Simply the Greatest epic ever made

Rating: 10/10 (5 April 2001)

Set in the time of Christ during the height of the mighty Roman Empire, Ben-Hur follows the lives of two former childhood friends Judah Ben Hur (Charlton Heston) and Messala (Steven Boyd), who become the bitterest of enemies. As they grow older, the latter shows unswerving blind loyalty to the Roman Empire. After Ben Hur refuses to help Messala round up what he perceives to be enemies of the Empire, he is framed for a crime he did not commit and is sentenced to a life of living hell on a galley ship as a slave.
His blind belief in his fate coupled with a thirst for vengeance helps him to survive this torturous existence. For three years, he is chained to an oar until during a battle with Greek pirates he saves the life of the Roman commander Quintas (Jack Hawkins), who takes Ben-Hur under his wing and frees him from his life of bondage. He becomes the main trainer of Quintas's stables and in the course of time his adopted son and heir. Believing that Massala has killed his mother and sister, Ben-Hur exacts revenge by challenging him to a chariot race.
The 40-minute race took three months to shoot, in an arena that was a year in the making, and was one of the most ambitious sets ever staged by a major Hollywood studio. It forms the focal point of the movie.