"What I owe you is beyond evaluation." - Lawrence of Arabia

This was my first film review. It began as an assignment in my last year in high-school. I have since edited it to more concisely express my opinions, but the content is all accurate to my very first viewing of the film.

Directed by David Lean

U. K., 1962

227 minutes

First viewed: April 2011
Titular Quote by: Alec Guinness as Prince Faisal

Back in the day before modern visual effects made modern epics - such as James Cameron’s Titanic and Avatar or Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings - possible, filmmakers who intended to create true spectacles were forced to do just that.  They found the right locations to film, they designed the sets and costumes to place there, they cast hundreds, even thousands, of extras, and they used all the false blood possible in order to convey the spectacle that audiences were beginning to demand. Several famed filmmakers rose from the ashes during that time, but few have had such a profound effect on the present day filmmaker as Sir David Lean, the director of The Bridge over the River Kwai, Doctor Zhivago, and the subject of my first review, Lawrence of Arabia.

Drawing inspiration from the autobiographical novel 'Seven Pillars of Wisdom', among other documents written by T. E. Lawrence, the film tracks Lawrence’s journey through the desert nations of the Middle East and Africa during the English occupation of WWI. Considered nothing more than a nuisance to his general in Cairo, Lawrence is transferred to a position on the Arab Bureau and shipped to Arabia on assignment to discover the motives of a certain Prince Faisal. Seeing the struggles that the Arabs face from the overruling Turkish Empire and amongst their own tribes, Lawrence’s insubordination comes to his aid when, without order, he forms together a band of Arabic allies, joint-led by himself, his reluctant compatriot Sherif Ali and the historical figure Auda abu Tayi, set on subduing the Turks through any means possible, most often violently.

You needn't look far to find what is immediately so great about Lawrence of Arabia, but let me begin with one name: Peter O'Toole. Peter O’Toole’s performance is as complex and as memorable as a classical actor can get, from delivering every line he can with a clever eye and a suave smile to a point where he leads a vengeful charge onto a crowd of Turkish refugees. Being an adaptation of the autobiography of the actual T. E. Lawrence, a great deal of the work went into the development of the character, an egotistical man whose motives are generally ambiguous. When I first saw the film, I was certain Lawrence was only in the struggle for the glory of taking history into his own hands, but further viewings opened up further possibilities.  Lawrence’s alleged homosexuality and masochistic tendencies are hidden in plain sight throughout the film, which is also part of the joy of re-watching the film as you can continually search for subtle hints in both the writing and in O'Toole's performance. O’Toole ultimately did not win the Oscar for Best Actor, which is a real shame; as much as I respect Gregory Peck in To Kill A Mockingbird, O'Toole's joyful, energetic and heavily theatrical performance has transferred much more successfully to the present day and solidified his reputation as one of the true greats of cinematic history.

In the role of Sherif Ali, Omar Sharif provides Lawrence with a conscience and plays the role of the mediator with wonderful gravitas and internal turmoil, equally worthy of his Best Supporting Actor nomination.  The late Alec Guinness and the late Anthony Quinn also provide terrific performances, as do all the other actors in a fairly unorthodox ensemble. This is the only film in Academy Award history that ever featured a credited cast consisting solely of male actors; if I hadn’t mentioned that though, chances are no one would have even noticed should they ever consider watching it, for the story is engrossing from start to finish without the common Hollywood romance attached to it.

The grandest unacknowledged star in Lawrence of Arabia is the epic landscape, which is brought uncompromisingly to life by Freddie Young’s spellbinding cinematography. But perhaps it is more admirable, and more daunting, to consider this when also considering the filmmaking process itself. The film’s exterior scenes were shot over a 2-year period in some of the hottest conditions on Earth; the Panavision cameras needed frequent shading to avoid ruining the footage, and following every take, any disturbance in the sand made by man or camel had to be flattened again in preparation for the next shot. The art direction and costumes are gorgeous; every shade of every dye harkens back to the age of desert warriors. The dialogue in Robert Bolt’s screenplay is of the highest sophistication and intelligence that can be written, gripping, witty, poetic and highly quotable.  And Maurice Jarre’s original score is among the finest that has ever graced the silver screen; its use of a full orchestra to convey the sounds of traditional Arabic music outmatches even the Irish-piped themes of James Horner’s score to Braveheart, one of my very favourite film scores of all time.

Over the years, I’ve seen a fair deal of films that are considered classic epics from the 1950s/60s and more often than not, they’ve looked and felt long, garish, over-produced, forced and even silly at times; what separates Lawrence of Arabia from these is difficult to tell, although I have a feeling that it might partially be because it was not a Hollywood-based production but in fact a completely British financed production, so it has hardly any large exaggerated constructions and zero cheap-looking animated effects that seem to be there simply to show how much money they cost. This film is almost unmistakably the fastest moving 3 hours and 45 minutes I have ever seen; it’s an epic that fascinates and envelops its audience throughout with its complex, even disturbing anti-hero, its stunning photography and its historical background and story. How influential is this film exactly? Think of Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese all listing this film and the other works of director David Lean as one of their greatest influences in becoming filmmakers, and considering my intent on following similar footsteps, I’m backing that opinion. Epics like this are so hard to find today and even harder to find made well.  In total, I've probably seen Lawrence of Arabia nine times and I was there in the theatre to celebrate its 50th Anniversary last year; any serious filmgoer or aspiring filmmaker should be encouraged to experience it the same way.

Star-rating: ********** out of **********

Final evaluation: Absolute Masterpiece!

"DAMASCUS!"