IMDb > Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Lawrence of Arabia
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Lawrence of Arabia (1962) More at IMDbPro »

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Lawrence of Arabia (1962) -- An epic rumination on a flamboyant and controversial British military figure and his conflicted loyalties during wartime service
Lawrence of Arabia (1962) -- Clip: I will execute the law
Lawrence of Arabia (1962) -- AFI's 10 Top 10 - The 10 Greatest Films in 10 Classic Genres
Lawrence of Arabia (1962) -- Epic rumination on a flamboyant and controversial British military figure and his conflicted loyalties during wartime service.
Lawrence of Arabia (1962) -- Home Video Preview

Overview

User Rating:
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 6% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers (WGA):
T.E. Lawrence (writings)
Robert Bolt (screenplay) ...
more
Contact:
View company contact information for Lawrence of Arabia on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
30 January 1963 (Canada) more
Tagline:
The Desert Classic. (1983 Video Release) more
Plot:
Epic rumination on a flamboyant and controversial British military figure and his conflicted loyalties during wartime service. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Won 7 Oscars. Another 19 wins & 12 nominations more
User Comments:
Still my personal favourite more (427 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Lawrence de Arabia (Argentina) (Mexico) (Spain) (Uruguay) [es]
Lawrence av Arabien (Finland: Swedish title) (Sweden) [sv]
Lawrence d'Arabie (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Lawrence da Arábia (Brazil) (Portugal) [pt]
Arábiai Lawrence (Hungary) [hu]
Arabian Lawrence (Finland) [fi]
Lawrence Ish Arav (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
Lawrence af Arabien (Denmark) [da]
Lawrence d'Aràbia (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
Lawrence d'Arabia (Italy) [it]
Lawrence von Arabien (West Germany) [de]
Lawrence z Arábie (Czechoslovakia: Czech title) [cs]
Lawrence z Arabii (Poland) [pl]
Lorens od Arabije (Yugoslavia: Serbian title) [sr]
O Lawrence tis Aravias (Greece) [el]
more
Runtime:
216 min | UK:228 min (director's cut) | UK:187 min (1970 re-release) | UK:210 min (original version) | UK:222 min (premiere version) | USA:227 min (restored roadshow version)
Country:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
70 mm 6-Track (RCA Sound Recording) (70 mm prints) | Dolby SR (35 mm prints) (restored version) | Mono (35 mm prints) (original version) | 4-Track Stereo (magnetic prints) (35 mm) (original version) | DTS 70 mm (70mm restored version)
Certification:
Hong Kong:IIA | USA:Approved (original rating) | USA:G (re-rating) (1971) | Iceland:12 | Portugal:M/12 | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Netherlands:12 (DVD rating) | South Korea:12 | Brazil:14 | USA:PG (edited for re-rating) (1988) | West Germany:12 (f) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:M (Special Edition DVD) | Australia:PG | Chile:TE | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Ireland:PG | Norway:15 (director's cut) | Norway:16 | Singapore:PG | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The film missed out on a 11th Oscar nomination - for Best Costume Design - because someone forgot to submit Phyllis Dalton's name for consideration. more
Goofs:
Factual errors: In the movie, Farraj is mortally wounded by a detonator going off in his clothes, but in The Seven Pillars of Wisdom, T.E Lawrence writes that Farraj was wounded by a Turk shooting him while riding on his camel. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Vicar at St. Paul's: Well nil nisi bonum. But I find something... disproportionate in all this.
Colonel Brighton: He was a remarkable chap. By any counts, remarkable.
Vicar at St. Paul's: Did you know him well?
Colonel Brighton: I knew him.
more
Movie Connections:
Soundtrack:
The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo more

FAQ

A NOTE REGARDING SPOILERS
What was Robert Bolt's contribution to the script vs. Michael Wilson's contribution, and why was Wilson denied credit?
more
186 out of 239 people found the following comment useful.
Still my personal favourite, 26 January 2005
10/10
Author: iain_connell from United Kingdom

I first saw this film on its release, aged 13, and it forms an important part of my transition towards adulthood. I am pleased to see that it consistently rates 20something in the IMDb listings, even from others (whom I envy, for I can't see it with fresh eyes) who are seeing it for the first time. Pleasing too is that some of those are also teenagers, for whom a forty-three year old film must itself seem part of the past. As for the minority who are bored by intentionally slow pacing (and for whom punctuation, paragraphing and grammar are a lost art), I suggest they learn a little about the history of film-making (from which it may become apparent that much of today's fast editing techniques were invented in the 1920s: try Eisenstein's October, for example).

From the universally admired cinematography of Freddie Young, the long shot of Omar Sharif's floating mirage entry, the pre-CGI battles and pan-up scene changes, to O'Toole's florid but career-defining performance and the (then) novel time-shift narrative, this film set standards not matched even by Lean himself, and, as many reviewers have commented, financially and practically unlikely to be attempted today. I too have rarely seen such clarity of image outside of Imax, and in my view the script by Robert Bolt (and I now have learnt, an uncredited Michael Wilson) is the finest in cinema. Maurice Jarre's music and some of the acting style now seem a little excessive, but repeated viewing (around 35 times in my case) does not diminish the impact and quality, and the restoration and now DVD release still, after all these years, approaches the effect of that first 1962 viewing.

It is rare that repeated watching of a film (as opposed to a live performance) does this, and the reasons go beyond the photography, performances and editing. In my opinion, it is because the characterisation and storytelling encourage an appreciation of the ambiguity and inconsistency behind our motives and behaviour, and, in a wartime scenario, in the contrast between political expedience and personal morality. For a 13-year old, this opened a window into the adult world, and it explains why the story has resonance far beyond its setting. The film doesn't require an understanding of middle-east politics (though it does have some very current relevance), but it does require an ability to look, listen and understand. The fact that so many people rate it so highly says everything about its wider impact. When The Matrix and even Lord of the Rings have slipped out of the ratings (and the adolescents who inhabit these pages have grown up), I believe this film will still be in the 20s or 30s, perhaps enabling young people to once again see the world through adult eyes.

Like Ali, I fear Lawrence. I fear the power of art to change us, to challenge our preconceptions. Every time I see this film I learn a little more, discover something new. When I was 13 I didn't understand much, but this film helped me to see that I wanted more, knew more, than my peers. I can't rate it more highly than that.

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Recent Posts (updated daily)User
It's going to be fun... jbhixon
I'm Sorry... cbatower
Showing in 70mm 10/27/09 in Hollywood!!! ibanezman6
What am I missing? strongbadt
Was he raped by the turks? tardesdete
Showing in Brooklyn, NY this weekend!!! dang1213
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