If you haven't seen it, you're missing out

Rating: 10/10 (18 April 2015)

"Lawrence of Arabia" is a grandiose film that's a must watch; even if you're not a huge movie buff, it resonates with so much scale and spectacle that you will be blown away. This epic adventure drama is based on the life of T.E. Lawrence, played here y Peter O'Toole. The bulk of the story centers around Lawrence's experiences in the Middle East during World War I, particularly some of the large battles he took place In and his Involvement in the Arab National Council. There's more than just action here though, Lawrence is a deeply conflicted man who struggles with some internal turmoil as well as the inevitable violence that arises during war times.
Don't settle for watching it on your rink-dink phone or even your TV, take the time to seek it out and find a theatre near you that's showing it on a giant screen because this movie features such breathtaking sights that you will be missing out otherwise. Oh, you'll still be able to appreciate the scale and cinematography elsewhere, but it won't be the same. Regardless of where you see it, the excellent performances and epic storyline will have you cheering. What struck me in particular Is the cinematography. Several shots show armies rushing through enormous landscapes high above, and In one particularly memorable scene a tiny dot on the horizon reveals itself to be a lone rider, coming towards the camera. Writing it down just doesn't do it justice.
Consistently, I found myself scratching my head wondering "how did they do that?" All of these enormous crowd shots or scenes featuring raids on trains featuring clockwork-like coordination make me wonder. It looks like the film was either done in one take or the sand was painstakingly cleaned to look like it was undisturbed between re-shoots. There were no computers in 1962 and yet this looks as Impressive as the $150 million CGI fests that we get every summer. As Lawrence, Peter O'Toole's performance is amazing. He really portrays the feelings of someone who is tortured and divided inside, but almost isn't allowed to worry about it because of the huge burden on his shoulders. The story, despite its multiple characters and multiple locations (several of which have foreign, difficult to pronounce names that you will probably have trouble remembering) is clear and easy to follow. If there's any fault it's that at times the film is overwhelming. So much goes on and there's so much that happens beneath the surface of our hero's exterior that you will have to watch it multiple times to get a real handle on all of it. There is so much greatness here it's hard to describe it all. It's a landmark in filmmaking and you've probably seen countless parodies and clips of the film over the years, so for that reason alone it's worth a watch.
It's a long show, but you won't mind thanks to the intermission and it will really stick with you. It's more than worth your time. I feel guilty admitting this but I almost had a bit of pre-conceived negative feelings towards it because I'd heard people almost trying to guilt me into watching it because they called it "The greatest movie of all time". Now the only person I feel resentment towards is me for not checking it out sooner. Even if you don't absolutely fall in love with it, there's no doubt you will be very impressed. (Restored version on the big screen, November 14, 2012)