Ben Hur and his childhood friend Messala are opposed on each side of the law after an unfortunate accident. The movie continues to reveal the harboring rage of Ben Hur, a Jewish prince from Jerusalem, towards Messala, a Commanding Officer of the Roman Legion. The movie takes place during the time of Christ and how life was dramatically changed under the Roman rule.
I feel that the first major point that ties the movie together was summarized in a quote during the film from a servant girl towards Ben Hur. She states, "The stone that fell from this roof so long ago is still falling." I think she was talking about his rage towards Messala and how he still harbors it many years later. That stone symbolizes rage and how one man can continue to grasp it over such a small stone that fell so long ago. The Roman Rule was also very important to the plot of the movie. Messala talks about how the Romans are powerful and how they built roads and great monuments towards their gods. He goes on to say that the Romans are the highest of the people and that everyone should follow them because they are perfect in everyway. I think the film goes in depth about the slavery that was so accustomed to the societies and early forms of civilization back then. For a good part of the movie you see Ben Hur as a slave working the Galleys along with at least another 100 slaves. They were chained up and were made to row. It shows slavery at its best during the Roman rule. The movie explains the difference between the Romans and the Jews. They were both different in many ways, the Romans wanting to conquer, rule and burn everything while the Jews wanted peace, freedom and their land. They touch on religion many times throughout the movie which brings up the difference between the Romans and the Jews. They also focus on Jesus, who at that time was still growing up and was soon ready to make it known to the Romans. They portray his character very well, only helping when needed and proving that he is the almighty.
