|
At the time, William Wyler’s 1959 version of Ben-Hur (the 3rd film version) was the absolute biggest spectacle the cinematic world had ever seen. If the film was not a success, it would have spelled doom for MGM. At the time of pre-production they were nearly bankrupt, and with the budget surpassing a then unprecedented $15 million mark, MGM literally had all fingers crossed and needed a success. Of course it was, and MGM continued on for nearly 50 more years (selling out this year to Sony, with the 2005 remake of The Amityville Horror being the last true MGM film.) It is safe to say, if you enjoyed any of MGM’s releases for the past four-plus decades (the Bond films, the Pink Panther films, etc.), you owe it to Ben-Hur.
Winning eleven Oscars at the 1960 Academy Awards and four Golden Globes, Ben-Hur was the most decorated film of all time and remains so (only in 1997 did James Cameron’s Titanic match it.) Having worked in film for years, most notably in The Ten Commandments and Touch of Evil, Charlton Heston was further solidified as a remarkable lead actor with his starring role in Ben-Hur. His portrayal of fictional Jewish prince Judah Ben-Hur who (depending on your outlook) converts to Christianity is probably the best performance of his career, and earned him the Best Actor Oscar.
 Despite the fact that Lew Wallace’s original source novel was subtitled “A Tale of the Christ”, the film version is far from it, focusing almost exclusively on the character of Judah. This was a brilliant move by the screenwriter, because even with the religious overtones, the film remains accessible to all audiences by never being preachy. While the Roman politics, Christianity and Judaism play an integral part in the scope of the film, as well as character motivation, Ben-Hur is an action film. Perhaps it is the most literate action film ever, but this was a Hollywood epic and the action scenes are as spectacular as they come. The chariot race, to single out only one scene, has been highlighted in more film compilations than can be counted, and has been stolen from by more filmmakers than that.
Ben-Hur is no forgotten classic. It is not a trivial film, nor is it unrecognizable. Nearly everyone who is a true fan of cinema has seen Ben-Hur and, most likely, seen it multiple times. Therefore, there isn’t much need to discuss the plot any further, despite the incredible depth to it. If you are reading this and are considering purchasing this comprehensive set, you are probably more interested in presentation and features, so let’s just concentrate on that.
Presentation
Thankfully, we are living in an age where getting films in their original aspect ratio is the norm. This wasn’t always the case and, as a result, Ben-Hur was completely unwatchable on VHS and even the remastered laserdisc was unspectacular. Ben-Hur was filmed with the very expensive Camera 65 process using 65MM film, so it is wide – very wide. Attempting to pan & scan this would not only be a daunting task, but must have felt like murder to do so. Thankfully, we get it in its complete glory.
 This set is the film’s second DVD release, and while I don’t recall any complaints about the first release’s transfer, this one improves on it dramatically. It retains the 2.76:1 anamorphic transfer, which Warner Bros. has remastered quite brilliantly, making the film look brand new. Just take a simple glance at the comparison shots. Shadow scenes are incredibly black. I didn’t see any spots, grain, or any other print damage throughout the entire run-time. For a film nearly fifty years old, this is an impressive feat. Frankly, new movies don’t look this good. The audio is excellent as well, but doesn’t seem to be changed any from the prior release. You will not have any problems understanding dialog at all. It’s presented in 5.1 Dolby Surround in both English and French (French was only 2.0 on the prior release) and is subtitled in English, French, and Spanish (dropping the Portuguese from the last release.) Sadly, none of the extras are subtitled.
Extras
The extras on the first dual-sided, single-disc release of Ben-Hur were slight, but valuable. This mammoth 4-disc set reuses those extras, and adds quite a bit of worth as well.
Audio Commentary by Film Historian T. Gene Hatcher, with Charlton Heston
This runs for the full length of the film, (now spread out over two single-sided discs) with very few pauses and is continually engaging from start to finish. Heston’s on-site stories provide insight that no other could possibly provide. Hatcher proves himself to be a wealth of information on Ben-Hur. Not just the film, but the novel, prior versions of the film, and the history of the actors, both before and after the film. Heston’s bits seem to be cribbed from the solo commentary on the previous release, which despite being labeled so, was not feature length.
