Could ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ be made today?

I watched ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ for the first time in a while, as a balm for the soul while unwinding from running a trial.

It struck me that though the film is almost four hours long, it does not feel long.

Contrast this with ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 2’ which is not long but feels very long. They drag on and on hitting their checklist of plot points mechanically, with impeccable timing and zero feeling. It really is a sit-through of utter nothingness.

Back to Lawrence.

My favourite theme in Lawrence has to do with fate.

The Arab army is crossing a vast desert, in order to attack Aqaba with the element of surprise. There is no margin for error. Lawrence’s friend Gasim falls off his camel somewhere in the vastness, which is regarded by the men in the army as meaning that he is beyond saving, as good as dead. Turning around to rescue him means certain death as well, given the extremes they have already endured, barely limping in to the nearest well.

Lawrence, despite the incredible risk, says he must go back for Gasim.

Prince Feisal: ‘Gasim’s time has come, Lawrence. It is written.’

Lawrence: ‘Nothing is written.’

Sherif Ali: ‘You will not be at Aqaba, English! Go back, blasphemer… but you will not be at Aqaba!’

Lawrence: ‘I shall be at Aqaba. That, IS written.’

Lawrence turns around and somehow finds Gasim on the verge of death in the vastness. The two, sun-scorched and dehydrated, stumble into camp. Symbolically, the defiant and powerful Sherif Ali brings Lawrence his own water bag for him to drink from, a sign not only of acceptance, but a degree of subservience. An incredible moment.

Later, a man is killed and in order to keep the army from falling into tribal chaos, Lawrence elects to be the executioner. When the murderer is revealed, we see it is none other than Gasim, whom Lawrence risked death to save. Having defied the edict of fate to save Gasim’s life, Lawrence must now take that life. He pulls the trigger, scarcely able to look, again and again.

In 1962, it’s year of release, Lawrence of Arabia was the top-grossing movie at the box office. It also won the Academy Award for Best Picture. I do not use those to measure the greatness of the film, but rather to show that a film of substance was not only seen by a wide audience, but was lauded by the political, critical, Hollywood establishment.

Compare to 2017, the most recent full year. The Box office champion was the bland, foregettable ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’, and the Best Picture winner ‘Moonlight’ was not seen by a wide audience, despite the publicity that comes with the award.

Which brings me to my question, ‘Could ‘Lawrence’ be made today?’

The budget is large and there is no comic book characters, let alone more comic book characters than humanly possible to keep track of (see Avengers Infinity War), to guarantee ticket sales, so the risk to the bottom line is not unlike crossing a vast desert — with no guarantee of a well at the other end. The main character is dynamic and complex, self-questioning, unsure of his place in the world, torn between his various motivations, even those he is scarcely aware of, or ignores. In fact he was a real human being — imagine that. The themes are nuanced and easy answers do not exist. There is no payoff for a large audience, every feel good moment is twinned with a moment of darkness. There is no trendy angle to sell Academy voters on. There is no cgi, which almost seems to be an end in and of itself in many films now.

An independent filmmaker could take a stab at it, but, without the budget, it is hard to see how the location shoots, massive crows scenes, and the like would be pulled off.

A major studio would not touch it.

The new Star Wars spinoff featuring a young Han Solo is not doing as well at the box office as it was expected to. There is a question as to whether this is the start of Star Wars fatigue and whether this will spread to the other similar blockbuster franchises, such as Marvel and DC, as has happened with the thankfully exhausted Hobbit and Harry Potter franchises. These are the movies that dominate our cultural conversation, and they are junk. Politics being downstream from culture, it is no wonder that our politics has reached a peak of superficial emptiness.

Perhaps when people have had their fill of pablum, there will be an appetite for something as ambitious and complex as ‘Lawrence’, and the means for someone such as Christopher Nolan to make it.

But will people move on from an obsession with baby food to an adult diet?

I’m not holding my breath.

In the meantime Lawrence of Arabia will continue to delight me, and I will gobble down popcorn while watching the latest comic book monstrosity on a nearby screen.

(Photo © 1962 Columbia Pictures)