Ben Hur (1959) (Blu-ray SteelBook) (Zavvi Exclusive) [UK]

snooloui

The 'Negative' Ninja
Premium Supporter
Feb 12, 2012
12,037
UK
Release date: October 24, 2016
Purchase link: Zavvi (pre-order goes live Sunday 9th October at 18:00 BST)
Price: £15.99

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Nearly 100 horses died during filming ...

Ok I will correct my original comment...

Yes a REAL chariot race with REAL people in a REAL stadium with REAL extras and REAL horses REAL dead horses, REAL stuntmen and REAL DEAD stuntmen.
. Modern producers and directors take note...... Happy now!
 
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It was the 1925 film not the 1959 film that Horses and stuntman got killed

1925 Version had lives of a human stuntman and at least five horses

This steelbook is the 1959 film version no horses or stuntman got killed in 1959 version
 
Yes, was curious so checked out images of the new release elsewhere . . . looks really good with the embossing on the title and statue - very different but just as good as the previous steel which had the original poster artwork on the front (inspiration for the artwork on several of the Monty Python Blu-rays/steelbooks).
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Haya Harareet promoting the film in Amsterdam in October 1960----------------------------Original theatrical poster by Reynold Brown

. . . although the figure on the new steel does remind me a bit of Talos from JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (the giant crouching bronze statue that comes to life).

Hoping for pre-order price of no more than GBP 16.99.
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It's an urban myth that any stuntmen were killed during the making of this 1959 version of BEN-HUR !
"Ben-Hur Myths
There are at least two lingering legends about Ben-Hur, the 1959 epic starring Charlton Heston. It was Hollywood's third iteration of the film, with black and white silent versions appearing in 1907 and 1925. The 1925 version rivaled the scope of the 1959 movie, with a chariot race in particular that was larger and more violent. The charioteers are said to have been offered a prize of $5,000 to win, for real, resulting in much onscreen mayhem.

This probably gave rise to the most common myth, that a stuntman was killed during the 1959 chariot race and that its footage was left in the final cut. Although a few sources have made this claim, the studio's records, and the statements of most of those involved including Charlton Heston, say that no stuntmen or horses were seriously hurt. The sequence was very carefully shot over several weeks. The worst injury came from a stuntman whose chin was smashed and cut when he unexpectedly flipped out over the front of his chariot. Articulated dummies were put to very effective use throughout this scene, and the guys you see getting trampled or run over are all dummies.

The source of the myth is probably the 1925 film. Records were poorly kept and incidents often went unreported in those days, so we don't know for sure, but most film historians agree that at least one stuntman was killed, and at least a few horses were injured badly enough that they had to be put down. A lot of this happened in one particular crash where several chariots came around a blind corner and struck another that had overturned." (Brian Dunning - Skeptoid podcast #237 - URBAN LEGENDS - 21st Dec. 2010)
 
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t's an urban myth that any stuntmen were killed during the making of this 1959 version of BEN-HUR !

And the earlier version as well. There is no evidence of deaths in the earlier one either. It's one of those myths that's put about so much it's excepted as fact!
 
And the earlier version as well. There is no evidence of deaths in the earlier one either. It's one of those myths that's put about so much it's excepted as fact!
1925 version there was a stuntman killed and some horses killed
The 1959 version no horses or stuntman got killed

The internet is full of wrong facts and some got the films versions mixed up

There was an accident on the 1959 film but the stuntman did not die
 
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I haven't ordered it because it would be $25 shipped to Los Angeles from AMZfr. I wonder why you were able to get it so much cheaper. Was the steelbook itself 14.99 Euro when you ordered it?
no i combined shipping with other releases so it worked out to much cheaper shipping then.
 
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This is a nice looking steelbook I got the french release a few weeks ago
Zavvi steelbook is the exact same only difference is the Jcard

I have the 50th Anniversary USA Ultimate Collector's Edition
It's a fantastic box set and the best version to get overall it's amazing
I also have 3 Disc Diamond Luxe Neopack that is also nice

I have the UK steelbook from a few years ago
I have this film on Blu-ray 4 times and 2 different DVD releases and VHS

The only downside of the previous UK and new Steelbook from France/UK is it's only 2 discs it's missing the brilliant extras disc
 
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Interesting . . . I thought there were only two versions before the new one this year with both previous versions - 1925 and 1959 - on the 2011 Ultimate Collector's Edition.
There was a 15 minute!! silent version in 1907 and an animated version in 2003 featuring the voice of Charlton Heston.
 
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LIve pics of this make it look like a good 'un with its classic imagery, generous embossing and with what looks like a GLOSS varnish finish:-

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Classic steelbook to go with a classic film . . . thinking how lucky I am to have been given the choice of 2 handsome and yet very different steelbooks for this must own film :thumbs: