A landmark epic powerful enough to restore one's faith in faith

Rating: Null/10 (31 December 2009)

This film explains what the Christian faith is all about, through the story of a man whose life has been thrown into turmoil.
The life of Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston), the prince of Judea, is destroyed by the Roman Empire. After years of enslavement, Judah makes an unlikely return to Judea. A man of great faith, Judah becomes increasingly bent on revenge. Life under Roman rule has changed him. But with the help of the woman he loves and the teachings of a rabbi from Nazareth, Judah may find his faith once more.
You see, the story of Judah Ben-Hur coincides with the story of Jesus. Jesus isn't a full-fledged character in this movie, but he appears at different points. It was the kindness of Jesus, a stranger, that gave Judah the will to live while he was a slave. And when vengeance had gotten Judah in its grip, the hope offered by Jesus restored his goodness. Only by then Jesus was sentenced to death by the Romans.
BEN-HUR is a Biblical epic that I found surprisingly entertaining. There's a love story aspect, there's Judah's journey to get back at the man who imprisoned him, there's the classic chariot race scene, and there's the Biblical stuff about the influence of Jesus in the Roman world. The 3-1/2 hour film is manageable because so much happens from beginning to end.
Hugh Griffith gives an enjoyable supporting performance as an Arab sheik. Stephen Boyd plays the complete jerk who was once Judah's best friend. Jack Hawkins is the Roman commander who earns Judah's respect. And Finlay Currie shows up as Balthasar, the wise man from Alexandria.
The movie is a nice dose of Christianity. In fact, the story pretty much explains what Christianity is all about. How it came to be and why people like it. But the film should still be enjoyable for the non-religious viewer.
It's quite an achievement. The epic scale, the huge sets, the action, everything. It has a G rating, but there's a fair amount of blood.
BEN-HUR is not one of my personal favorite films, but I did enjoy the story and I can certainly recognize the quality of this enormous production. Recommended. It's something special.