Timur Bekmambetov to direct Ben-Hur reboot

Director Timur Bekmambetov (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) has been announced as the director for MGM's reboot of the Charlton Heston classic, Ben-Hur. The 1959 film won a total of 11 Oscars and is considered to be one of the greatest films of all time.
Ben-Hur tells the story of a Jewish charioteer who crosses paths with Jesus Christ. Hur's family is accused and convicted of treason during the time of Christ. Hur fights to clear his name and is inspired by the rise of Jesus Christ. 

This will mark another addition to the current trend of Biblical epics. It joins Darren Aronofsky's Noah which is set for March 28, 2014 and Ridley Scott's Exodus which is set for December 12, 2014. It also joins the theatrical release of the hit television mini-series The Bible and the follow up, Son of God.

I personally don't think Bekmambetov is a good choice for a movie like this. His style is too... visual. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter was a disaster and Wanted wasn't all that great either. I would have chosen someone else, but that might just be me.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter - Review

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter follows our 16th president on his journey from a young boy to a vampire hunter to one of the most historically recognized presidents in American history.


I went into this movie really excited because I enjoyed the book by Seth Grahame-Smith and the fact that Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov were involved. The casting for me wasn't too exciting because I didn't really know Benjamin Walker, I'm not necessarily a huge fan of Dominic Cooper, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead was just Ramona Flowers from Scott Pilgrim to me. Even with that I was still pretty pumped.

However... I walked away extremely disappointed. The pacing was all over the place, the acting was vague, and despite Seth Grahame-Smith writing the screenplay I thought it drowned in comparison to the book. Granted the book wasn't a masterpiece but it was a lot more enjoyable.

Go ahead and click the jump to read the rest so I don't blatantly spoil the movie. It's a little hard to talk about without revealing key points to the plot.