Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

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Directed by David Lean.

Starring Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, Peter O'Toole, Claude Rains, Omar Sharif, Anthony Quinn.

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This sweeping, highly literate historical epic covers the Allies' mideastern campaign during World War I as seen through the eyes of the enigmatic T. E. Lawrence (Peter O'Toole, in the role that made him a star). After a prologue showing us Lawrence's ultimate fate, we flash back to Cairo in 1917. A bored general staffer, Lawrence talks his way into a transfer to Arabia. Once in the desert, he befriends Sherif Ali Ben El Kharish (Omar Sharif, making one of the most spectacular entrances in movie history) and draws up plans to aid the Arabs in their rebellion against the Turks. No one is ever able to discern Lawrence's motives in this matter: Prince Feisal (Alec Guinness) dismisses him as yet another "desert-loving Englishman," and his British superiors assume that he's either arrogant or mad. Using a combination of diplomacy and bribery, Lawrence unites the rival Arab factions of Feisal and Auda Abu Tayi (Anthony Quinn). After successfully completing his mission, Lawrence becomes an unwitting pawn of the Allies, as represented by Gen. Allenby (Jack Hawkins) and Dryden (Claude Rains), who decide to keep using Lawrence to secure Arab cooperation against the Imperial Powers. While on a spying mission to Deraa, Lawrence is captured and tortured by a sadistic Turkish Bey (Jose Ferrer). In the heat of the next battle, a wild-eyed Lawrence screams "No prisoners!" and fights more ruthlessly than ever. Screenwriter Robert Bolt used T. E. Lawrence's own self-published memoir The Seven Pillars of Wisdom as his principal source, although some of the characters are composites, and many of the "historical" incidents are of unconfirmed origin. Two years in the making (you can see O'Toole's weight fluctuate from scene to scene), the movie, lensed in Spain and Jordan, ended up costing a then-staggering $13 million and won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. The 1962 Royal Premiere in London was virtually the last time that David Lean's director's cut was seen: 20 minutes was edited from the film's general release, and 15 more from the 1971 reissue. This abbreviated version was all that was available for public exhibition until a massive 1989 restoration, at 216 minutes that returned several of Lean's favorite scenes while removing others with which he had never been satisfied. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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Reviews and discussions

Put Down That Frog and Step Away
by joem18b in joem18b Blog

hasn't rated it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful. [What do you think?]
"Before dealing with the end of the world as we know it, which this movie does not explicitly mention but which is lurking there in the unspoken background - before dealing with that, it being a pet peeve of mine, let me mention first an equally annoying pet peeve: many podcasters, the Spout podcasters occasionally among them, use the expression "begs the question" when they actually mean "raises the question." This error of diction has become so common in the U.S. today that it's probably useless to even mention it here, but since I heard it again on FilmCouch recently, let me remind those who might be unaware of it that "begging the question" is a form of logical fallacy in which an argument is assumed to be true without evidence other than the argument itself. Thank you. Meanwhile, back in the day, if you hated documentaries but had to write a paper on one, you could head down to Ninth and Trawler and catch The Nudist Story at the Jewel Box. The Nudist Story is the film where eve ... " [More]

Soderbergh’s Che Films Likened ...
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com

hasn't rated it.

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"It may seem a bit early to write 1700+ words on the greatness of Steven Soderbergh’s two-part Che Guevara epic, especially without having actually seen the films (titled The Argentine and Guerrilla), but that couldn’t stop Jeff Wells from contributing such a piece to The Huffington Post yesterday. At least the guy has read the screenplays, both penned by Peter Buchman, but otherwise it’s all a lot of confident speculation and hopeful anticipation, particularly for Benicio Del Toro’s performance, which Wells is sure will be garner Oscar talk (didn’t the casting alone garner such talk two years back?): With Benicio del Toro, the moody and mesmerizing Marlon Brando-ish actor whose work keeps getting deeper and more fascinating, all but certain to stir Oscar talk for his performance as Ernesto “Che” Guevara, the legendary Argentine/Cuban firebrand. Even if the Che movies turn out to be problematic, Del Toro can’t not whip ass. He’s too strange, too gifted. Guevara is too perfect a role ... " [More]

Lawrence of Arabia (1962) David ...
by kristen in kristen Blog

liked it.

