Although the film was an epic on the scale of David Lean's previous movie, Lawrence d'Arabia (1962), it was shot in standard 35mm Panavision. The 70mm prints were blow-ups from the 35mm negative. Lean wanted to shoot the movie in 70mm, but claimed that MGM refused because of cost. In the early 1960s, the studio had outstanding critical, box office, and Academy Award success with Ben-Hur (1959), which had restored the studio's legacy and financial fortunes for a few years. At the time, a year's production schedule relied on the success of one big-budget epic. In 1959, Ben-Hur was profitable enough to carry the studio through 1960. However, Cimarron (1960), Il re dei re (1961), I quattro cavalieri dell'Apocalisse (1962) and Gli ammutinati del Bounty (1962), big-budget epics filmed in a widescreen 70mm format, failed. In 1963, MGM vowed never again to invest in 70mm film making.

Film

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