Review of Ben-Hur (1959) by Paul Z — 05 Mar 2009

William Wyler's powerful giant of a film is not only the most appealing and most bearable of Hollywood's classic biblical epics but also the most well made that I have seen. It does not rise above its kind, keeping in the genre and period tradition of grandiose exhibition and theatrical histrionics, nevertheless this glorious entertainment utilizes these characteristics as well as they could possibly be done within the boundaries of genre, formula and audience. Unlike a Cecil B. DeMille film like The Ten Commandments, exhibition is not exhibitionism but a depiction of its story's large and adventurous scale. Moreover, Wyler does not sacrifice his masterful deep-focus cinematography and gracefully dramatic cuts for the sake of blindsiding the audience with spectacle.

The pure degree of this movie, this event, in the days before digitally produced crowds and computer-generated process shots, is almost beyond belief. The film's vivid color, for instance, is insatiable. The chief action sequence, the truly timeless chariot race, remains breathtaking after half a century of visual effects progression, no matter what the cost, even an actor's life. After all, he died for art!

As one can see as a definite pattern in Wyler's filmography, Ben-Hur is a memorable revenge tale, one that skillfully avoids two-facedness alongside its religious message of forgiveness. A less than savory person but an undeniably fine actor, Charlton Heston stars as the title character, a Jewish prince whose childhood friendship, and suggested hues of homoerotic attraction, with Messala, played by Stephen Boyd, turns to hate when Messala becomes a Roman officer who willfully betrays him and his family in spite of their loving history together.

There is dense substance that I took from the film. Not belonging to any Christian denomination or any religion at all, I found myself to be very enlightened by the film's portrayal of Christ's crucifixion from the perspective of characters not involved in the Bible's stories at all. Although the life of Christ is sketched from his birth to his veiled life to his communal sermonizing to his passion and death, we clearly see or hear him. By the end, I found myself understanding more clearly than ever of what the exchange really consisted when Jesus "died for our sins." It is portrayed exceptionally and naturally, just like the film's striking image of the redemptive crucifixion. At the same time, it is done so reverently that it even made the Vatican film list. I wonder if they knew the director was a Jew.