Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ 1925
Directed by Fred Niblo
- Adventure, Drama, Romance, Action
- 143 min
- NR
Amazing! Thrilling! Colossal! Mighty!
Erstwhile childhood friends, Judah Ben-Hur and Messala meet again as adults, this time with Roman officer Messala as conqueror and Judah as a wealthy, though conquered, Israelite. A slip of a brick during a Roman parade causes Judah to be sent off as a galley slave, his property confiscated and his mother and sister imprisoned. Years later, as a result of his determination to stay alive and his willingness to aid his Roman master, Judah returns to his homeland an exalted and wealthy Roman athlete. Unable to find his mother and sister, and believing them dead, he can think of nothing else than revenge against Messala.
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Character
Epic, earnest, grave and classical in form.
- intimateepic
- earnestironic
- gravecomic
- classical in formformally daring
- resolvedopen-ended
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Reviews on TMDB
Written by TMDB members; each links to the original. Not part of Tastebuds's numbers.
- CinemaSerfon TMDB · Jul 20247/10
With the Roman legions securely ensconced in his Judaean homeland, Prince "Judah Ben-Hur" (Ramon Navarro) hopes that the arrival of his childhood friend "Messala" (Francis X. Bushman) might make things a bit easier for his conquered people. Fat chance! His erstwhile friend is far more concerned with impressing his boss and keeping the locals under control. An incident during the arrival procession of the new Governor gives the new regime exactly the opportunity it wants to stamp it's authority and that sees "Ben-Hur" sent to the galleys and his mother and sister to prison. Luck hasn't quite abandoned our hero, though, as the fleet on which he serves goes into battle and he ends up rescuing the Consul "Arrius" (Frank Currier) who proceeds to adopt him as his son and give him the opportunity to race his teams of horses in the great circus of Rome. He's determined to get back home to find his family, though, and soon returns to find them dead and his former friend a champion of the races. With the backing of "Sheik Ilderim" (Mitchell Lewis) he takes to the track to avenge himself on his rival. This is all set at the time of the rise of Christianity and culminates with the crucifixion
Read the whole review on TMDB - sykobananaon TMDB · Apr 20218/10
What an epic. Watching this, you can see why Wyler wanted to remake it in the 50s. In this, you can see the emotions of the characters that are much more fleshed out compared to the first (unauthorised) screen version. Set design and costumes are grand, though the hairstyling is reminiscent of the 1920s (but maybe Romans were into that). The score is typical silent movie fare. Colourising the "Biblical scenes" is a neat touch (reminiscent of "red letters" in a lot of Bibles), it focuses the viewers attention to where Wallace wanted the attention drawn. This is very faithful to the book. The set pieces are what you watch this for though and they do not disappoint. The naval battle is great and the chariot race... is jaw dropping for its time. Two and a half hours though feels a bit long though. Given that this is nearly a century old, this is a great look into cinema's past.
Read the whole review on TMDB - Tourmaon TMDB · Nov 202310/10
What an amazing, absolutely beautiful film. Especially for nearly a century ago, but for any movie ever. The backgrounds, the grand sets, the sheer amounts of extras, and the animation of the stars and the coloring of the biblical scenes. Just...wow. And topless women! Its got everything. (not Mary) WI first heard about this version after seeing a video on TCM about silent films. Gonna watch the '59 version tomorrow. An absolute must watch if you like Bible fanfiction. ~~~ It's Public Domain and free on the Internet Archive. Better than paying Google for it.
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Cast
- Ramon NovarroJudah Ben-Hur
- Francis X. BushmanMessala
- May McAvoyEsther
- Betty BronsonMary
- Claire McDowellPrincess of Hur
- Kathleen KeyTirzah
- Carmel MyersIras
- Nigel De BrulierSimonides
- Mitchell LewisSheik Ilderim
- Leo WhiteSanballat
Crew
- Fred NibloDirector
- Lew WallaceNovel
- Clyde De VinnaDirector of Photography
- René GuissartDirector of Photography
- Percy HilburnDirector of Photography
- William AxtOriginal Music Composer
- David MendozaOriginal Music Composer
- Lloyd NoslerEditor
- J.J. CohnProducer
- Samuel GoldwynProducer
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Pairings
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The Winds of War 198385% alikeTelevision · Both earnest, epic, grave.
The Pillars of the Earth 201084% alikeTelevision · Both earnest, epic, grave.
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