The Most Extraordinary Movie I Ever Knew: A Review of Lawrence of Arabia

David Lean’s production of Lawrence of Arabia at times must have been as chaotic as the Arab National Council depicted in the film.

Traveling to the desert, recreating immense scenes, thousands of extras baking in the sun. Lawrence of Arabia is a film that could not be made today, unless you’re an actor on 2015’s The Revenant, surviving freezing temperatures, waiting for perfect natural light.

When T.E. Lawrence (Peter O’Toole), dies in a motorcycle accident, a reporter recounts of the story of a military misfit that plays a major part in the Arab Revolt against the Turks during World War I. Lawrence is sent to assess the rebellion and interrupts council with Prince Faisal (Alec Guinness) who gives him 50 men that follow him across a burning desert.

This movie is a slow burner, and the four-hour run time has little to do with it. There’s no romance, few explosions, and the most action-packed scene is a massacre over three hours in. This film is as much about one man’s struggle to understand himself as it is a war epic with grand consequences.

Lawrence’s epic journey across the desert is slow and brutal, not unlike the conditions on location. In one scene, a black speck appears on the horizon. The camera patiently waits, a servant squints his eyes in the distance, there is no rush. There’s plenty of moments like that in this film. The story moves at a Camel-like pace. In the desert there is a finite speed to things.

After Lawrence’s forces take the port of Aqaba, he is a hero to the people around him. There are casualties along the way but as the stakes grow, the importance of each life dwindles. Part II of the epic has Peter O’Toole transform from larger-than-life hero to mute. After scouting a Turkish-held town, Lawrence is severely beaten, tortured and thrown to the street. He stops eating, recoils from the responsibility of leading his group of warriors and wishes to return to a job “anyone can do.”

The cast blends into their roles seamlessly. Shooting on location makes every scene and character feel authentic and this very well could be a documentary on the Arab revolt. Peter O’Toole uses his face to show the rise and fall of know-it-all military lieutenant to war hero to clueless leader of the Arab National Council.

Things come to a climax when Lawrence deters his military from the road to Damacus and massacres a group of injured Turkish soldiers declaring, “no prisoners.” He is tortured by the violence but feels compelled by it. By the end of the battle he is crazed with blood adorning his pearl white robes.

There is no movie like Lawrence of Arabia and there doesn’t need to be another one. There are historical dramas but none do the insane amount of work that this film delivers. The camera is stiff, rigid as the British soldiers. Wide, sweeping shots give the harsh landscapes a sense of scale that is not seen often. The brutality of war is on full display. Jarhead (2005) is set in the same country and also takes his approach to the war film.

Lawrence of Arabia is every bit masterpiece now as it was in 1962. It stands up so well and feels incredibly fresh and unique. The only problem is finding the four hours to watch it.