A Breathtaking Masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (6 August 2014)

As many good things as I had heard about this movie, I will admit I was cautious when I recently watched it. To quote Omar Sharif, one of the stars of the film, "If you are the man with the money and somebody comes to you and says he wants to make a film that's four hours long, with no stars, and no women, and no love story, and not much action either, and he wants to spend a huge amount of money to go film it in the desert--what would you say?" Chances are, most people wouldn't want to watch that kind of movie. And despite that, after my first viewing, there is no doubt about it- "Lawrence of Arabia" is a piece of cinematic perfection.
This 1962 classic, directed by David Lean, tells the true story of T.E. Lawrence, a British military officer who unites Arabian desert tribes during World War I to overthrow the Turkish Empire. What ensues is a piece of film so good, it will take your breath away.
This movie works on so many levels, but the most obvious, and greatest, is Peter O'Toole's performance as the title character. He is so complex, so subtle and yet so lively, that you can't take your eyes off the screen. It is his performance that makes this film what it is. If I made a list of the Top 10 Best Performances in Film, (Which would be impossible to rank) O'Toole would undoubtedly be on there, along with Brando in "The Godfather," Welles in "Citizen Kane," Garland in "The Wizard of Oz," and Monroe in "Some Like It Hot." Without him, this movie wouldn't be anywhere near as good as it is, and it is hard not to be amazed, or full of fright, at how his character changes throughout the movie.
Of course, that is not to say that the rest of the cast is bad, far from it. Alec Guinness as Prince Feisal and Omar Sharif as Sheriff Ali are the standouts of the supporting cast, and Anthonys Quinn and Quayle are just as good.
Every single technical aspect of this movie is done to perfection. The cinematography is among the best in any movie, as it brilliantly captures the beauty and size of the desert. I have not had a chance to see this in a theater, but I would gladly see it again on the biggest screen possible. The cut from the match to the sunrise is just amazing, rivaled only by the bone cut in "2001: A Space Odyssey." The battle scenes, although they are not a major part of the movie, are wonderfully put together. The score is fantastic, I could listen to the main theme for hours. And, even with a running time of almost 4 hours, every scene feels essential, even if it isn't directly important to the plot. My only complaint is that it occasionally feels slow, but the other moments are so amazing that it hardly matters.
Often I will not agree with the Academy Awards, but this is one rare instance where I feel that they actually got it right. (Although that may be just that it was so good that they knew people would kill them if it didn't win) It deserved every single award it got, (And the ones it didn't, why didn't Peter O'Toole get Best Actor? Why?) and "Lawrence of Arabia" may even be my pick for #2 Best Film of All Time. ("The Godfather" is #1.) So, of course, it gets 10/10.
"I cannot fiddle but I can make a great state of a small city." -Lawrence.