Why did you save me?
Why did you have me unchained?
What is your name, 41?
Judah Ben-Hur.
Judah Ben-Hur...
...let me die.
We keep you alive to serve this ship.
Row well and live.
Is the sail square?
I can't tell.
Better for us both if it's the enemy.
My death.
Your freedom.
It's a Roman sail.
Face rear!
Welcome, consul. We had given up all hope for you.
Water.
The fleet, all lost?
Five galleys.
- And the battle? - The battle was won.
You have a victory.
- It was a victory? - Complete.
In His eagerness to save you...
...your God has also saved the Roman fleet.
Hail Arrius!
Right oars!
You have cleared the seaways of a great danger, Quintus Arrius.
This baton of victory has been nobly won.
This man riding beside you, who is he?
The man who saved me, divine emperor, to return and serve you.
Is that all you know about him?
No. He was accused of an attack on the governor of Judea.
But he was innocent.
If not, there's a strange inconsistency in this man...
...who tries to kill my governor, yet saves the life of my consul.
Come tomorrow. We'll talk of it.
We have all the information on this man...
...a man of some influence in his own country.
His attack upon our governor is one upon the senate and the people of Rome.
I am convinced that no such attack was intended.
Consul, allow us to continue.
Allow us to be generous.
As a reward to you for your great victory...
...we shall not send him back to the galleys.
We give him to you as your slave.
Such is the will of the senate...
...and the people of Rome.
Not long ago, I returned to Rome...
...with a young man who had saved my life.
You all know him as the finest charioteer in Rome.
Five times, he's driven my horses to victory.
I know him as one who stands in the place of the son I lost.
I have the love and pride in a son's achievements...
...which I thought I should never have again.
Nothing could make stronger our bond...
...but tonight I wish to share it with you all.
The formalities of adoption have been completed.
Young Arrius is now the legal bearer of my name...
...and the heir to my property.
This ring of my ancestors...
...would have gone to my son.
So now it is yours.
It's a strange destiny that brought me to a new life...
...a new home...
...a new father.
It brought me here.
It may take me away.
But wherever I may be...
...I shall always try to wear this ring as a son of Arrius should.
With gratitude and affection...
...and with honor.
My old friend Pontius Pilate, young Arrius.
Before you came to this city, my horses always won.
Magnificent horses, extremely swift.
Yes, but not swift enough to defeat you.
- Tell me, you come from Judea? - Yes, sir.
I hear that the climate is difficult to live in.
Not for Judeans.
It's a terrible prospect. I am to be made governor.
- Of Judea? - Yes.
I asked for Alexandria.
But it seems the wilderness needs my particular talents.
The scorpions and holy prophets can't get on without me.
Lay the dust of Judea, at least for this evening.
Goats and Jehovah.
You're leaving.
I must.
It's a journey I can't keep you from.
Your eyes have never left it all these months. I can recognize pain.
But still, my counsel is to wait.
Gratus is to be replaced.
The governorship goes to Pontius Pilate.
When?
Very soon.
It's very much to our purpose.
Nothing is to the purpose if, when I come back to Judea, I come too late.
That is the thought which has punished me every moment I've spent here.
Will Rome see you again?
Here is a part of my life which you have made for me.
I shall remember it.
Whoever the gods are, they take small interest in an old man's hopes.
They have their way.
Forgive me.
You're a stranger here.
Would you be from Nazareth?
Why do you ask?
I thought...
...you might be the one...
The one that I have come back from my country to find.
He would be about your age.
Who?
When I find Him...
...I shall know Him.
Oh, but forgive me. I am Balthasar of Alexandria.
I am the guest of Sheik Ilderim.
Sack of flesh without brains!
No! No! Not the whip!
That is my host.
Gently! Gently!
Fool! Headless toad! You know nothing of horses!
Whip my children once and I'll drain every drop of your blood.
Now, gently around the first turn, and let them run! Go on!
Keep my words in your head! Let us see some wisdom!
Beautiful horses.
Now! Now! They are ready! Let them go!
Watch. They'll never hold the turn.
No! No!
Abadon, stop him!
Stop that whip!
I'll kill him! I'll kill...!
Moonhead! Give me those reins, you fool!
You think you can treat my horses like animals?!
Drive cows and goats! That's all you're fit for!
Get off, idiot!
Drive goats, not horses!
I am doomed. You saw what happened here?
This traveler told what would happen before it happened.
Your horses are very fine, but they're not a team.
Not a team?
But one of them held steady, the one on the outside.
- Antares. - The slow one?
He should run on the inside where he can steady the others in the turns.
