Review of Lawrence of Arabia (1962) by Stevenf — 07 Jun 2013

Whether it is the stunning visual landscape that enthrals the entire film, the literary genius of the writing or the larger than life and superior acting of the cast involved, Lawrence of Arabia can stand among the rest as one of the greatest films, art or whatever else, to ever be created.

Peter O'Toole puts in not only the finest performance of his career to date, but one of the finest and emotionally driven of any performance seen in cinema, portraying T.E. Lawrence in his debut is no menial task, but captured through his calm and collective speech, his arrogance for command and his undying will to succeed where most believed impossible is achieved impeccably on numerous occasions from O'Toole.

Lawrence, a British Army Lieutenant and very much out of place in his position, is assigned to assess the intentions of Prince Faisal (Alec Guinness) in his struggle against the Turks. Upon eventually meeting the Prince, Lawrence's constant interruptions of his General intrigues the Prince, who then lets Lawrence carry out his own mission of a sneak attack on Aqaba, a Turk-fortified city.

As Lawrence earns the respect amongst his combatants, he soon finds himself as a sort of God amongst men, they would kill for him and also die for him.

The score from start to finish immediately solidifies what this film is doing, creating and building an epic story, character driven and thoughtful masterpiece to cement a legacy not only for the man it follows, but for its own reputation as a film, and a film it is. A more beautiful and stunning film is rare to see without countless special effects, yet Lawrence of Arabia uses something that is seen as nothing, the desert, and completely obliterates any of the concerned.

When films like this are viewed on an imaginative and respected level, its difficult not feel very different than you were before watching them, much like Apocalypse Now and others, Lawrence of Arabia gives you something that you may not have ever witnessed before, and probably won't witness again, the effort of the film, the stunning visuals and the literary brilliance of the writing, especially for the wonderful Peter O'Toole, along with Omar Sharif, many moments of screen time are given to O'Toole, and with his piercing blue eyes its hard to look away for whatever reason.

Take it from a fan, you will never see another film quite like this, best films lists or not, this is what a masterful film is all about, big and bold on every scale, never holding back its potential and delivering a powerhouse feature that lives on fifty years later, you owe it as a film fan to watch and be amazed.