Category: Action / Adventure - Feature Film-action/Adventure - Gift Set - Movie
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $39.98 Our Price: $19.97YOU SAVE $20.01!
Buy it
DVD Ben-Hur (Four-Disc Collector's Edition)
Ben-Hur scooped an unprecedented 11 Academy Awards® in 1959 and, unlike some later rivals, richly deserved every single one. This is epic filmmaking on a scale that had not been seen before and is unlikely ever to be seen again. But it's not just running time or a cast of thousands that makes an epic, it's the subject matter, and here the subject--Prince Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston) and his estrangement from old Roman pal Messala (Stephen Boyd)--is rich, detailed, and sensitively handled. Director William Wyler, who had been a junior assistant on MGM's original silent version back in 1925, never sacrifices the human focus of the story in favor of spectacle, and is aided immeasurably by Miklos Rozsa's majestic musical score, arguably the greatest ever written for a Hollywood picture. At four hours it's a long haul (especially given some of the portentous dialogue), but all in all, Ben-Hur is a great movie, best seen on the biggest screen possible. --Mark Walker
Review(s): DVD Ben-Hur (Four-Disc Collector's Edition)
A Defining Moment In Cinema.
Director William Wyler's 1959 epic "Ben-Hur" is bar none of the finest movies ever made. Brimming with amazing performances, dazzling set pieces, and an incredibly well written storyline, "Ben-Hur" has stood the test of time to become a defining moment in cinema.
Most reviewers have gone over the plot in great detail, so I will skip over that. I will say that Charlton Heston, one of the legends of filmdom, has never been better than in his role as Judah Ben-Hur. Great actors like Paul Newman, Burt Lancaster and Rock Hudson were all offered a chance to play this character, and while of them would've no doubt done a fine job, no one could possibly beat Heston in the part. He plays it an unforgettable and one a kind manner that's very difficult to put into words. The supporting cast is top notch, specifically Stephen Boyd, who as Messala creates an unforgettable amount of tension between him and Heston. Both Heston & Boyd received Oscars (this film won 11 out of 12 nominations), and deservedly so.
The directing by Wyler is incredible, especially the chariot race, which is one of a kind and one of the best scenes in the history of the movies. If made today, that sequence would've been entirely done in CGI, and while it would've looked cool no doubt, it wouldn't hold the same excitement, danger, substance and believability that it does with real actors.
I love that Jesus's face is never actually shown throughout the movie. It makes his presence in the movie all the more real and emotional. The crucifixion sequence at the end is heartwrnching to watch. The actor who played Jesus was an opera singer named Claude Heater (this was the only movie he ever did), and he's simply amazing.
What's so great about "Ben-Hur" is that despite the religious themes spread throughout the plot, you don't need to be religious at all to enjoy it (I myself am a Catholic who is firm in my belief in God). I know atheists who told me how great they thought "Ben-Hur" was. It goes to show just how great and how powerful this movie truly is.
The special features on this dvd are great (though I still need to update to the four disc edition), as is the sound and picture quality. This is a motion picture that truly belongs in everyone's dvd collection.
Corrections of matters of fact in other reviews
Despite a few weaknesses, this is a 5 star film, one of the most powerful epics ever, and far more spiritual than most.
Here are two corrections (re: matters of fact) to reviews in this thread:
The important one, so people won't be disappointed by expecting something that doesn't happen, is that there is no Resurrection in the 1959 Ben-Hur! There is something else, but no Resurrection.
The minor one is that it is "Down Eros, Up Mars!" Not Aires, but Eros! The Romans were anticipating sublimation, the suppression of Eros in the service of war.
Flawless!!!
This 4-disc set is loaded with extras including the 1925 silent version, but the real bonus is the flawless new transfer of what is definitely one of the best motion pictures ever made. By going back to original 65mm materials, the picture quality is simply stunning revealing color depth and a contrast range never before seen in any of the previous tape, laser disc or DVD versions. The subtlety and mastery that earned Robert Surtees ASC the academy award for best cinematography is clearly revealed in every frame of this bench mark film. If you ever have the opportunity of seeing a 70mm print of this film on a huge screen; jump at the chance! Until then, this new DVD version is a terrific alternative. There are movies and there are motion pictures; William Wyler's production of Ben-Hur defines the term "motion picture."