You have a keen eye. Where did you acquire it?
In the circus in Rome.
You have driven in the great circus?
Tell me, my friend, could you make my four run as one?
I'm on my way to Jerusalem.
Would your caravan rest until tomorrow?
We have time enough to eat, drink and talk.
Come into my tent and refresh yourself.
And let me hear how you raced in Rome.
If I had a voice to sing, I would sing you the psalm of horses.
No other animal has descended so in scale...
...from the first innocent falling of the world.
And tomorrow, I shall put Antares on the inside.
When you do, shorten the yoke. It will help them in the turns.
Judah Ben-Hur.
You're a Jew, yet you drove in the great circus.
Yes.
By a strange choice and a stranger fortune.
Your coming here was so fit, so right.
We might have achieved wonders!
You have to go.
I make a journey which will not wait.
Ah, well, then perhaps you will come back.
And when you do, bring your friends, your wives.
I have no wives.
No wives at all?
I have six, no, seven.
I've counted eight.
And that is because he is traveling. At home, he has more.
Believe me, it is a great advantage to have many wives.
- Someday, I hope to have one. - One wife!
One God, that I can understand. But one wife, that is not civilized.
It is not generous.
- Was the food not to your liking? - Indeed.
Thank you. Thank you.
And take my advice, my friend. Buy yourself some wives.
And now I must say good night to my beauties.
When ready for sleep, they get impatient and jealous.
They wait to see which one I will embrace first.
- I'll make my farewells then. - No, no, no, stay.
Stay and see them.
Come, my children. Come.
Strangers make them shy.
Come.
Come, do not be afraid. Come.
There, my children.
They are descended from the Arabians of the Pharaohs...
...and I have named them for the stars.
Come, Antares.
You are the slowest, and you can run all day without tiring.
What? Yes, yes.
Yes, I love you too. There's my good Antares.
Come, Rigel.
We've both supped well, and the world is good.
There's my good Rigel.
Yes, you are ready for sleep.
The day's work done for you, eh?
Yes, well, you can go to sleep in a minute.
Good night. Good night, my treasure.
Steady, Aldebaran. I haven't forgotten you.
No. You are the swiftest, but you must be steady.
Never seen finer horses, even in Rome.
You should see their mother, Mira.
I dare not bring her. My people couldn't bear her absence.
All right, all right.
You are their friend, and they do not give their affections readily.
Come, Antares, Rigel, it is late.
Altair, Aldebaran, go to sleep.
You must be strong and swift.
Go, my children. Go.
At Jerusalem, they'll race the world's finest teams...
...and the champion of the East, Messala, with his black devils.
He stops at nothing to win.
- Messala? In the circus? - Yes.
You knew him?
I know him.
Perhaps without much liking.
My people are praying for a man...
...to drive their team to victory over Messala.
You could be that man, the one...
...to stamp his arrogance into the sand.
My horses need only a driver who is worthy of them...
...one who will rule them with love. For him, they'd outrace the wind.
It's not possible.
That is a pity.
Think of it. To break his pride...
...to humble this tribune before the very people he has degraded.
Just think, his defeat and humiliation at the hands of a Jew!
I know it is not possible.
Does it not delight your imagination?
Does it not answer your purpose?
I must deal with Messala in my own way.
And your way is to kill him.
I see this terrible thing in your eyes.
But no matter what this man has done, you have no right to kill him.
He will be punished inevitably.
I don't believe in miracles.
But all life is a miracle.
Why will you not accept God's judgment?
You do not believe in miracles.
Yet God once spoke to me out of the darkness...
...and a star led me to a village called Bethlehem...
...where I found a newborn child in a manger.
And God lived in this child.
By now, He is a grown man and must be ready to begin his work.
That is why I have returned here...
...so that I may be at hand when He comes among us.
He is near.
He saw the sun set this evening, as we did.
Perhaps He's standing in a doorway somewhere or on a hilltop.
Perhaps He is a shepherd...
...a merchant, a fisherman.
But He lives...
...and all our lives from now on will carry His mark.
There are many paths to God, my son.
I hope yours will not be too difficult.
I'm ready for sleep.
Balthasar is a good man...
...but until all men are like him, we must keep our swords bright.
And our intention true.
So I must leave you.
One last thought.
There is no law in the arena.
Many are killed.
I hope to see you again.
Fine Damascus silk.
Esther?
It's Judah.
You are alive.
What are you doing here? What has happened?
I'm here.
I'm with you.
Where's your father?
The day they took you away, they imprisoned him.
They tortured him.
When they were sure he was hiding nothing, they let him go.
