"Ben Hur" (1959)
Ben Hur (1959)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
When a Jewish prince is betrayed and sent into slavery by a Roman friend, he regains his freedom and comes back for revenge.
"Ben Hur" is a 1959 American epic religious drama film, directed by William Wyler, produced by Sam Zimbalist for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and starring Charlton Heston as the title character. A remake of the 1925 silent film with the same title, Ben-Hur was adapted from Lew Wallace's 1880 novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. The screenplay is credited to Karl Tunberg, but includes contributions from Maxwell Anderson, S. N. Behrman, Gore Vidal, and Christopher Fry.
Ben-Hur had the largest budget ($15.175 million), as well as the largest sets built, of any film produced at the time. Costume designer Elizabeth Haffenden oversaw a staff of 100 wardrobe fabricators to make the costumes, and a workshop employing 200 artists and workmen provided the hundreds of friezes and statues needed in the film.
Genre': Adventure, Drama, History
Release date: November 18, 1959
Director: William Wyler
Screenplay by: Karl Tunberg
Based on: "Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ" by General Lew Wallace
Music: Miklós Rózsa
Cinematography: Robert L. Surtees
Edited by: John D. Dunning, Ralph E. Winters
Narrated by: Finlay Currie
Cast: Charlton Heston, Jack Hawkins, Haya Harareet, Stephen Boyd, Hugh Griffith, Martha Scott, Cathy O'Donnell, Sam Jaffe
Distributed by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
Awards
- Best Picture
- Best Actor in a Leading Role
- Best Actor in a Supporting Role
- Best Director
- Best Cinematography, Color
- Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color
- Best Costume Design, Color
- Best Sound
- Best Film Editing
- Best Effects, Special Effects
- Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture
- Best Motion Picture - Drama
- Best Director
- Best Supporting Actor
- Special Award for directing the Chariot Race
- Best Film from any Source
* © 1959 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
** © 1959 Warner Bros.
