Day #71 - Ben Hur

Ben Hur. I can't believe it's taken me so long to see it. I guess I thought I had magically watched it sometime without realizing it - but honestly none of it was familiar. I thought it was absolutely amazing - I loved the story and was moved by the set design and effects, especially in Rome. Ben Hur follows the story of Judah Ben Hur, a wealthy native of Jerusalem at the time when it was being taken over by the Roman Empire. When Judah turns against the Roman placed Governor - coincidentally his boyhood friend Masalla, and is wrongly accused of attempted murder on a Roman soldier, he is banished to the gallows and his mother and sister are placed in jail. He vows revenge on Masalla, his anger and hate fueling his will to live. After saving the life of a Roman General who commanded the ship he worked on, Ben Hur was adopted by him, living in Rome for a short period of time becoming a champion Charioteer. He leaves Rome to search for his family and find his revenge on Masalla, eventually defeating him a chariot race which leads to Masalla's death. I don't want to say much more about the plot as I don't like to give away too much - the movie continues as Judah reunites his family and finds his faith through the witness of Christ's crucifixion. I had a couple issues with the ending but overall really loved the movie.

There were a number of things that I loved about this movie - first of all, Charlton Heston. Throughout my challenge I have found a couple of people who I could cast in the story of my life - and for the role of my Grandpa Eckelman I am casting Charlton Heston. I can't quite put my finger on it but I believe it's something in how he moves his mouth. Mom and Melissa, any thoughts? I'll find a good pic for above. Anyhoo - Heston was really great in the role of Judah Ben Hur. I haven't seen him in a movie before and was surprised at how much I liked him. He had a good mix of strength and masculinity but at times he was also a bit feminine (for lack of a better word). Interesting. So another thing I loved was the story of Jesus - although not the primary story, I think that the question of faith and hope is really important in this movie and in the end plays a huge role. Throughout the movie you hear talk of the man from Nazareth - I just like that you never see the face of Jesus and the story only exists to strengthen that of Ben Hur and his family. Finally, wow - enough can't be said for the chariot scene. Apparently it took 5 months to film and of course that was before there were any computer effects so it was all straight camera work - amazing.

Ben Hur saved MGM from bankruptcy - a huge gamble, it really paid off by earning $75 million at the box office. It also won 11 Academy Awards - a feat only equalled by Titanic and Lord of the Rings - Return of the King. What I simply CANNOT understand is how it won 11 Oscars and lost only one for Best Screenplay - how on EARTH can you win Director, Picture, Actor, Supporting Actor, Set Decoration, Costume Design, Cinematography, Special Effects, Film Editing, Sound and Music and NOT Screenplay!? Are you kidding? Impossible.