Ever since then, we have been living here, in hiding.
You never went back to Antioch?
No.
The Romans took everything. There was nothing left for us there.
Where are my mother and sister?
Let me tell him first.
Father.
Father, something wonderful has happened.
Judah Ben-Hur is alive.
He has come home. He is here.
Judah.
Judah Ben-Hur.
My dear old friend.
Let me look at you.
Let me see you.
Yes, yes. It is true.
Praise God for His mercy.
Where are they?
Since that terrible day...
...there has been no word of them.
You should have been less loyal.
Do not pity me, Master Judah.
In fact, I'm twice the man I was.
There is Malluch, my other half. We met in the dungeons of the citadel.
We were released on the same day.
Malluch without a tongue, and I without life in my legs.
Since then, I have been his tongue...
...and he has been my legs.
Together, we make a considerable man.
Old friend.
She always said you would return.
She never gave up hope.
Though I hoped it, I didn't believe it.
I see that your one thought is to save your mother and sister.
But suppose that isn't possible.
If one purpose fails, it is good to have another.
Much of your fortune is safe, Judah.
They could not make me tell them where it is.
It is there still...
...to put power into our hands and buy death for the Romans.
That's not why I came back.
Judah, they are dead.
Four years. No one could live so long in the dungeons.
Who lives more than one year in the galleys?
Yes, it is true.
Judah Ben-Hur.
You have come back to us like a returning faith.
Judah, I should like to laugh again.
- Let us laugh. - We will.
There will be joy again in this house.
We will celebrate among the dust.
I will take him.
We stood here before.
A long while ago.
Four years.
But now it seems as if...
...only yesterday...
I was saying:
"If you were not a bride, I should kiss you goodbye. "
"If I were not a bride...
...there would be no goodbyes to be said. "
I am not a bride.
Why did you never marry?
My father needed me.
And also...
It's still on my finger.
I said I should wear it till I met a woman I would marry.
It's become a part of my hand.
If Messala once knew you were here...
As he must.
He will know where they are.
And if you should find...?
- If he says they're dead... - Messala will wish they were living.
I've seen too much of what hate can do.
My father is burned up with it.
But I've heard of a young rabbi who says that forgiveness is greater...
...and love more powerful than hatred.
I believe it.
- Esther. - Judah.
Stay alive.
Keep away from Messala.
Only if I can give up thinking and feeling.
That time isn't yet come.
The stone that fell from this roof so long ago is still falling.
Only this time you won't be sent to the galleys.
This time you will be destroyed.
You'll die.
Tribune, compliments of Quintus Arrius. He awaits your pleasure.
- Consul here? - Quintus Arrius, the younger tribune.
Thank him. Bring him to me.
- I didn't know the consul had a son. - He's a champion of the great circus.
- Why is he presenting me with gifts? - Perhaps he'll race against you.
Look.
It's magnificent.
And from a man I've never met.
You're wrong, Messala.
By what magic do you bear the name of a consul of Rome?
You were the magician, Messala.
You condemned me to the galleys.
When my ship was sunk, I saved the consul's life.
You know his seal?
Now I have come back...
...as I swore I would.
Your gift is exquisitely appropriate, young Arrius.
You suggest I use it on myself?
What has become of my mother and my sister?
It is not my duty to keep track of prisoners.
Find them, Messala.
Restore them to me, and I'll forget what I vowed...
...with every stroke of that oar you chained me to.
I am not the governor. I can do nothing without approval.
Then get it.
I will come back tomorrow.
Don't disappoint me, Messala.
What became of them?
It's been almost five years. Do you suppose they're still alive?
Go to the citadel, Drusus. Find out.
- And if they're dead? - They're dead!
"Miriam, wife. Tirzah, daughter. "
Yes, they are the ones. Are they alive?
E section...
...lower level.
Cell two. Jailer on that level will know.
Water.
Let me out!
- How long since you've seen them? - Never.
And I've been here three years. But they're alive all right.
The food disappears.
Lepers.
They must be taken outside the city and released at once.
Then we'll burn out the cell.
Is someone there?
There is someone there.
Who are you?
Don't come any closer.
Who are you?
Esther.
It's Miriam.
Miriam.
Miriam?
Stay where you are.
You have come home.
Stand back, Esther.
We are lepers.
Oh, Esther.
Tirzah.
Esther...
...is Judah living?
Yes, he is alive.
He is here.
Where?
He is searching for you now.
I must find him and tell him.
- No! - Tell my father.
No.
Tell no one.
We are going away to the Valley of the Lepers.
We won't return.
