Ben Hur

The highly respected prince of his Jewish people, Judah Ben-Hur, lives as a wealthy merchant in Jerusalem at the time of Christ's birth. Ben-Hur has acknowledged Roman rule, but when his Roman childhood friend Messala returns to the city as a power-hungry tribune and tries to force him to betray his Jewish people, the friendship of the once inseparable pair turns into merciless hatred. The ruthless Messala seeks to demonstrate his toughness and uses the first opportunity he finds to imprison Ben-Hur's family and banish his former friend as a slave.