Why so much hype?

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Don't listen to the negative reviews

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Comparable in scope and grandeur to the famous 1959 version, 1925's "Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ" is an epic imaging of Lew Wallace's story of the fall and rise of a Jewish prince during the days of Christ on Earth. While showing its age, the cinematography remains outstanding, with tranquil scenes that look like images from vintage Christmas cards juxtaposed with the magnificent sea battle, the dramatic entry into Jerusalem, the dramatic earthquake that accompanies Christ's crucifixion, and the iconic chariot race. Like most silents, there is a touch of histrionics to the acting but that doesn't detract from the film (although the scene where a servant is being throttled does looks a bit like Homer strangling Bart). There is no need to repeat the history of the film here, but the stories of its production are almost as interesting as the film itself. All-in-all, another outstanding work from the early days of movie making – well-worth watching both in its own right and from the perspective of its place in cinematic history.

A Jewish prince seeks to find his family and revenge himself upon his childhood friend who had him wrongly imprisoned.Film critic Kevin Brownlow has called the chariot race sequence as creative and influential a piece of cinema as the famous Odessa Steps sequence in Sergei Eisenstein's "The Battleship Potemkin", which introduced modern concepts of film editing and montage to cinema. This scene has been much imitated. It was re-created virtually shot for shot in the 1959 remake, copied in the 1998 animated film "The Prince of Egypt", and more recently imitated in the pod race scene in the 1999 film "Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace" which was made almost 75 years later.Strangely, the 1959 version is generally considered the definitive version, or more often people do not even realize an earlier version exists. But I dare say this is actually the superior version. With a good score, this is exciting and adventurous -- sword fights, the chariot race, and an interesting approach to Judeo-Roman history.And, even more startling, if it is true that all those future stars appeared in the film as uncredited extras, this may be the most star-studded film of the 1920s.

. . . the world's greatest war hero, and the world's richest person, as well. Sort of like Michael Jordan, Colin Powell, and Oprah all rolled into one. A prince of Israel and the adopted son of a top Roman military leader, Judah was the only individual in a position to save Jesus from Crucifixion. Judah had a thousand Galilean fishermen and another thousand desert tribesmen armed to the teeth in top fighting form, strategically positioned between downtown Jerusalem and Golgotha. Jesus almost missed Judah in the crowd, as He lumbered beneath the Cross and Resurrected dead babies on His way out of town. But Judah finally got His attention, and tried to draw up a plan of attack which would not only spare Jesus, but spite the Romans for giving Judah's mom and sister--Princess Hur and Tirzah--bad cases of leprosy. Quickly sizing up the situation, Jesus waved His hand and healed the Hur women, giving Judah the peace of mind to marry his youthful crush and slave girl Esther, living happily ever after (since the earthquake caused by Jesus' Death killed only bad people). This is the MGM version of the Holy Bible.

Monday July 23, 7pm, The Paramount, Seattle "To be a Roman is to rule the world! To be a Jew is to crawl in the dirt!" In first century Jerusalem, a Jewish prince is condemned by his childhood friend for a crime he did not commit. His mother and sister are imprisoned and Judah Ben-Hur (Ramon Novarro) is cast into slavery. Three years later, a Roman tribune adopts him when he saves his life in battle. With his wealth and freedom restored, Judah seeks revenge on Messala (Francis X. Bushman) as his journey parallels the footsteps of Jesus.Inherited by the fledgling Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Corporation, the creation of Ben-Hur A Tale of the Christ (1925) was as epic as the nineteenth-century best seller on which it was based. Plagued with production problems and a budget nearing four million dollars, Ben-Hur was the costliest feature of the silent era, but the enormous popularity and prestige of the film helped establish MGM as a major studio. Highlights include several breathtaking two-color Technicolor segments and the jaw-dropping climactic chariot race.