So many comments have been made about this 1925 masterpiece version of "Ben Hur," so I will add my own. I just watched this recently, thanks to the wonderful Turner Classic movie station. Yes, everyone knows the 1959 William Wyler version of this film, with Charlton Heston playing the famed Jewish prince. And that film is indeed an epic and stunning to watch. That said, anyone who appreciates fine film-making should also watch this 1925 version of "Ben Hur -- a Tale of the Christ." Director Fred Niblo directed this version, and how he did such a stunning job given the technology of the day is amazing (interestingly, William Wyler was an assistant to Niblo on this original film). The film made Metro-Goldwn-Mayer(then newly formed) a serious film studio. Ramon Navarro plays Judah Ben-Hur in this version, and it is easy to see why Niblo cast him in the lead. Not only is Navarro physically gorgeous to look at, he was a fine actor who inhabits the part in a way that I think Heston did not in the later version. Everyone knows the basic story, so I will skip that and go to the technical brilliance of this film. Niblo filmed some of the footage in Italy, unusual by 1925 standards. The stunning sequence where the Romans and pirates are fighting on ships was apparently treacherous, and several extra cast members drowned. There are tinted color sequences and two-strip technicolor parts of this two and a half hour film, and a few brief shots of nudity. All daring stuff in 1925. I defy anyone to tell me the chariot race sequence in this original film (shot in Culver City, CA) is any less impressive than the one in the 1959 film. The acting is top flight. Besides Navarro, Francis X. Bushman plays the impressive Roman solider Messala; and May McAvoy is lovely as Judah's soul mate. Much of this original "Ben Hur" was considered lost for years, and thankfully has been beautifully restored. I can't recommend this masterpiece enough!
Review of Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
