It is not worth much

Rating: 4/10 (4 November 2002)

This movie picture, awarded with eleven Oscar, is not worth much. It is a low example of Roman pictures at Hollywood worse way. It means that they spend a lot of money but there are not talent at all inside the product. The responsible was a man like once solid and talented William Wyler, an film-maker with a long and proven experience. American cinema must be grateful to him (The Westerner, Mrs. Miniver, The Best Years of Our Lives, The Collector), but not for this picture. This Ben-Hur is a very long subject index of Roman cinema common places (sometimes even becomes involuntarily hilarious and childish). The best sequence -the chariots race- could be made by any craftsman less prestigious than Wyler. Of course I do prefer Quo Vadis (1951) or Italian Roman movies like Teodora Slave Empress (1953). Less money, more interesting result. Everything is colossal at this Ben-Hur (there are another one dumb) including the story written by Gore Vidal and some more people. A conscious Vidal prefer stay uncredited.