Lawrence of Arabia (1962) (2-Disc Set)

Do not miss this one

By john  Feb 13, 2003 | 3 out of 3 found this Lawrence of Arabia (1962) review helpful

Arguably the greatest epic ever made. Brilliant directing from David Lean and excellent performances from the entire cast. O’Toole was a convincing T.E. Lawrence who effectively used his facial expressions, and above all his blue eyes, to convey... to the audience a wide range of mental states: confusion, internal struggle, indecisiveness, and determination. The cinematography was excellent, and so as the music score. The contrast of the desert was brought out brilliantly by Lean: from the enchanting dawn/sunrise to the murderous noon, treacherous quick sands, and blinding sandstorms. There were a couple of imperfections though. All Arab characters spoke English with accent except Auda( Anthony Quinn ), why? In the battle for Aqaba, with the camera at close range, one could see a Turkish soldier fell before the saber of the Arabic horseman stroke. Did a bullet kill the Turkish soldier or the saber? Despite these minor imperfections, Lawrence of Arabia is undoubtedly a masterpiece of masterpieces. I enjoyed it thoroughly and watched the entire movie( three and a half hours ) three times within the first ten days I bought the movie( single disc version ). Now I have purchased the 2 discs version to see how the movie was made and the short documentary of T.E. Lawrence. This is a riveting story of a fascinating man. Did he came to Arabia to fulfill his destiny, to pursue his own ambitions, or to help his country's war effort to expel the Turks from Arabia and Palestine, or to unite the feuding tribes to help form an Arab state, or all of the above? Read more Less