Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Sweeping swords-and-sandals flick a true triumph for Demille
Following the huge success of Cecil B. Demille’s The Ten Commandments in 1956, MGM decided to revive the story of Ben Hur.
The 1925 silent version was directed by Demille, assisted by an up-and-coming helmer named William Wyler.
The 1959 production of Ben Hur, directed by Wyler, was the most critically acclaimed and honoured motion picture since Gone with the Wind (1939).
The story was adapted by screenwriter Karl Tunberg from the classic 1880 novel by General Lew Wallace. It presented characters who, despite the exotic costumes, underwent personality and political crises not at all far removed from those of the viewers.
MGM had extensive funds in Italy that couldn’t be removed when, in the wake of World War I, the Italian Government banned the movement of Lira out of the country.
In finding a way to spend this money, MGM moved the production of Ben Hur to Italy. The final budget was $15m, plus a massive marketing campaign costing $14.7m, making it the most expensive movie to date.
The principal players included Charlton Heston in the titular role, Stephen Boyd (Marsala), Jack Hawkins (Quintus Arrius), Haya Harareet (Esther) and Hugh Griffith (Sheik Ilderim).
Ben Hur was one of four movies released by MGM where the studio’s trademark lion Leo doesn’t roar; Wyler reasoned that it would be irreverent to the religious subject matter.
The actor who played Jesus (uncredited) was filmed facing away from the camera. Wyler thought that if he tried to portray Christ he wouldn’t be able to get the same effect if you saw his face.
The never to be forgotten chariot race took five weeks to film over a period of three months at a cost of $1m, but more than a year was spent on its preparation.
Seventy-eight horses were bought and imported from Sicily and Yugoslavia and exercised into peak physical condition to pull the quadriga (a Roman empire chariot drawn by four horses abreast).
The giant arena where the race is staged with 10,000 extras took hundreds of skilled artisans over a year to construct.
Costume designer Elizabeth Haffenden and assistants took 12 months to create the costumes in the MGM wardrobe department in Hollywood which were subsequently shipped to Italy.
Bosley Crowther, who was one of the most cynical of film critics, wrote in the New York Times in 1958: “Ben Hur is a remarkably intelligent and human drama with superb acting. There has seldom been anything in movies to compare with this magnificent picture’s chariot race.
“It is a stunning complex of mighty setting, thrilling action by horses and men, panoramic observation, and overwhelming use of dramatic sound.”
Filmed in Technicolor in the new widescreen process MGM camera 65 in 70mm and six-track stereophonic sound, Ben Hur won 11 Academy Awards in 1969, including Best Actor for Heston, Best Supporting Actor for Griffith, Best Director for Wyler and Best Picture.
Where are the replacements today for the great directors and brilliant actors who created cinematic legends? In a time when Hollywood is struggling to produce a major hit, the old adage, “you are only as good as your last picture”, has been changed to, “you’re only as big as your last budget”.
In 2016, Paramount and MGM released a co-produced new version of Ben Hur. Described as the box office bomb of the summer, the film lost $100m.
In The Hollywood Reporter, critic Todd Mccarthy wrote: “A remake disaster of biblical proportions lacking in star power with pathetic acting, or rather overacting, and over-reliance on senseless violence and a chariot race that is heavily digitised and over-edited, this is an example of how not to make a big-budget blockbuster”.
Mccarthy’s comments glaringly highlight the ongoing declining standards in contemporary cinema.