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Ben-Hur (1959)

TV_PG 212 min  -  Action | Adventure | Drama  -   16 December 1959 (UK)
8.2
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Ratings: 8.2/10 from 81,034 users  
Reviews: 310 user | 79 critic

When a Jewish prince is betrayed and sent into slavery by a Roman friend, he regains his freedom and comes back for revenge.

Director:

William Wyler

Writers:

Lew Wallace (novel), Karl Tunberg (screenplay)
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Cast

Complete credited cast:
Charlton Heston ...
Jack Hawkins Jack Hawkins ...
Haya Harareet Haya Harareet ...
Stephen Boyd ...
Hugh Griffith ...
Martha Scott Martha Scott ...
Cathy O'Donnell Cathy O'Donnell ...
Sam Jaffe Sam Jaffe ...
Finlay Currie Finlay Currie ...
Balthasar / Narrator
Frank Thring Frank Thring ...
Terence Longdon Terence Longdon ...
George Relph George Relph ...
André Morell André Morell ...
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Storyline

Judah Ben-Hur lives as a rich Jewish prince and merchant in Jerusalem at the beginning of the 1st century. Together with the new governor his old friend Messala arrives as commanding officer of the Roman legions. At first they are happy to meet after a long time but their different politic views separate them. During the welcome parade a roof tile falls down from Judah's house and injures the governor. Although Messala knows they are not guilty, he sends Judah to the galleys and throws his mother and sister into prison. But Judah swears to come back and take revenge. Written by Matthias Scheler <tron@lyssa.owl.de>  

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

Friend | Roman | Galley | Jerusalem | Revenge  | See more »

Taglines:

A Tale of the Christ See more »

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | History | Romance

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

(UK) See more »

Also Known As:

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ See more »

Box Office

Budget:

$15,900,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$90,000,000 (Worldwide) (January 1989)
See more »

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) See more »
Show detailed company contact information on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

 | Sweden: (1970)  | Sweden: (1962)  | UK: (1993 re-release)  | (DVD edition)  | (2005 DVD)

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) (Westrex Recording System) | Dolby (1993 re-release)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.76 : 1
See full technical specs »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Charlton Heston himself wrote some additional scenes between Ben-Hur and Messala. They were never used as William Wyler deemed them to be "the phoniest thing" he'd ever had to deal with from an actor. See more »

Goofs

Continuity: During the race, just before the first chariot goes down, the left wheel of that chariot is removed by Messala's chariot, but in the next shot you can view both wheels intact before it goes down. See more »

Quotes

Sheik Ilderim: One God, that I can understand; but one wife? That is not civilized.
[nudges Judah]
Sheik Ilderim: It is not generous!
See more »

Crazy Credits

The Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer lion is shown in a still-frame to appear looking peaceful at the beginning rather than roaring. See more »

Connections

Referenced in Il ladrone (1980) See more »