Lawrence of Arabia
UK (1962): Drama/Adventure/War
There's no getting around a simple, basic truth: watching Lawrence of Arabia in any home-video format represents a compromise. There's no better way to appreciate this epic biographical adventure than to see it projected in 70 millimeter onto a huge theater screen. That caveat aside, David Lean's masterful "desert classic" is still enjoyable on the small screen, especially if viewed in widescreen format. (If your only option is to view a "pan & scan" version, it's best not to bother; this is a film for which the widescreen format is utterly mandatory.) Peter O'Toole gives a star-making performance as T.E. Lawrence, the eccentric British officer who united the desert tribes of Arabia against the Turks during World War I. Lean orchestrates sweeping battle sequences and breathtaking action, but the film is really about the adventures and trials that transform Lawrence into a legendary man of the desert. Lean traces this transformation on a vast canvas of awesome physicality; no other movie has captured the expanse of the desert with such scope and grandeur. Equally important is the psychology of Lawrence, who remains an enigma even as we grasp his identification with the desert. Perhaps the greatest triumph of this landmark film is that Lean has conveyed the romance, danger, and allure of the desert with such physical and emotional power. It's a film about a man who leads one life but is irresistibly drawn to another, where his greatness and mystery are allowed to flourish in equal measure. The all-star cast also features Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn, Jack Hawkins, Omar Sharif, José Ferrer, Anthony Quayle, Claude Rains and Arthur Kennedy. (Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com)
10 nominations, 7 Awards
· Best Picture 1962: Sam Spiegel - Producer (Horizon-Spiegel-Lean, Columbia)
· Directing 1962: David Lean
· Art Direction/Set Decoration (Color) 1962: John Box & John Stoll - Art Direction, Dario Simoni - Set Decoration
· Cinematography (Color) 1962: Freddie Young
· Film Editing 1962: Anne V. Coates
· Music Scoring Awards (Music Score substantially original) 1962: Maurice Jarre
· Sound 1962: John Cox (Shepperton Studio Sound Department)
· Actor 1962: Peter O'Toole
· Supporting Actor 1962: Omar Sharif
· Writing (Screenplay based on material from another medium) 1962: Robert Bolt