Only One Word Describes This Film: Epic

Rating: 8/10 (9 April 2010)

Cairo during World War I: T. E. Lawrence (Peter O'Toole) is a misfit British Army lieutenant, notable only for his insolence and knowledge of the Bedouin. Over the objections of a skeptical General Murray (Donald Wolfit), he is sent by Mr. Dryden (Claude Rains) of the Arab Bureau to assess the prospects of Prince Faisal (Alec Guinness) in his revolt against the Turks.
This film asks: what makes England great: guns or discipline? And that's a question any nation or empire can ask. America today holds the power England once had, and what makes it great? Seemingly, the guns... military advantage does gain a country economic advantage. But a country can be great in other ways, such as its arts. Was England great in that way?
Lawrence had a way of understanding the Middle East that few of his time -- or today -- really did. He made a map of the region and suggested on how to divide up the area. Tribes are given more credence, the Palestinians have their own land, as do the Armenians. Had England listened to Lawrence more, perhaps we would have fewer Middle Eastern disputes today. Perhaps...
Historically, Lawrence was seen as asexual and a masochist. It's hard to show his asexuality, though we can say that the film does not portray him as a ladies man. Likewise, while we never see him being an outright masochist, the beating scene does suggest he is capable of taking great pain. To hint that he enjoyed it, though, may be going too far.
This film is fantastic. It's a bit hard to get through in one sitting, coming just shy of four hours. But if you use the intermission for a bathroom break or to make a sandwich, it's well worth catching it all in a relatively short amount of time.