Feast for lovers of complexity

Rating: 9/10 (22 July 2003)

Lawrence of Arabia is a film that takes its characters seriously. Instead of creating stable characters performing different functions during the film, David Lean has succeeded in telling a story about a complex world, with complex people dwelling in it.
The protagonist, Lawrence, is a man who is forever oscillating between self-doubt and hubris. He wants to create a place in the world for himself. We see his wish for becoming accepted as an equal amongst the Bedouin people. In being a great warrior, leading the Bedouin to Aqba and Damascus, he seems to have been successful. But things are not so easy. He comes to have doubts about his identity, and his project of 'becoming an Arab'. He wants to change, but there are many questions to be asked. How is it possible to change? Is he not naive in trying to get the people around him to accept him as a full-worthy member of the group?
The film reveals the dark sides of self-scrutiny and deception. Lawrence remains a very human paradox; he can be said to be both very conscious about himself, and still he somehow seems to deceive himself in striving mostly for Honor and acceptance (in opposition to e.g. friendship and love). In an magnificent way, we get to see how friendship and love between men are destroyed by the blind (but conscious) desire for Honor and position. Shall we say that Lawrence was corrupted? Or shall we say that he finally realized something about himself? I don't know.
Lawrence of Arabia tells a story about the fragility of love and friendship. This is a story that opens many interesting perspectives on person-hood, identity and morality. What makes this film a masterpiece, is that it forces the viewer to think for herself. (In this case, the clichÃ© can be uttered without embarrassment.