Ben-Hur (1959)

Ben-Hur is an American movie from 1959, directed by William Wyler. It is the third and possibly most famous film version of Lew Wallace's novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. The film premiered at the Loew's State Theatre in New York City, on 18 november 1959.

The film was a huge success and won a record number of 11 Academy Awards, a feat equaled only by Titanic (1997) and The Lord of The Rings: The Return of the King(2003).



Content
[hide] *1 Story  ==Story[ Edit] == The film begins with a prologue in which the story of the birth of Jesus is shown. The rest of the movie begins 26 years later and revolves around Judah Ben-Hur, a wealthy merchant from Jerusalem. He is there to witness that his childhood friend Messala is the new Tribune. The two are initially happy to see each other again, but their political Outlook on life is driving them: Messala believes in the glory of Rome, while Ben-Hur is faithful to the Jews.
 * 2 Cast
 * Background 3
 * 3.1 Production
 * 3.2 Actors
 * 3.3 Music
 * 3.4 differences from the book
 * 4 awards and nominations
 * 5 external links

During the arrival of Governor Valerius Gratus is there a roof tile of the roof of Ben-Hurs House. This frees up nearly Gratus. Although Messala knows that it was an accident, he does like Ben-Hur wanted to commit an attack. Ben-Hur is condemned to the galleys. Ben-Hurs mother Miriam and his sister Robbie are locked up. Ben-Hur swears revenge. He is brought captive to Tyre and it seems like the world is hostile to him, but in Nazareth he meets a friendly young man who gives him a drink.

After three years as a galley slave is Ben-Hur assigned to the flagship of the consul Quintus Arrius, who instructed a group of Macedonian pirates off. During the battle, the ship of Arrius destroyed, but Ben-Hur saves Arrius's life. As thanks for this purpose he adopted by Arrius. With its regained freedom can explore Rome and Judah know Roman culture. He becomes a successful car rider.

Finally decide Ben-Hur to go back to Judea. Along the way he meets the Arab Sheik Ilderim and Balthasar. Ilderim possesses four white Arabian horses and wants to let them train for the chariot races. There is a Ben-Hur wagenren champion, wants him to take part in the upcoming Ilderim for race for the new Governor, Pontius Pilate. Ben-Hur accepts the offer when he hears that Messala also participate in the race.

Back in Judea discovered Ben-Hur that Esther, a slave to his family that he ever gave the freedom as a wedding gift, still single is. They also shows still to love him. Ben-Hur visits Messala, and demands the release of his mother and sister. Messala gives here answered, but when he sends someone to retrieve the two from the Dungeon, they both turn out to have leprosy . Therefore be banished them from the city. Esther discovered this, but dares not to Ben-Hur to tell. She tells him that the two have died in prison.

The day of the race approaches, and Ilderim warns Ben-Hur that Messala has a special car with knives to the axes. In the race itself is hard and merciless to it. Messala disables various opponents by damaging their cars, but he comes in the end itself and is run over by the other participants whereby he gets seriously injured. Visits Messala and Ben-Hur WINS later in a nursing room, where his both legs amputated in order to save his life. Messala tells Ben-Hur still that his mother and sister are not dead, that he can find them in the Valley of the leprosy patients. He says: "the race is not over yet."

Ben-Hur finds the two end up and is shocked about their condition. Esther tells him of a Prophet from Nazareth and the sermon on the mount. She tells Ben-Hur what she has seen, but to know anything about it. When he learns that Robbie is dying, he is going to tack. Together with Esther Robbie and Miriam he brings to the city. At that moment the man from Nazareth is whisked away to be crucified. Ben-Hur recognizes him, it's the young man from Nazareth. Now it's his turn to Jesus to give him help by water on the Via Dolorosa.