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""Of course it hurts; the thing is not minding that it hurts" Lawrence, played by Peter O'Toole, may be a philosopher, a charming fellow, and an idealistic young chap in the first half of Lawrence of Arabia, but the movie's brilliance lies in Lawrence's fanatical masochism (and moral downfall?). This film provides insights on the twisted pleasures of the human psyche. The desert location works on several levels: first, as dazzling eye candy, second, to establish an epic location, third, to observe the desert in its untamable nature, and fourth, as a barren wasteland that relates metaphorically to Lawrence's traits and philosophies. The movie does well to create an epic character, Lawrence, and compliment him with the desert; both hold the same mysterious power. The film also works in a sense of religious fanaticism. Lean constructs a movie as profound as classic literature, complete with innuendos, metaphors, and levels of interpretation. The ... " [More]

The Media Diet: Andrew Grant an ...
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com

hasn't rated it.

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"This week on The Media Diet, we check in with Andrew Grant and Aaron Hillis. Grant is the brain behind Filmbrain; Hillis is a freelance critic and reporter whose work can be found at Premiere, The Village Voice and his personal blog, Cinephiliac. Together, they’ve just launched Benten Films, a boutique DVD distribution company aimed at drawing attention to “overlooked gems that deserve greater recognition.” Benten’s first release, Joe Swanberg’s LOL, will hit stores on August 28 (more on that closer to the date). They’re also planning to release two films by Aaron Katz, Dance Party USA and Quiet City, sometime after both screen at The New Talkies festival in New York, which begins next week. SPOUT: We start each installment of The Media Diet with the old desert island question: you’re packing your suitcase for life-long seclusion on a tropical island that happens to have a full entertainment system. What records, books, movies, video games, websites, etc do you bring with? AARON: ... " [More]

Eight Things
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com

hasn't rated it.

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"I've been tagged by FilmSnob to participate in the Eight Things meme that's been going around. All the cool kids are doing it, and it's Friday, so why the hell not? But in the interest of keeping things around here *somewhat* on topic, I will try to keep this semi-film related. First, the rules: Rules: 1. We have to post these rules before we give you the facts. 2. Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves. 3. People who are tagged write their own blog post about their eight things and include these rules. 4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names. Dont forget to leave them a comment telling them theyre tagged and that they should read your blog. Now, the things: 1) I have never seen the following films: Gone with the Wind, Lawrence of Arabia, The Goonies or Gremlins. 2)When I first moved to New York, I was broke, working full time and going to school at night. I came up with a crack-pot scheme to tr ... " [More]

Re: AFI Top 100 Films
by Risselada in Filmspotting

is neutral about it.

"Yeah, is Lawrence of Arabia on the list? It seems like they just limited themselves to fictional narrative movies where English is the primary language. Yeah I guess like you said a good starting place for people with phobias of black and white older films, but too scary to those with phobias of documentaries or experimental films or foreign language films. " [More]

Re: Top 5 Tear Jerking Scenes
by enaretea in Top 5

loved it.

"Here are my five:Big Fish: Scenes between Billy Crudup and Albert Finney. My father had recently passed away from cancer and I knew the feeling of being an adult son sitting with hisdying father. Dead Poets Society: when Ethan Hawke struggles and eventually stands up on his desk as Robin Williams is leaving. It gets me every single time.The Natural: When Roy Hobbs belts it and the lights shatter into a shower of sparks, the music, the slow motion -- it's just absolute magic.Yeobgijeogin Geunyeo: the entire end of the movie.Yes, it is very sentimental, but also so innocent and romantic, and pure.Lawrence of Arabia: looking at O'Toole's face when one of his men charges alone to his death. His hatred and fury and fear, all pent up, and then screaming out "No prisoners!" " [More]

Best Movie Ever
by Dalton in Dalton Blog

loved it.

