Ben-Hur

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Ben-Hur

PG-13

2016

2h 5m

Adventure

Action

History

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

24%

Tomatometer

185 Reviews

52%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Judah Ben-Hur loses everything after his adopted brother Messala, now an officer in the Roman army, returns to Jerusalem and accuses the young prince of treason. Stripped of his title and separated from his wife and family, Ben-Hur must endure years of slavery on a galley at sea. When fate brings the estranged brothers to an epic and deadly chariot race, Ben-Hur finally gets the chance to exact vengeance on the man who destroyed his life.

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Critics Consensus

How do you fight an idea? By filming a remake that has too few of its own, and tries to cover it up with choppy editing and CGI.

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Kristen Lopez

Spectrum Culture

11/20/2017

1.5/5

Ben-Hur isn't the worst film of the year, but from a technical standpoint it certainly looks it.

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K. Austin Collins

The Ringer

08/10/2017

Very rarely does it try to impress us, or overwhelm us, shock us, move us.

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Danny Leigh

Financial Times

12/28/2016

1/5

Rankly incompetent.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

05/31/2024

2/5

…Ben-Hur: Full Throttle Drift Racer might have been a better title for this misconcieved, sprawling folly…

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

08/18/2021

2/4

The decision to film the major set-pieces in extreme close-up was ill-advised, and these murky and incoherent bits are further crippled by obvious CGI as well as rapid-fire editing that recalls those Ginsu blades in action on late-night infomercials.

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Tori Brazier

One Room With A View

03/25/2021

3/5

Remaking the classic Hollywood epic and 11-time Oscar winner Ben-Hur seems redundant - so 2016's Ben-Hur starts on the back foot.

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Tony H

@RT98015106 Jul 28

I did not know anything about this movie going into it other than it was a historical fiction. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. Sure the cgi was obvious but the story was a good story even if you are not particularly religious. Also the cast is excellent.

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Thomas E

@RT22372176 Jul 12

Worth maybe a one time watch but overall a mediocre remake. The Cons : - bad CGI at the horse races, shipwrecks scene, weird costume choices and a lot of historical inaccuracies with hair styles and so on , weird romantic relationships between the protagonist and his wife, not book accurate adapted plot with some holes, questionable animal treatment during the races, heavy depiction of Christian morality The Pros : some acting is good especially by Jesus, Judah, Mesala, and the African merchant depicted by Morgan Freeman, the musical Score is touching , some scenes were beautifully shot while others seem like it was done by an amateur. A lot of physical action and male physique which may appeal to some viewers. The remake ,while being entertaining, fails to capture depth and simplifies the plot of the OG work for CGI action and a quick emotional roller coaster ride.

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Sergio M

@Sergio864 May 6

I don't know why people hate this movie, this is a really good movie, they compare this movie with the original one that is better, but this one hadas better special effects and you can felt the emotions of the main characters.

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Robert N

@RT02624733 May 1

Ummm well this is a close to the worst thing I’ve ever seen

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Colin J

@RT42180185 Mar 25

After watching the original Ben-Hur I was skeptical however, open minded. Sadly it did not live up to the original rather it was weak and uninspiring. The story had some credibility but again weak and acted out from an average point of view. Trying to live up to the original Ben Hur was always going to be hard sadly in this case it did not come close, what a shame.

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Robert K

@RealDeal2000 Feb 21

One of the worst or the very worst remake ever, horrid casting, horrible acting, awkward CGI, just bad.

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Timur Bekmambetov

Director

Jack Huston

Judah Ben-Hur

Toby Kebbell

Messala Severus

Morgan Freeman

Ilderim

Rodrigo Santoro

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Nazanin Boniadi

Esther

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Synopsis

Judah Ben-Hur loses everything after his adopted brother Messala, now an officer in the Roman army, returns to Jerusalem and accuses the young prince of treason. Stripped of his title and separated from his wife and family, Ben-Hur must endure years of slavery on a galley at sea. When fate brings the estranged brothers to an epic and deadly chariot race, Ben-Hur finally gets the chance to exact vengeance on the man who destroyed his life.

Director: Timur Bekmambetov
Producer: Sean Daniel, Duncan Henderson, Joni Levin
Screenwriter: Keith Clarke, John Ridley
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Lightworkers Media, Paramount Pictures, Sean Daniel Company, Sony Classical, Bazalevs
Rating: PG-13 (Sequences of Violence|Disturbing Images)
Genre: Adventure, Action, History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 19, 2016, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 4, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $26.4M
Runtime: 2h 5m
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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