Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ

Name: Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Romance, Action
Released: 1925-12-25
Duration: 143 min
Rating: 7.3

★ 7,3 /10 (113 Votes)

1925 EN 143 min

Overview

Erstwhile childhood friends, Judah Ben-Hur and Messala meet again as adults, this time with Roman officer Messala as conqueror and Judah as a wealthy, though conquered, Israelite. A slip of a brick during a Roman parade causes Judah to be sent off as a galley slave, his property confiscated and his mother and sister imprisoned. Years later, as a result of his determination to stay alive and his willingness to aid his Roman master, Judah returns to his homeland an exalted and wealthy Roman athlete. Unable to find his mother and sister, and believing them dead, he can think of nothing else than revenge against Messala.

Release date

25/12/1925

Votes

113

Popularity

1.8

Amazing! Thrilling! Colossal! Mighty!

Genres

Adventure Drama Romance Action

Status

Released

Language

Runtime

143 min

Budget

$3,900,000

Revenue

$9,000,000

Ramon Novarro

Judah Ben-Hur

Francis X. Bushman

Messala

May McAvoy

Esther

Betty Bronson

Mary

Claire McDowell

Princess of Hur

Kathleen Key

Tirzah

Carmel Myers

Iras

Nigel De Brulier

Simonides

Mitchell Lewis

Sheik Ilderim

Leo White

Sanballat

Frank Currier

Quintus Arrius

Charles Belcher

Balthazar

Dale Fuller

Amrah

Winter Hall

Joseph

Reginald Barker

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

John Barrymore

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Lionel Barrymore

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Clarence Brown

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

No photo

Manuel Caballero

Roman Guard (uncredited)

No photo

Gilbert Clayton

(uncredited)

Joan Crawford

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

No photo

Jacob Dance

Wealthy Man (uncredited)

Marion Davies

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

No photo

William Donovan

Charioteer of Corinthian Bay Team (uncredited)

Bill Elliott

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

No photo

Ray Erlenborn

(uncredited)

Douglas Fairbanks

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

George Fitzmaurice

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Sidney Franklin

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Rosita Garcia

Slave Girl (uncredited)

Janet Gaynor

Slave Girl (uncredited)

John Gilbert

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Dorothy Gish

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Lillian Gish

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Samuel Goldwyn

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

No photo

Harry Gordon

Centurion (uncredited)

No photo

Sid Grauman

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

No photo

William Green

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Noble Johnson

Crowd Member (uncredited)

Rupert Julian

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Henry King

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Harold Lloyd

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Carole Lombard

Slave Girl (uncredited)

Cliff Lyons

Charioteer (uncredited)

No photo

Mickey Millerick

(uncredited)

Carlotta Monti

Slave Girl (uncredited)

Colleen Moore

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

No photo

Claude Payton

Jesus Christ (uncredited)

Mary Pickford

Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)

Satini Pualoa

Extra (uncredited)

No photo

Leonora Summers

(uncredited)

Tom Tyler

Charioteer (uncredited)

No photo

Christiane Yves

Hedonist (uncredited)

Gary Cooper

Roman Guard (uncredited)

Clark Gable

Roman Guard (uncredited)

Myrna Loy

Slave Girl (uncredited)

Original Soundtrack

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What an epic. Watching this, you can see why Wyler wanted to remake it in the 50s. In this, you can see the emotions of the characters that are much more fleshed out compared to the first (unauthorised) screen version. Set design and costumes are grand, though the hairstyling is reminiscent of the 1920s (but maybe Romans were into that). The score is typical silent movie fare. Colourising the "Biblical scenes" is a neat touch (reminiscent of "red letters" in a lot of Bibles), it focuses the viewers attention to where Wallace wanted the attention drawn. This is very faithful to the boo…

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What an amazing, absolutely beautiful film. Especially for nearly a century ago, but for any movie ever. The backgrounds, the grand sets, the sheer amounts of extras, and the animation of the stars and the coloring of the biblical scenes. Just...wow. And topless women! Its got everything. (not Mary) WI first heard about this version after seeing a video on TCM about silent films. Gonna watch the '59 version tomorrow. An absolute must watch if you like Bible fanfiction. ~~~ It's Public Domain and free on the Internet Archive. Better than paying Google for it.

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With the Roman legions securely ensconced in his Judaean homeland, Prince "Judah Ben-Hur" (Ramon Navarro) hopes that the arrival of his childhood friend "Messala" (Francis X. Bushman) might make things a bit easier for his conquered people. Fat chance! His erstwhile friend is far more concerned with impressing his boss and keeping the locals under control. An incident during the arrival procession of the new Governor gives the new regime exactly the opportunity it wants to stamp it's authority and that sees "Ben-Hur" sent to the galleys and his mother and sister to prison. Luck hasn't quite ab…

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