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"It's impossible for a movie to be better than "Lawrence of Arabia." Maybe, just maybe, you could equal it, but you could never surpass it. Every time I watch it, I pick up another nuance, some little plot point I hadn't noticed before. It gets better with each viewing. That's the sign of a true work of art. " [More]

Re: Favorites
by Jymkata in British Invasion

liked it.

"My UK Favorites:I'm not sure if you're only looking for movies set in the UK (with stiff upper lips & veddy,veddy Brittish accents), but these are my favorite productions made in the UKTelevision: The Office, The Singing Detective, Yes, Minister, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, and Smiley's PeopleI'm All Right JackBrazilThe Bridge on the River KwaiThe Red ShoesA Matter of Life and Death (Stairway to Heaven)Layer CakeBloody SundayEnigmaThe General (Boorman)The Cook, the Thief, his Wife, and her LoverThe Draughtman's ContractThe Killing FieldsThe Great Train RobberySleuthBedazzled (1967)The HillThe Spy who Came in From The ColdGoldfingerThe Masque of the Red DeathZuluThe HauntingLawrence of ArabiaThe InnocentsThe LadykillersThe Importance of Being EarnestThe Lavender Hill MobThe Browning VersionOdd Man OutThe Third ManBlack NarcissusThe Life and Death of Colonel BlimpThe 39 StepsStage Fright " [More]

Your overrated list
by Risselada in Totally Over-rated

is neutral about it.

"Swingers's detail pageI thought I wouldn't like participating in this group at first because it get's frustrating complaining about movies, but I can't seem to hold myself back. Puhnner, you asked me to list some of my overrated movies, referring to my definition of overrated by ratio. Well I'm not sure if this is going by the same criteria, but I've come up with a list from another source. I also rate movies at the website movielens. It will give you recommendations based on your ratings and whatnot. It also gives some interesting statistics. For one, it tells me which movies I have rated the lowest compared to the average rating on their site. So I have looked at that list and picked several of them. The thing about this method is that I am not using what my impression of the ammount of acclaim a movie has received for the ratio but rather what the ammount of acclaim a website thinks a movie has based on the votes from it's users. Some of t ... " [More]

Review by All Movie Guide

All Movie Guide

loved it.

More of a sensory explosion than a simple movie, Lawrence of Arabia is epic in every sense of the word. Its images--of the desert, of the blinding sun, of Peter O'Toole's golden hair and staggeringly blue eyes--are some of the most memorable ever committed to celluloid, and its musical score remains almost unparalleled in its ability to evoke so many associations with a few simple notes. A richly detailed character portrait rather than a biography or an adventure film, Lawrence is the tale of a man at the mercy of both the desert and his own grand ambitions. As played by O'Toole in a star-making performance, Lawrence was a man whose character was defined as much by sexual ambivalence and thorny enigma as by his considerable vision and will -- in other words, a conflicted, fascinating figure whose personality tended both to inspire and to eclipse his cause. It is fitting that a man larger than life should have his story presented as an epic, and equally fitting that this epic is set in the desert, the only stage magnificent and unforgiving enough to showcase Lawrence's persona. Lawrence of Arabia is almost as remarkable for the story behind it as for the story visible on the screen. Director David Lean's handling of his material is legendary, from days spent on location waiting for the "right" sunrise to his staging of several key scenes, most notably that of the desert mirage that slowly evolves from speck to man. That shot alone could have made the film a legend, conveying the mystery, brutality, and scope of the desert just by remaining still and silent. Lean's respect for the desert is evident in every scene: rather than attempting to manipulate it, he lets it speak for itself. The result is one of the cinema's most iconic visual feasts, perhaps even more so because it was one of the last films to be shot in 70mm (as opposed to being blown up to 70mm from 35mm). Restored and re-released in 1989, 27 years after its initial release, Lawrence was still as beautiful and turbulent as its title character, stunning new and old viewers alike. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide

Tags: Classic , epic , desert , politician , prince
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