Lawrence of Arabia!
Lawrence of Arabia! The university showed it on the big screen yesterday, and I attended with some trepidation, because hitherto David Lean movies have not been my favorite thing. Which is odd, because he makes vaguely homoerotic epics about cross-cultural relations within imperialism - so basically a cinematic version of a Rosemary Sutcliff novel, except with modern day British troops rather than Romans.
(Seriously. He should have filmed a Rosemary Sutcliff novel.)
But he seems convinced, somewhat perplexingly, that lingering shots of scenery are the same thing as a plot point, which no. No they're not, David Lean.
Having seen Lawrence of Arabia in the theater, however, I'm thinking that the problem is neither me nor David Lean. The problem is the media: Lean's movies are absolutely meant for the big screen. Those lingering shots of unchanging scenery? Probably contained action somewhere. Very, very small action, so small as to be invisible on a television screen, but strangely riveting on the big screen as the tiny dot-person on the camel comes closer.
Alternatively, maybe Lawrence of Arabia is just his best movie. Because it is awesome! Peter O'Toole is amazing as Lawrence - it's a complicated part: on the one hand he seems pretty much convinced he's a demigod, and on the other hand he keeps having nervous breakdowns, rushing back to the British command, and asking to be transferred somewhere else.
One of my favorite scenes: he's arguing with the British general Allenby and the political liaison (I didn't catch a lot of the names in this movie, sorry) that, no really, they should give him a nice quiet desk job. Allenby is getting all exasperated, and then the political liaison is all "Lawrence?" - and Lawrence turns to speak to him, and Allenby sees that Lawrence is bleeding through his shirt.
(Then Allenby convinces Lawrence that he needs to go back and lead the Arab revolt anyway, because really, you can't let a little thing like trauma get in the way of that sort of thing.)
And Ali! Ali! Lawrence meets Ali when Ali shoots his guide. Lawrence loses his temper and shouts that the Arabs are "a little people; a silly people; greedy, barbarous, and cruel, as you are." Naturally they end up becoming best buddies later on.
They lead a tiny army across the Nefud Desert to take over Aqaba! Ali burns all of Lawrence's clothes so that Lawrence will have to dress like an Arab! They take over Aqaba, and Ali...gives Lawrence a garland of flowers? Or possibly the garland of flowers washes up on the beach?
Probably my favorite scene is the one near the end, after they've massacred the Turkish troops, when Ali flings all Lawrence's earlier comments back in his face: "Only an barbarous and cruel people like the Arabs could have perpetuated a massacre like this," he scoffs - because of course it was Lawrence who gave the order for the massacre: Lawrence who took part in it, Lawrence who shot surrendering Turkish soldiers.
(This is not a direct quote. None of the best Ali quotes seem to be online.)
This is pretty much the end of their friendship. They take Damascus together, they try to rule Damascus together, they fail to rule Damascus, and Ali loses his temper and stalks out. Their ally Auda tries to stop him: "But you love him," he says.
"Of course I love him. But I fear him, and if I who love him also fear him, then how much must he who hates himself, fear himself?" (Also from memory. How is this quote not online?)
And that's the end of it. Ali may love Lawrence, but it's not enough to overcome their differences. It is, I think, the contrast that makes the movie so compelling. It's the story of this tremendous, astonishing success; no one expected the Arab tribes to be able to take on the Turks; but at the heart of it is also this failure, this fierce friendship that, no matter how much they both like each other, falls apart under the weight of war and cultural differences.
(Seriously. He should have filmed a Rosemary Sutcliff novel.)
But he seems convinced, somewhat perplexingly, that lingering shots of scenery are the same thing as a plot point, which no. No they're not, David Lean.
Having seen Lawrence of Arabia in the theater, however, I'm thinking that the problem is neither me nor David Lean. The problem is the media: Lean's movies are absolutely meant for the big screen. Those lingering shots of unchanging scenery? Probably contained action somewhere. Very, very small action, so small as to be invisible on a television screen, but strangely riveting on the big screen as the tiny dot-person on the camel comes closer.
Alternatively, maybe Lawrence of Arabia is just his best movie. Because it is awesome! Peter O'Toole is amazing as Lawrence - it's a complicated part: on the one hand he seems pretty much convinced he's a demigod, and on the other hand he keeps having nervous breakdowns, rushing back to the British command, and asking to be transferred somewhere else.
One of my favorite scenes: he's arguing with the British general Allenby and the political liaison (I didn't catch a lot of the names in this movie, sorry) that, no really, they should give him a nice quiet desk job. Allenby is getting all exasperated, and then the political liaison is all "Lawrence?" - and Lawrence turns to speak to him, and Allenby sees that Lawrence is bleeding through his shirt.
(Then Allenby convinces Lawrence that he needs to go back and lead the Arab revolt anyway, because really, you can't let a little thing like trauma get in the way of that sort of thing.)
And Ali! Ali! Lawrence meets Ali when Ali shoots his guide. Lawrence loses his temper and shouts that the Arabs are "a little people; a silly people; greedy, barbarous, and cruel, as you are." Naturally they end up becoming best buddies later on.
They lead a tiny army across the Nefud Desert to take over Aqaba! Ali burns all of Lawrence's clothes so that Lawrence will have to dress like an Arab! They take over Aqaba, and Ali...gives Lawrence a garland of flowers? Or possibly the garland of flowers washes up on the beach?
Probably my favorite scene is the one near the end, after they've massacred the Turkish troops, when Ali flings all Lawrence's earlier comments back in his face: "Only an barbarous and cruel people like the Arabs could have perpetuated a massacre like this," he scoffs - because of course it was Lawrence who gave the order for the massacre: Lawrence who took part in it, Lawrence who shot surrendering Turkish soldiers.
(This is not a direct quote. None of the best Ali quotes seem to be online.)
This is pretty much the end of their friendship. They take Damascus together, they try to rule Damascus together, they fail to rule Damascus, and Ali loses his temper and stalks out. Their ally Auda tries to stop him: "But you love him," he says.
"Of course I love him. But I fear him, and if I who love him also fear him, then how much must he who hates himself, fear himself?" (Also from memory. How is this quote not online?)
And that's the end of it. Ali may love Lawrence, but it's not enough to overcome their differences. It is, I think, the contrast that makes the movie so compelling. It's the story of this tremendous, astonishing success; no one expected the Arab tribes to be able to take on the Turks; but at the heart of it is also this failure, this fierce friendship that, no matter how much they both like each other, falls apart under the weight of war and cultural differences.