Judah has to be told.
No.
Please.
I couldn't see his face.
Is it changed?
No, he is not changed.
He's not changed.
You love him, Esther.
Promise me...
...on your love for him...
...you will never tell him you've seen us.
Is he never to know?
Let him remember us as we were.
Promise me.
There's nothing else I can hope for.
Only this.
I promise.
I am content.
Wait.
Messala will find out. I am sure of that.
I pray to God they're alive and that Messala will free them.
He'll free them.
He wants to survive.
He cannot free them, Judah.
What do you mean?
I saw them.
You saw them?
Where?
When did you see them?
They were dead.
When?
When? When?!
In the prison.
When I was waiting for news of my father.
Why didn't you tell me?
I couldn't tell you.
Nor even you, Father.
I was afraid that if you saw Messala...
Judah, you have come to the end of your search.
It's over now.
Over?
- Judah. - Over?
Judah, forget, forget, forget Messala. Go back to Rome.
Gentlemen.
Officers.
Defenders of great Rome's imperium...
...may I enter?
Certainly, sheik.
You do us an unexpected honor.
The noble tribune is most gracious.
And now...
...the question you're asking:
Why am I here?
As you know, I am a gambling man.
The games approach.
I am racing my whites against the noble tribune's undefeated blacks.
I will back my own poor horses.
No limits?
- Mark me first! - And me!
- What odds? - A moment, please...
...my lords, protectors of the far flung marshes.
May I first sit down?
Sit. How much will you wager?
- Yes, let's call his game. - Give the Arab a seat.
A bench, quickly.
Thank you.
- Now. - 1000 denarii.
- 2000! - Mark me!
Your spirit does you credit, but do not be impatient. There is time.
First gentlemen, the odds.
The tribune has won many times. The odds should be in the same measure.
What is your pleasure, gentlemen?
Two to one.
Noble Romans, men of the Tiber, masters of the Earth...
...where is the courage that made Rome master of the world?
I can get better odds on any street market.
Three to one.
Let us not haggle. Let us be fair.
In four years, the tribune has won four victories in the circus.
- In all truth... - Just a moment.
We know you have good horses, but who is your driver?
Did I not tell you? How careless of me.
The Prince of Hur.
Judah Ben Hur.
Prince of Hur?
- He was sent to the galleys years ago. - He has returned.
Returned? Impossible.
The divine Tiberius is merciful as always.
Well?
Will no one back the noble tribune against a Jew, a galley slave?
Perhaps I made a mistake in coming here.
You, tribune...
...will you give me four to one?
Four to one.
Good.
Four to one, sheik. The difference between a Roman and a Jew.
Or an Arab.
Bravely spoken.
Now we will settle the amount of our wager. I will venture...
A thousand talents?
- A thousand talents? - Yes, a thousand talents.
Of course, if it is too much...
A thousand talents it will be.
Agreed.
Treat them well. They've earned it today.
You're good fellows.
If only men were this good.
Remember, Altair...
...nine times around the circus.
Aldebaran.
Rigel, did you hear?
Nine lives to live.
My swift fellow.
You must not win the race the first time around.
You win the last time around.
And you cannot win alone. You must wait for the others.
Steady Antares.
Like a rock.
You will be our anchor.
I thought they'd never love another as they love me.
They have taken me into their family.
Rest well, my stars.
Tomorrow we go up to the city.
Then if you defeat Messala and the new governor there to see it...
...the news will scorch the streets of the Roman world.
Pontius Pilate here?
Yes, and ready to grind his heel into us.
You will make him see what men are born in this land.
I only know that I race against Messala.
Look for the yoke.
Ease that strap.
God forgive me for seeking vengeance, but my path is set.
Into Your hands I commit my life. Do with me as You will.
The Star of David.
To shine out for your people and my people together...
...and blind the eyes of Rome.
They are ready.
Easy, girl, easy.
Number five.
Where is number five?
This is the day, Judah. It's between us now.
Yes, this is the day.
Look, he's driving a Greek chariot.
Judah, be careful. Don't let him near you.
Hail, Jupiter. Give me victory.
Watch your line! Keep your places!
The formation is good. A beautiful line.
Citizens...
...I welcome you to these games in the name of your emperor, Tiberius.
We dedicate them to his glory...
...and to the glory of Rome...
...of which you are all part.
Let us honor those who race for us today.
They come here from Alexandria...
...Messina...
...Carthage...
...Cyprus...
...Rome...
...Corinth...
...Athens...
...Phrygia...
...and Judea.
To the best of these, a crown of victory.
The race begins.
Hail, Caesar!