In the end, Ben-Hur witnessing the crucifixion. Immediately after Jesus ' death are Miriam and Robbie miraculously cured. Ben-Hur, encouraged by Jesus ' last words, returns home to build a new life with Esther. ==Division Of Roles<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ Edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] ==  ==Background<span class="mw-editsection" len="332" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ Edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == ===Production<span class="mw-editsection" len="330" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ Edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Ben-Hur was definitely for that time a very expensive film to make. There were 300 sets for necessary, spread over an area of 1.4 square kilometres. The film was a gamble by MGM to save itself from bankruptcy. The gamble worked there the film yielded a total of $ 75 million.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">It was filmed with a process called "MGM Camera 65". This enabled the producers to film large panorama images.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">The galley scene brought a number of problems with it. The original boat where Ben-Hur would stand on turned out to be so heavy, that he did not remain afloat. That is why the scene had to be recorded in a studio.Furthermore, the cameras are not good in the boat can be arranged, so had to be cut in half for filming, the boat. The paddles also had to be shortened, but were weighted down because it would be too light otherwise, rowing and would happen to unrealistic.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">During the shooting turned out to be one of the Extras missing a hand. Director Wyler played here is handy on in by fake blood and an excellent bot to confirm on the stump, so as to mimic a heavy injury. He did the same with another extra that a foot was missing.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Another well-known scene that had long, was the chariot race. Andrew Marton, a Hollywood director who often bijkluste as second Director for other people's movies, the Director for this scene in itself. Even at today's standards is this scene considered to be one of the most spectacular action scenes ever filmed. The shooting took place in the Cinecittà Studios outside Rome, and took three months to complete. There were 15,000 Extras had to be assembled for the scene, and the movie set was one of the largest ever built. Eighteen chariots were made for the scene, half of which was used to practice. The set was visited by a tour bus every hour.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">Charlton Heston had four weeks to learn riding on the chariot. His of some stunt men. To the scene to give more impact and realism, there were dolls put on important points in the race to give the impression that people were run over by the cars.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">On the scene do different strong stories round, including that a stuntman would have died during the shooting. Stuntman Nosher Powell even mentions this incident in his autobiography.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-1" len="166" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"> [1]  however, there is no evidence that this actually happened. Another story is that there would be a red Ferrari to see during the scene, but this is denied in the book Movie Mistakes.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-2" len="166" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"> [2] ===Actors<span class="mw-editsection" len="328" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ Edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">For the role of Ben-Hur was a large number of actors approached, until the choice finally fell on Charlton Heston. Burt Lancaster claimed to have offered the role, but to also have refused because he did not agree with the violent moral of the story. Paul Newman turned, he looked right because in the costumes from the film. Other actors who were offered, were Rock Hudson and Leslie Nielsen.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">The role of Jesus, whose face never appears in the film, was played by opera singer Claude Heater. He was not credited for his role. ===Music<span class="mw-editsection" len="327" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ Edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === <p style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">The film music was composed by Miklós Rózsa.

===Differences from the book<span class="mw-editsection" len="345" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ Edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] === ==Awards and nominations<span class="mw-editsection" len="342" style="-webkit-user-select:none;font-size:small;margin-left:1em;line-height:1em;display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;font-family:sans-serif;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">[ Edit<span class="mw-editsection-bracket" len="1" style="color:rgb(85,85,85);">] == <p lang="en" len="292" style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">The film won a record number of 11 Academy Awards, namely:<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-NY_Times_3-0" len="175" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[3]
 * Shofar Calls (Star of Bethlehem Disappears)-man
 * Love Theme-MGM Studio and Orchestra (no singing)
 * Fertility Dance-Indians, MGM Studio and Orchestra
 * Arrius ' Party-MGM Studio and Orchestra
 * Hallelujah (Finale)-MGM Studio and Orchestra Chorus
 * During the chariot race hits Messala seriously injured. In the book, Messala five years after the chariot race killed by his mistress, Iras, the daughter of Ilderim. In the film comes not for Iras and Messala comes after the chariot race no longer for.
 * In the film Ben-Hurs loyal steward Simonides a close acquaintance. In the book meet Ben-Hur his steward and only later does it cost him any effort to prove his identity.
 * In the book converted Ben-Hur already for the crucifixion to Christianity. Also be Ben-Hurs mother and sister in the book already cured.
 * In the book is Quintus Arrius an acquaintance of Ben-Hurs father. In the film he is a stranger. In the book is mentioned in the film how Arrius finally dies, this is not shown.
 * The book ends five years after the race. Ben-Hur lives than in Rome and get a legacy of Sheikh Ilderim. In the film, this additional scene not shown.

<p lang="en" len="97" style="margin-top:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">In addition, the film was also nominated for an Academy Award in the category of best screenplay.
 * Best film
 * Best Director (William Wyler)
 * Best actor (Charlton Heston)
 * Best supporting actor (Hugh Griffith)
 * Best set design (Edward c. Carfagno, William a. Horning, and Hugh Hunt)
 * Best cinematography
 * Best costumes
 * Best visual effects
 * Best film editing (John d. Dunning and Ralph e. Winters)
 * Best original music
 * Best sound

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">The film was nominated for Academy Awards still except for the 22 other prizes, of which he won 17. Among the prizes won are four Golden Globes including best film, Best Director, best actor and best supporting actor, the BAFTA Award for best film, the New York Film Critics Circle Award for best film and the DGA award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Motion Picture.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.3999996185303px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;">The film received the following recognition of the American Film Institute:


 * 1998-AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies # 72
 * 2001-AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Thrills # 49
 * 2005-AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores # 21
 * 2006-AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Cheers # 56
 * 2007-AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) # 100
 * 2008-AFI's 10 Top 10 # 2 (Epic film)