Ben-Hur (1959) w/ Elizabeth Lev

By Criteria: The Catholic Film Podcast ( bio - articles - email ) | Feb 01, 2021 | In Criteria: The Catholic Film Podcast

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There is only one American film in the “Religion” section of the Vatican film list: William Wyler’s 1959 epic Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. Its epic scale and its astonishing set pieces such as the sea battle and the chariot race make the small, understated moments when Jesus enters the story all the more striking. Thomas and James are joined by Catholic art historian and Rome tour guide Elizabeth Lev to discuss the film.

Next on Criteria: On the “Values” section of the Vatican film list, Akira Kurosawa’s 1975 Dersu Uzala, based on the memoir of famed Russian explorer Vladimir Arseniev. It’s a heartwarming tale of friendship between a man of civilization and a man of the wilderness.

Dersu Uzala can be streamed on the Criterion Channel. It is also on YouTube, though with lesser video quality and the subtitles somewhat out of sync. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EWdAnJsfdc

Links

Elizabeth Lev, How Catholic Art Saved the Faith https://www.sophiainstitute.com/products/item/how-catholic-art-saved-the-faith

Catholic Culture Podcast w/ Liz on the Temptation of St. Anthony in art history https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/90-temptation-st-anthony-elizabeth-lev/