Related DVD's Ben-Hur (Four-Disc Collector's Edition)
Legendary silent film director Cecil B. DeMille didn't much alter the way he made movies after sound came in, and this 1956 biblical drama is proof of that. While graced with such 1950s niceties as VistaVision and Technicolor, The Ten Commandments (DeMille had already filmed an earlier version in 1923) has an anachronistic, impassioned style that finds lead actors Charlton Heston and Yul Brynner expressively posing while hundreds of extras writhe either in the presence of God's power or from orgiastic heat. DeMille, as always, plays both sides of the fence as far as sin goes, surrounding Heston's Moses with worshipful music and heavenly special effects while also making the sexy action around the cult of the Golden Calf look like fun. You have to see The Ten Commandments to... More Info about this DVD DVD Release Date: Released the 21 March 2006 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $24.99 Your Price: $16.99YOU SAVE $8!
Buy it
Stanley Kubrick was only 31 years old when Kirk Douglas (star of Kubrick's classic Paths of Glory) recruited the young director to pilot this epic saga, in which the rebellious slave Spartacus (played by Douglas) leads a freedom revolt against the decadent Roman Empire. Kubrick would later disown the film because it was not a personal project--he was merely a director-for-hire--but Spartacus remains one of the best of Hollywood's grand historical epics. With an intelligent screenplay by then-blacklisted writer Dalton Trumbo (from a novel by Howard Fast), its message of moral integrity and courageous conviction is still quite powerful, and the all-star cast (including Charles Laughton in full toga) is full of entertaining surprises. Fully restored in 1991 to include scenes... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Kirk Douglas - Laurence Olivier Director(s): Stanley Kubrick DVD Release Date: Released the 02 January 2002 This item is currently not available.
List Price: $19.98 Your Price: YOU SAVE $19.98!
Buy it
There's no getting around a simple, basic truth: watching Lawrence of Arabia in any home-video format represents a compromise. There's no better way to appreciate this epic biographical adventure than to see it projected in 70 millimeter onto a huge theater screen. That caveat aside, David Lean's masterful "desert classic" is still enjoyable on the small screen, especially if viewed in widescreen format. (If your only option is to view a "pan & scan" version, it's best not to bother; this is a film for which the widescreen format is utterly mandatory.) Peter O'Toole gives a star-making performance as T.E. Lawrence, the eccentric British officer who united the desert tribes of Arabia against the Turks during World War I. Lean orchestrates sweeping battle sequences and breathtaking... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Peter O'Toole DVD Release Date: Released the 03 April 2001 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $39.95 Your Price: $23.47YOU SAVE $16.48!
Buy it
When Roman tribune Marcellus Gallio (Richard Burton) is sent to Jerusalem, one of his assignments is the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Marcellus, a cynical and hardened man, wins the robe Jesus wore to the crucifixion while gambling with other Roman soldiers underneath the dying savior. He later becomes convinced that his hallucinations and violent outbursts are the result of a curse received from the robe, which is now in the possession of his escaped slave, Demetrius (Victor Mature), somewhere in the Middle East. He sets out to find Demetrius in order to destroy the robe and the curse and finds faith instead, converting to Christianity. This was the first movie to be filmed in CinemaScope, and won Oscars in 1953 for costume design, art direction, and set decoration. The visual aspects of... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Richard Burton - Jean Simmons - Victor Mature Director(s): Henry Koster DVD Release Date: Released the 16 October 2001 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $14.98 Your Price: $13.48YOU SAVE $1.5!
Buy it
This 1961 version of Jesus' story gives historical context to the best-known Biblical tale and features many memorable moments, such as a moving Sermon on the Mount and a vixenish Salome dancing for her stepfather in a performance that rivals today's MTV video offerings. Orson Welles keeps the 168-minute film moving along with informative narration helpful to those who haven't read the New Testament in a while. Made with backgrounds that resemble Southern California more than Palestine and a European and American cast--including a blonde, blue-eyed Jesus and an Irish-accented Mary--this movie has the definite stamp of Hollywood. --Kimberly HeinrichsMore Info about this DVD Actor(s): Jeffrey Hunter - Siobhan McKenna Director(s): Nicholas Ray DVD Release Date: Released the 25 February 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $14.97 Your Price: $13.46YOU SAVE $1.51!
Buy it
