It's not that this overrated marathon of a Movie gets worse with age, it gets worse with each repeated viewing. The length and sobriety of it all gets more glaring each time this Blockbuster and Oscar Hog is attempted.
The Film's Glorious Production is Worthy of its reputation and it is only this that makes more than one viewing tolerable, but attempt at Your own risk. The meandering Story is terribly Edited and drawn out to painful lengths and stagnant Acting.
It looks gorgeous and the Musical Score is fine. The darn thing just needs some severe trimming, but in 1959 it was not to be and future Audiences are stuck both with this Obese, obsessively self-righteous, pious Picture that cheats on the "Tale of the Christ" and lumbers its way along with Judah Ben-Hur as He discovers that the "Sword has been taken from my hand".
But not until His Boyhood Chum turned Jailer is dispensed with via the only thing in this Movie that remains Today as it was in its Day, the famous compelling and exciting Chariot Race. Everything else here drags to tedium. The best example of this is the Leper episode, that just doesn't know when to say enough is enough.
Definitely worth one watch and repeated viewings come with the above warning.
The Film's Glorious Production is Worthy of its reputation and it is only this that makes more than one viewing tolerable, but attempt at Your own risk. The meandering Story is terribly Edited and drawn out to painful lengths and stagnant Acting.
It looks gorgeous and the Musical Score is fine. The darn thing just needs some severe trimming, but in 1959 it was not to be and future Audiences are stuck both with this Obese, obsessively self-righteous, pious Picture that cheats on the "Tale of the Christ" and lumbers its way along with Judah Ben-Hur as He discovers that the "Sword has been taken from my hand".
But not until His Boyhood Chum turned Jailer is dispensed with via the only thing in this Movie that remains Today as it was in its Day, the famous compelling and exciting Chariot Race. Everything else here drags to tedium. The best example of this is the Leper episode, that just doesn't know when to say enough is enough.
Definitely worth one watch and repeated viewings come with the above warning.