“Lawrence of Arabia” is one of the few movies so far were this viewing was my second viewing. As I move further down the list this will happen more, but I watched “Lawrence of Arabia” originally because I thought of it as an important movie. The first time through I found the movie boring. A person just walking in the desert or huge shots of the desert while music is playing is what I took away from the movie. After watching this movie for the second time I realized how much watching these movies has already influenced my appreciation for movies and has allowed me to view this movie in a new light.
The film begins with the death of the main character, T. E. Lawrence. The death shown is just him crashing on his motorcycle. We then flashback to the beginning of Lawrence’s adventures in Arabia. We follow Lawrence as he travels across the desert and inspires the Arab people to form their own nation. He leads attacks on important cities and on the railway system of the Turkish empire. By the end of the movie he is driven close to insane by the fighting in the desert. At the end of the film both the British Army and the Arab King send Lawrence back to his home as they no longer have a need for him.
From a cinematography aspect the film is a masterpiece. The shots of Lawrence and the Arab army traveling through the desert and of Lawrence trying on his Arab clothes are brilliant and remain iconic to this day. Then there is the music, Maurice Jarre puts forth a terrific effort. The score from the movie is iconic and is instantly recognizable, for good reason. The scripting of the movie is one area that could have used some work. The plot could be a little bit tighter and the shift from the point of view of the movie shifting from Lawrence to other characters after the intermission doesn’t flow correctly. The jump between point of view characters is jarring at times, it would have been better if the viewpoint stayed with Lawrence or if they want to change characters pick one character and stick with them. And of course the movie had great acting. Peter O’Toole was amazing as Lawrence and he was supported by strong performances from Alec Guiness and Omar Shariff. It is a crime that neither O’Toole or Shariff won acting awards for this movie, but O’Toole did have to go up against Gregory Peck for “To Kill A Mockingbird” so I understand why he lost as that is one of the best performances of all time.
Overall I really enjoyed my second watch of “Lawrence of Arabia” and I can’t wait to see what has changed with the other films I have already seen as I watch them. This movie though gets 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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I've found that watching "Lawrence of Arabia" is a richer experience each time I view it.
ReplyDeleteThe bigger the screen the better.
I didn't have the same opinion of the film thirty years ago. It's a matter of maturity.
My current view is that cinematography beats out computer graphics, and reality trumps fantasy. All films are products of their time, and technology is still evolving. "Avatar" is a great film that exploited the state of technology, as did the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Some form of Immersion 3D, where we're in the middle of the action, and can walk through it, is yet to come. It will be like having our own Holideck.
With advanced video, sound, and effects techniques in use, we will eventually lose the ability to go back to analog days. At that time, when we look behind, David Lean's "Lawrence of Arabia" and a few dozen other films will stand as great achievements with their value enhanced and appreicated.