Monday, September 19, 2016
A big part of the film that Richards didn't even talk about was the part where Ben Hur and Jesus first met. It's a very important part for numerous reasons. Obviously it's important because it first introduces Jesus into the story. It also shows Jesus' immense generosity towards a slave. Jesus is some what sticking his neck out against the Roman army just so he can give some slave some water. Also it highlights how awful and painful it was for Ben Hur to go through the torture that the Romans were putting him through. It gives the audience understanding of why he has such resentment towards Massala and why he so deeply wants his revenge. To me this was a hugely important scene and the fact that Richards didn't even bother to talk about it kind of surprises me.
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That is indeed a key scene, and it would have been another scene he could have selected to talk about the differences between the 1925 film and the 1959 remake. In the William Wyler version, the Roman legionary directly confronts Jesus, trying to forbid him from helping Ben Hur, and then backs down. All we see is the legionary's face, as he is looking at Jesus, and his facial expression softens not unlike that of the woman with the baby in the 1925 version, when Mary dares to wipe a fly from her baby's forehead.
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