For a film as old and as famous as Ben-Hur, I was expecting fewer surprises.
It's as long as expected, but for the most part doesn't feel like it, because there's more plot than I thought; it's more subtle and even-handed, politically, than I thought it would be; and it's got a lot more Jesus than I expected, as he shows up periodically to give someone a drink or wander around on a hill in the background, always shot from the back so you can only see his magnificent hair.
He's always accompanied by an organ swell, too, just to make sure you know it's really Him.
