Director: William Wyler
Screenplay: Karl Tunber
Starring:Â Charlton Heston, Jack Hawkins, Haya Harareet, Stephen Boyd, Hugh Griffith, Martha Scott, Cathy O’Donnell, Sam Jaffe
Country: USA
Running Time: 3 hour and 32 minutes
Year: 1959
BBFC Certificate: PG
Ben Hur (1959) is an indisputable masterpiece. It tells the epic and sprawling tale of Judah Ben-Hur, brought to life with immeasurable gravitas by the great Charlton Heston, while in parallel, showing snippets of Jesus Christ’s life as he gains a following but is ultimately crucified.
The film is pure golden age Hollywood at its finest. It was produced by MGM and helmed by William Wyler, who was a stranger to the sword-and-sandal genre but had directed The Heiress (1949), The Best Years of Our Live (1946), and Roman Holiday (1953), among a wealth of classics. The religious chariot racing epic, an adaptation of Lew Wallace’s 1880 novel ‘Ben-Hur: A Tale of Christ’, and a remake of a 1925 silent, became the second highest grossing movie since Gone with the Wind in 1939.
It would also go on to sweep at the Oscars, picking up 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor. Presently, it has been restored by Warner Brothers in stunning 4K UHD from the original 60mm camera negatives.
The restoration process must have been a huge agonising undertaking due to the films lengthy 3 hour and 32-minute runtime, but as a viewer, the film just sails by. It’s perfectly well-paced. A lot happens and we’re introduced to a great number of characters but the films lingers on the right moments and remains compelling throughout. It has the feel of a blockbuster.
The film is a tale of betrayal and hardship. Early on, Ben-Hur, a wealthy Jewish prince and merchant living in Jerusalem, is wrongly sentenced for treason against the conquering Romans. His boyhood friend and Roman General, Messala (Stephen Boyd), sentences him to slavery on a galley ship, and his mother and sister to a prison cell. Ben-Hur must survive, break free from his shackles, and return to free his family.
Heston plays the role with such an intense sense of earnestness. We feel the intensity of his love for his old friend Messala, before the betrayal, and his grief and agony smoulders from the screen. It’s a remarkable performance and he’s in almost every shot of the film once he’s introduced.
The film shows the tyranny and barbarous nature of the Romans, from the sadistic general (Jack Hawkins), practically torturing his galley rowers, their cruel treatment of prisoners, to the ultimate evil, the crucifixion of Christ.
Boyd, a Northern-Irish actor, puts in a breath-taking performance as Messala. At times, he seems honourable yet his fanatical devotion to Rome is his undoing. Acting with complete indifference to the Judean cause, he becomes a truly hateful figure. The embittered relationship between Ben and Messala almost feels like the heart of the movie.
Israeli actress Haya Harareet puts in a powerful performance as stoic love interest Esther, along with Martha Scott as mother Miriam and Cathy O’Donnell as sister Tirzah. Welsh actor Hugh Griffith is simply delightful as horse owner Sheik Ilderim who convinces Ben to race Messala.
Picture and Sound
The picture and sound are absolutely stunning throughout. The film is presented in its original 65mm aspect ratio with crystal clear quality, and complemented by a sumptuous orchestral score. Boasting a rich tapestry of sets, some of these colossal in scale, costumes, varied and colourful, brought together with awe-inspiring shot composition, this has to trump Lawrence of Arabia (1962) as the greatest epic to view in 4K.
There are so many finer details that pop off the screen. Like, the water trickling down Ben’s face as he accepts a drink from Christ, the sweat glistening from the slave’s bodies, the ripples of the waves on the ocean ahead of battle, the reds and purples of the Roman garbs, and the glint of steal as it shimmers off the spike of a lethal chariot wheel. The chariot racing scenes were glorious with the incredible display of visuals providing an immersive and thrilling experience.
In terms of sound, we hear every rattle, clang, squeak of hinges, creak and footstep, layered amongst the roar of battle and the brass-heavy opulent 100-piece orchestral score.
Although, there was one hiccup at the very beginning. After Christ is born in a stable, while all the animals are bleating and celebrating, there was a piercing moo from one cow and that had a grating effect on my television’s speakers. Thankfully, that was the one and only hiccup.
Film:
The Digital and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc releases contain the following new and previously released special features:
- Ben-Hur: Anatomy of an Epic (NEW)
- The Cinematography of Scale (NEW)
- Charlton Heston & Ben-Hur: A Personal Journey
- Ben-Hur: The Making of an Epic
- Ben-Hur: A Journey Through Pictures
- Screen Tests: George Baker and William Russell
- Screen Tests: Leslie Nielsen and Cesare Danova
- Screen Tests: Leslie Nielsen and Yale Wexler
- Screen Tests: Haya Harareet and Make-Up Test
- Commentary by Film Historian T. Gene Hatcher with Charlton Heston (2 Parts)
- Music Only Track Showcasing Mikos Rózsa’s Award-Winning Score (2 Parts)
Unfortunately, the discs I was sent only included the film commentary and music-only track, and none of the other special features (which came as quite a perplexing discovery). So, I can’t give the special features a rating, despite how marvellous they sound. Warner Brothers has a rich history of documentary features on their releases, and the offerings look superb
Although, it is worth noting this package does not include 1925’s Ben-Hur: A Tale of Christ which was included in the previous Bluray release.
The film commentary featuring T. Gene Hatcher with Charlton Heston is terrific. It was a clever idea to combine them with the film’s long runtime. Heston’s stories about the making of the film are superb and so enlightening. Film historian Hatcher’s comments provide further detail and are quite humorous. It gives you a really in-depth insight into the context around movie and what went into its making.
Warner Brother releases Ben-Hur on 4K UHD Bluray on 23rd March, 2026.