Ryan McNeil
This weekend Charlton Heston passed away. He was 84.
Heston actually had a hand in my evolution as a film lover. When I was younger, my taste in movies often leaned itself to the serious side. While my friends were amusing themselves silly with NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET and HEATHERS, I was expanding my young mind with more grown-up fare like PLATOON, MISSISSIPPI BURNING, and THE UNTOUCHABLES. However, prior to turning thirteen, I really hadn’t seen any classic movies. Well, except THE WIZARD OF OZ…but everyone sees that around the time they turn five.
Enter my grade seven teacher, Mr. Iwaszko. I went to a Catholic elementary school, and one day during religion class, his lesson about Christ’s interaction with the lepers wandered over to the topic of BEN-HUR. He started passionately telling us about the classic movie…the grueling scene of the slaves rowing, the legendary chariot race, the entire biblical undertone. After raving about the movie for five minutes or so, he decided “What the heck – I’ll bring it in and we’ll watch it next week”. He did, and I was hooked. Watching Heston in that movie developed my palette for what an epic should be, what a classic movie should be, and what a film should be in general.
Thanks for doing that Charles. Take care
I guess Iwaszko got a slap on the wrists for time-wasting, as we never got shown that in his class.
I more appreciate Chuck’s later sci-fi fare. His ‘saviour of tomorrow’ schtick really added more to his persona than his biblical days, in my mind.
I’d much rather spend 6 hours on Planet of the Apes, Omega Man and Soylent Green than Ben Hur and Ten Commandments which, to me, typify the excesses of Hollywood that fostered the New Hollywood of the 70s.
There’s a reason biblical epics aren’t made anymore, apart from the efforts of Mad Max.
But hey, now we can see if we CAN pry it from his cold dead hands…