Isolated Score by Miklos Rozsa
One of my favorite, albeit rarely used, DVD features. The score for this film was Oscar winning and deservedly so. Here you can hear it devoid of any sound effects or pesky dialog; it also runs for the entire length of the film.
 The 1925 Silent Version
The third disc houses the complete 1925 silent film epic Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ as directed by Fred Niblo. Considering that the footage is now eighty years old, it looks remarkable. There is naturally grain here and there, and other disruptions to the print, but it is as restored as it is likely to get, and certainly far from unwatchable. Some of the footage used a primitive color process (note, not colorized) and the film runs for 124 minutes with a recently recorded score by Carl Davis. It is an interesting and extremely well done film on its own. Having this on DVD is a wonderful thing, and a perfect addition to this set.
Ben-Hur: The Epic That Changed Cinema – (57:41)
Beginning with this incredible documentary, this and all further features are on disc four. This is a newly done and exceptional piece showing what this film did to change the standards of Hollywood. Among the many people interviewed you have film historian Bruce Crawford, directors Ridley Scott and George Lucas, producer Arnon Milchan, Heston’s son Fraser Heston, and William Wyler in archival footage. Essentially, this ode features the above people talking about how they have used, and seen the filmmaking tricks of Ben-Hur in many of the important films since then. Ridley Scott mentions shades of techniques used in Gladiator and Kingdom of Heaven and George Lucas mentions how he looked at the chariot race when creating the pod race scene in Star Wars: Episode I. All and all, a very well edited piece solidifying the film’s historical significance.
Ben-Hur: The Making of an Epic – (58:10)
A hold over from both the 35th Anniversary laserdisc and original DVD release, this still stands as one of the best (if not the best) making-of documentaries of all time. In less than one hour, we are given complete insight and history of not just the making of Ben-Hur, but also the 1907 and 1925 versions, as well as the history of the original novel. Special focus is given to the importance of the film to MGM’s survival as a studio and the acclaim that it earned upon release. Possibly, the quickest hour you will spend on any feature, on any DVD. I never tire of watching it.
Ben-Hur: A Journey Through Pictures – (5:07)
This is a very short bit, which is more enjoyable than the average “gallery” feature. A lively animated bit featuring various stills, posters, sketches and other images; all accompanied by the score and various quotes. A neat little feature for sure.
Screen Tests
Four screen tests of actors who didn’t make the cut. Leslie Nielsen tries out for the titular role along side both Cesare Danova (6:59) and Yale Wexler as Messala (11:26). Yale’s sequence is silent, but accompanied by the score. The other two scenes are of George Baker and William Russell trying for Ben-Hur and Messala respectively (5:33), and hair and make-up tests on actress Haya Harareet (5:07) (who did get the role of Esther). These are interesting; imagining Leslie Nielsen as Judah opens a world of ‘what-ifs'. I would be more interested in seeing screen tests of the actors who did actually land the roles though. Some of this was on the previous DVD but they have been expanded upon.
Vintage Newsreels
These are six different newsreels that used to play before films and on television to promote the film and report on the success of it. Interesting in a historical context, but you aren’t likely to gain anything from it. Fluff.
Theatrical Trailers
No less than five trailers for the film. All of them pretty good as far as trailers go, and an interesting advance trailer with no footage just proclaiming that it will be screened in the same theatre.
One of the nicest extras is a paper reproduction of the original 34-page program book entitled “The Story of the Making of Ben-Hur” faithfully reproduced down to the yellowing of the pages. It’s fantastic, and I wish more studios did nice supplements like this.
All and all the only things not brought over from the previous release are some text features and a photo gallery. You won’t miss your old release if you choose to upgrade.
Fine
There are no doubt hundreds of films released on DVD that didn’t get the care and attention that Ben-Hur did on its first go-round. I can’t imagine there was anyone clamoring for a bigger, better release. Yet, Warner Bros. has given us just that. For your money you’ll get a completely remastered film  with a vastly improved commentary, the 1925 version, and two amazing documentaries. Additionally, gone is the flipper disc (which annoys many DVD collectors), and it is replaced with a four-disc set in absolutely amazing packaging with an awesome booklet. It is impossible to not recommend this film to anyone who cherishes cinema, and this is certainly the version to purchase. Ben-Hur has never looked better and DVDs don’t get any better. Even if you have the old release, you should pick this one up with great haste.
|
