Review of Four-Disc Collector’s Edition DVD of Ben-Hur
Set in Judea during the reign of Rome, Ben-Hur is the tale of a man whose first love is for his people, a man who saw The Christ, a man who wants revenge. Judah Ben-Hur (Heston) is a highly respected leader of his people. His quest begins when he questions Messala (Boyd) and Rome’s presence in Judea. In an act of pure hate, Ben-Hur’s sister is accused of trying to kill the governor with a falling shingle, and Judah takes the blame for it. Messala sends his mother and sister to rot away in prison while he condemns Ben-Hur to slavery.
Just in first hour of this 4-hour-long epic about honor and courage, director William Wyler (Wuthering Heights) shows us scenes so big one might question whether or not it was all real. But rest assured, there was a lot of time, effort and money spent to recreate the cities and pastures of Judea authentically.
Judah marches through the desert in shambles and shingles. Then he encounters someone who’s face just stuns the man and his Roman captures, and finds the strength to push forward. Finally, aboard a Roman ship, Judah is among many slaves or prisoners who are whipped into rowing. His hate for Rome only grows.
The ship encounters a battle in which everyone including Judah and his fellow prisoners could die. One of the enemy ships collides with the side of his Roman ship, and everyone struggles to survive. Then in an act of bravery and honor, Judah saves the captain of the ship, Quintus Arrius (Hawkins). The question remains why. The two men are both brought aboard another Roman ship. This time Judah isn’t sent back to the gallows, Quintus wouldn’t have it.
Judah is brought to Rome and “adopted” as Quintus Arrius’s own son. As great as the situation and circumstances may, Judah is still left feeling empty. He may be saved, but his quest is far from over. Quintus aides Judah in his vengeance as he gives him a Roman stamp in which Judah claims his power over Messala, and challenges him in a chariot race.
At this point, one might think a chariot race is nothing compared to the size and scope of everything else we’ve seen. But it’s the famous Roman chariot race that proved to be the biggest filmmaking challenge for William Wyler and his crew. His tireless efforts to make the race as real and intense as possible risked the lives of many stunt men. The pay off was one of cinema’s greatest film sequences in history.
Judah took Messala on with the four beautiful white horses of Shiek Ilderim (Hugh Griffith), and won. In his last dying breath Judah’s longtime friend and even bigger enemy, Messala told him where he could find his family. And, Judah sets out to find and comfort them in the worst of all possible conditions. His mission almost becomes holy in nature as Judah finds himself trying to help that stranger whom had given him and stunned the Romans before. He watched as this man, called “the messiah” by many was nailed to a cross and crucified on a hill.
In a beautiful, climactic ending, this lord and savior of so many bled, and his blood miraculously cured many people, including Judah’s mother and sister.
Ben-Hur AKA Ben-Hur: A Tale of The Christ was written by General Lew Wallace, and originally filmed in black and white in 1925 by Fred Niblo. This version of the film is included in this beautiful four-disc collector’s edition, and both the ’59 and ’25 versions of the film make for a wonderful viewing experience. Of course, it’s hard to top William Wyler’s big, colousal vision with the film’s pounding trumpets, it’s impossibly huge sets, and it’s miles of streaming extras.
The ’59 version of the film is seperated onto two discs, and includes commentary by film historian T Gene Hatcher, with Charlton Heston. An extra music-only track is also included. The third disc is reserved for the 1925 version of the film. The fourth disc offers a great many documentaries, featurettes and special features, including “Ben-Hur: The Making of an Epic”, and screen tests featuring Leslie Nielsen, Cesare Danova, George Baker and William Russel. The vintage newsreels galleries, highlights from the 4/4/60 Academy Awards ceremony and “Ben-Hur: A Journey Through Pictures” offers a great deal of insightful fun for fans.
What’s stopping you from going out there, renting Ben-Hur at your local video store or buying it at your local video retailer or just going to Amazon.com right now and ordering yourself a copy of this wonderful epic?
