especially criticized the use of the "running W" on set, a wire device that could trip a galloping horse. It would take a decade before such devices lost favor in Hollywood. The movie was banned in the 1930s in China under the category of "superstitious films" due to its religious subject matter involving gods and deities. Restoration The Technicolor scenes were considered lost until the 1980s when Turner Entertainment (who by then had acquired the rights to the MGM film library) found the crucial sequences in a Czechoslovakian film archive. Current prints of the 1925 version are from the Turner-supervised restoration which includes the color tints and Technicolor sections set to resemble the original theatrical release. There is an addition of a newly recorded stereo orchestral soundtrack by Carl Davis with the London Philharmonic Orchestra which was originally recorded for a Thames Television screening of the movie. Home mediaBen-Hur was released on DVD, complete with the Technicolor segments, in the four-disc collector's edition of the 1959 version starring Charlton Heston, as well as in the 2011 "Fiftieth Anniversary Edition" Blu-ray Collector's Edition three-disc box set. See also List of films featuring slavery Francis X. Bushman filmography List of films with a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, a film review aggregator website References Explanatory notes Citations Further reading Keel, A. Chester, "The Fiasco of 'Ben Hur'," Photoplay, November 1924, p. 32. External linksBen-Hur essay by Fritzi Kramer at National Film Registry.Ben-Hur'' essay by Daniel Eagan in America's Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the National Film Registry, A&C Black, 2010 , pages 109-111 1925 films 1920s adventure drama films 1920s color films American adventure drama films American epic films American silent feature films Animal cruelty incidents in film Articles containing video clips Ben-Hur films Censored films Films directed by Fred Niblo Films directed by Charles Brabin Films produced by Louis B. Mayer Films shot in Los Angeles Films shot in Italy Films shot in Rome Films partially in color Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Portrayals of Jesus in film Portrayals of the Virgin Mary in film Religious epic films Silent films in color United States National Film Registry films Works banned in China 1925 drama films Early color films 1920s American films Silent American drama films Silent adventure drama films 1920s English-language films