Review of Lawrence of Arabia (2 Disc Set)

Introduction

The old Brits are good at warfare - throughout the centuries we have dominated the theatre of war, from kicking the French`s ass in the 15th century at Agincourt to the Spanish being taught a lesson or two on the highseas in the late 16th century.

But of course, one of the most, if not the most, famous example were the two wars at the beginning of the 20th century: the First World War, 1914-1918; and then the Second World War, 1939-1945. In both wars men and women gave their lives for the freedom of others, so we could live in some sort of peace (although recent examples of barbarism have somewhat undone their work).

Both wars were extensive, wars of many battles and campaigns, of many crimes and tragedies, yet we somehow pulled through. In the First World War, as well as the brutal trench warfare in France, a large campaign occurred against the Turkish Empire in the vast nothingness of the desert.

The `sides` of this particular campaign were a bunch of Arab factions - I suppose the `good` of the campaign if one had to choose, and then the oppressive Turks, who were slowly taking over the land, and they needed to be stopped. War was declared...the battle was joined.

A British soldier, a decorated man of courage and dignity: T.E. Lawrence, led the Arabs in the desert. Slightly eccentric, he was an accomplised man of war when he was sent behind enemy lines, yet something was slightly wrong with Lawrence - he was a great commander, but his ideosyncrasies were growing (for instance he would only wear Arab robes, showed moments of random violence et al), possibly after a bad experience with the Turks (let`s just say he was grabbed, beaten, and then treated à la Pulp Fiction if you get my drift).

After surving the war, and achieving the required objectives (mainly launching a successful raid on the Turks, overthrowing them and claiming the land), Lawrence retired to England, and was tragically killed in a motorcycle accident in 1935 in Dorset, incidentally about thirty minutes from where I live.

In 1962, film-making duo David Lean and Sam Spiegel teamed up to capture this remarkable tale. With Lean directing an Spiegel producing, they made a film so rich and engrossing that the Academy hailed it with seven awards - most notably Best Picture and Director, as well as receiving three other nominations.

And now, the time has come for us to revisit the classic on DVD...

Video

2.20:1 Anamorphic Widescreen. The print has been remastered, and now it is looking better than ever. Crisp, sweeping visuals; no artefacts whatever; and the transfer displays a good use of the palette and is free from dust and grain. Let me just say that if you have seen this before on the television - and chances are you will have seen it sometime over the years - then expect to see a lot, lot more: this is in glorious widescreen, and beats your standard pan & scan ratio any day.

There is no wonder as to why Lean picked up the Best Director gong, as the film has the epic vibe to it in every way. This is how this genre should be done, and films nowadays that want to have a sweeping nature to them, take note (yes, I`m talking about you, Mr. Lucas - and even to some extent Mr. Jackson). There is no CGI in Lawrence of Arabia, and there is no need in any point of the running time. By creating a film where everything is genuine: set design, extras, action scenes and so on, there is a sense of realism and plausibility, something lost by today`s generation of film-makers.

Audio

Dolby Digital 5.1 (English, German & Spanish). Those of you expecting a lacklustre soundtrack with no use of your surround system are very much mistaken: in fact we get the complete opposite. A very impressive soundstage is full of ambience and the main audio stream is crisp and clear for the dialogue, with the surrounds springing to life during the action scenes, with the subwoofer emitting some groundshaking bass. A very good soundtrack in all - only slightly surpassed by other, more modern, releases.

The script, penned by Robert Bolt, captures the essence of Lawrence well: showing him as a decorated officer, a loose cannon, as well as fleshing out the other characters that we come across in the film. However, in parts the script does drag slightly (the film runs for a whopping 218 minutes), so although we get a good grasp of events and the modus operandi of each character, some parts are not as lively nor as enjoyable as others.

Features

Due to the running time, the film is spread across two discs - a dual-layered flipper basically. So, the first disc contains the majority of the film, ending at a convenient point. Load up the second disc, and a musical interlude preceeds the second part, drawing you back into the surroundings.

The second disc comes complete with the extras of the package, which kick off with a rather hefty documentary, "The Making of Lawrence of Arabia". This clocks in at just under an hour, and covers the production in wonderful depth, with interviews with the cast and crew about the mammoth task they faced and how they did it. One of the best documentaries around.

"Journey With Lawrence" is a series of maps which can be accessed to find out the history of specific places covered in the film. A nice, and insightful, touch.

Steven Spielberg, yeah - that Oscar-winning director, has a brief conversation (8 minutes) about how he loves the film, how it influenced him et cetera. Good to see they can recruit people like him for the extra features.

There are a selection of featurettes - four to be precise - ranging from casting the role of Lawrence to casting the camels in the film! They are good and add to the excellent documentary.

Footage from the New York premiere of Lawrence of Arabia is also included: good old black and white clips from the big night, complete with voiceover. Priceless.

A series of advertising materials are strung together with a voiceover, explaining how popular the film was on its release. To compliment this feature, the original theatrical trailer is also included.

There are also some filmographies present for those who like that sort of thing.

To cap off the extras, there is a selection of DVD-ROM features, namely behind-the-scenes photos of the production.

The menus on both discs are animated beautifully with the score playing in the background with clips from the film alongside the selections. They are easy to navigate and form an excellent taster for what is to come.

Conclusion

This is an epic in every sense, from its sweeping and wonderfully-shot locations to its diverse characters and mammoth objectives. Considering this was made over forty years ago, it is a prime example of how to make a film like this, how to capture the action and captivate the audience, and how to evoke empathy and sympathy with the titular character`s growing problems.

But, not every film is perfect, and this has its flaws. The main problem viewers will have with it - especially modern audiences - is the length and padding of the narrative. I got bored at times, but fortunately the boredom is short-lived: and definitely not long enough nor frequent enough to warrant pressing the `Eject` button on your remote.

Forgive the slight veering off track, and instead lap up the moments of sheer action and scope, as well as one of the most comprehensive history lessons of all time.

Columbia have done incredibly well with the DVD, as the remastering is evident and well done, and even the extra features ooze insight and thought. Although a commentary is missing (mind you, who would want to sit through three hours and eighteen minutes of film, talking throughout?), but luckily the other extras almost make up for its absence.

This is a timeless film on a timeless DVD - go buy.