonian ship.  The slaves scramble and try to escape, and Ben-Hur helps as many of the escape as possible.  He then makes his way to the upper deck, fights the Macedonians, and saves the life of Quintus Arrius.

When Arrius wakes after the battle, he discovers that it’s just himself and Ben-Hur floating on a piece of wreckage.  Arrius’ ship has been sunk and there’s no sign of the Roman fleet.  Thinking that this means his fleet was defeated, Arrius tries to jump into the water and commit suicide.  Ben-Hur prevents him from doing so, and he keeps him chained (and alive) until help arrives.

Soon a sail is spotted on the horizon.  If it’s a Macedonian ship, then Arrius will be killed and Ben-Hur will be set free.  If it’s a Roman ship, then Arrius will be rescued and Ben-Hur will return to slavery.

Sure enough, the approaching ship is Roman.

Quintus Arrius quickly learns that his fleet succeeded in defeating the Macedonians.  He is to be honored in Rome by the emperor himself.  Arrius is elated with the news and he chooses to keep Ben-Hur as his personal servant instead of having him return as a rower.  Although Ben-Hur is still a slave, Arrius makes sure that he is comfortable, and he now treats him as a close family member.

In Rome, Quintus Arrius receives a hero’s welcome.  Arrius uses his fame to successfully petition Emperor Tiberius (George Relph) to free Ben-Hur from slavery.  Once free, Arrius adopts Ben-Hur and makes him the legal heir to his estate.

After living in Rome for a year, learning the Roman customs, and becoming a champion chariot rider, Ben-Hur longs for his family and homeland in Judea.  He greatly appreciates everything that Quintus Arrius has done for him, but he needs to return to his true home.

When returning to Judea, Ben-Hur meets Balthasar (Finlay Currie) and Arab Sheik Ilderim (Hugh Griffith), the owner of champion horses.  When Ben-Hur offers advice on how Ilderim’s chariot should be driven, the sheik sees potential in the man.  Sheik Ilderim asks Ben-Hur to drive his chariot in an upcoming race for the new governor of Judea, also mentioning that Messala will also be competing, but Ben-Hur refuses.  He just wants to find his family.

In Jerusalem, Be-Hur discovers that his family’s home is in a state of ruin.  Simonides and Esther are still living there, but Miriam and Tirzah are still locked away in prison.  Esther confesses her love again for Ben-Hur and tells him that her arranged marriage never occurred.

Ben-Hur goes to the Roman garrison and confronts Messala.  This time around Ben-Hur has the backing of a powerful Roman family, and he uses that as leverage against Messala.  However, Messala claims that he cannot free any prisoners without the governor’s approval.  After Ben-hur leaves, Messala orders for Miriam and Tirzah to be killed immediately.

The surprise is that when the Romans open the prison cell, they are horrified to discover that the two women have contracted leprosy.  Both Miriam and Tirzah are immediately expelled from the city.  Before they leave, the two of them return to their home and meet with Esther.  They convince Esther to lie to Ben-Hur and tell him that they were both killed so that he will never see them in this condition.  Miriam and Tirzah then leave for the leper colony and Esther informs Ben-Hur of the death of his mother and sister.  This news enrages Ben-Hur and he seeks revenge by competing against Messala in the chariot race.

Following the film’s intermission is a grand chariot race to honor the new governor of Judea.  All of the competitors man their chariots and parade them around the track.  Once everybody is set, the flag is waved and the racers begin sprinting around the track.  The chariot race is a brutal event made even more difficult by the spikes on Messala’s chariot.  He uses the spikes to disable other chariots.  Ben-Hur eventually gains the upper hand and Messala crashes his chariot.  He’s trampled by horses and critically wounded while Ben-Hur wins the race.

After winning the race, Ben-Hur visits the badly injured Messala.  In his last few breaths, Messala taunts Ben-Hur by telling him that his mother and sister are still alive, but they’re both lepers.  Messala then dies from his injuries, giving him the last laugh against his old friend.

Ben-Hur accepts the news about his family, and he makes his way to the nearest leper colony.  Sure enough, his mother and sister are still alive, just as Messala claimed.  It’s a horrific sight for Ben-Hur.  Esther finds Ben-Hur at the leper colony and tries to make him forget what he has witnessed, but he refuses.  There must be a way to cure Miriam and Tirzah.

Meanwhile, word has been spreading throughout the land of the teachings and wisdom of Jesus of Nazareth.  His followers believe that Jesus is the son of God, that he is the redeemer that they have been desperately seeking.  Ben-Hur remembers being a slave and that it was Jesus who gave him water to drink, allowing him to continue surviving and ultimately return to Judea.  He blames the Romans for his fate, and Ben-Hur renounces his Roman citizenship and ties to the Arrius family.

Ben-Hur returns to the leper colony and finally speaks with his mother and sister.  He learns that Tirzah is dying from the terrible disease.  There’s only one person who can save her now.  Ben-Hur carries Tirzah, and together with Miriam and Esther, they seek out Jesus so that he can heal his sister.

Unfortunately, when they arrive back in Jerusalem they’re too late.

The town’s streets are deserted as everybody is occupied with the trial of Jesus.  The people watch in horror as Jesus is marched through the streets and forced to carry the cross that will be used to crucify him.  At one point Ben-Hur gives Jesus a cup of water, just as Jesus did to him several years earlier in the desert.  The march continues to a hill where the Roman soldiers crucify Jesus.

As Jesus dies a thunderstorm develops over the area.  The same rain that washes away Jesus’ blood also heals Miriam and Tirzah from leprosy, miraculously cleaning their skin.

Ben-Hur ends with Judah Ben-Hur tearfully reuniting with his cured mother and sister.

FINAL THOUGHTS

So is 1959’s epic film Ben-Hur any good?

YES!

From the story to the actors to the music to the cinematography, Ben-Hur sets the standards of how movies should be made.  Of course, this may be a bit of an unfair comparison as Ben-Hur is simply one of the greatest films of all time.  The movie has set nearly impossibly high standards that few films will reach.

Ben-Hur also represents the epic films from the glory days of Hollywood, when thousands of extras would be used on the sets to help set the scale and tell the story.  You won’t find any CGI armies here.  Those are all real people in the background.  Let’s also not forget the incredible details of the Roman ships used in the sea battle scene, or the epic sets from the villa of Quintus Arrius to the streets of Jerusalem.

This is a movie that most people need to experience in their lifetime.

Don’t let the age of Ben-Hur fool you.  Although the movie is over 55 years old, this one still packs a punch.  Just make sure that you have over three hours to sit back and enjoy the film without any distractions.  That may seem difficult, but Ben-Hur moves at a decent pace and keeps you focused right to the end of the movie.

Ben-Hur (1959) – movie trailer

If you haven’t already, get yourself a copy of Ben-Hur and be prepared for a fantastic experience from the glory days of Hollywood.  This is especially true for Christians during the Holy Week.

Quintus Arrius – “Your eyes are full of hate, forty-one. That’s good. Hate keeps a man alive. It gives him strength.”

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Esther – “It was Judah Ben-Hur I loved. What has become of him? You seem to be now the very thing you set out to destroy. Giving evil for evil. Hatred is turning you to stone. It’s as though you had become Messala.”

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Judah Ben-Hur – “Almost at the moment He died, I heard Him say, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’ “
Esther – “Even then.”
Judah Ben-Hur – “Even then. And I felt His voice take the sword out of my hand.”