The Epic of Epics

Rating: 10/10 (23 October 2001)

Lawrence of Arabia, with apologies to "Citizen Kane" is simply the finest film ever made. I was twelve when I first saw the picture; it has stood the test of time and it is the master work of a master craftsman. David Lean made cinema history with this beautifully filmed motion picture. He went against the odds by casting a complete unknown, Irish stage actor Peter O'Toole, who had the facial resemblance to the real Lawrence, but was close to being over a foot taller, something the historians have not overlooked. O'Toole has enjoyed a noteworthy career, garnering five Oscar nominations for Best Actor, but Lawrence was his climatic role; a role of a life time. Not to be out done, Lean cast the virtually unknown (in the West) Egyptian actor, Omar Sharif in the supporting role of Sheik Ali. It could argued of Sharif that he might have had the greatest entrance and exit in one film in movie history. Lean surrounded these unknown actors with a supporting cast of such excellence that there names alone are legendary; Alec Guinness (an outstanding portrayal as King Feisal), Anthony Quinn (in a starry spin as the imprudent Auda ibu Tayi), Jose Ferrer past Oscar winners all; plus the always reliable Jack Hawkins, Arthur Kennedy, Anthony Quayle along with the great Claude Rains. To tell the story of such a complicate and enigmatic man as TE Lawrence was not a trivial feat and I will not begin to try here. But as a film biography, we can measure the end result. With the accomplished Robert Bolt, multi-award winning John Box and the lasting musical score of the finest movie composer of his generation (Maurice Jarre), Lean left no stone unturned in his pursuit for excellence. He used Sam Spiegal's money well. Within the film is not one, but a number of magical scenes that never leave the memory: Lawrence blows out the match turning it into the Sun; like a mirage Ali confronts Lawrence at the water hole; at Auda's camp with Auda exclaiming "I am but a river to my people"; the crossing of the Nefud desert and the Devil's Anvil; the spectacular attack on Akaba; the "take no prisoners" scene; the train derailment--all terrific stuff and all original. Steven Spielberg has stated that he was most influenced by Lean and he, Spielberg, could not afford to make Lawrence of Arabia today, too expensive he said, it would cost over $250M or more to produce, and besides he said, "it wouldn't be as good as the original, the best movie ever made." Beat that for a ultimate review!