The finest ingredients for a film I've ever encountered...

Rating: 9/10 (8 December 2019)

This has got to be in my top ten movies - it is an almost flawless exercise in marrying fantastic photography, casting, writing, costumes and a score into three hours of wonderful entertainment. Rumour has it that Albert Finney was offered the lead role and suggested Peter O'Toole instead. If that is true (or not) then clearly serendipity was already on hand to guide this rendition of the story of TE Lawrence, who inspired and led an Arab uprising against the Ottoman empire. The iconic scene that introduces us to Omar Sharif as Lawrence heads to meet Prince Faisal (Alec Guinness) starts us on a journey mixing adventure, politics, superstition, ambition and cruelty. Anthony Quinn is superb as are, in lesser capacities, Claude Rains, José Ferrer and Jack Hawkins as his somewhat cynical, but opportunistic GOC. Arthur Kennedy helps take Lawrence's story to the world and through his eyes we see how his character is changed by all the violence around/instigated by him. Peter O'Toole conveys the emotional rollercoaster of a journey from naive, optimistic officer to war-weary veteran in a dazzling fashion. This is a true treat of a film.