Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

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During World War I, English officer Thomas Edward 'T.E.' Lawrence sets out to unite and lead the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes to fight the Turks.

Directed by: David Lean

Written by: Michael Wilson, Robert Bolt

Music by: Maurice Jarre

Starring: Peter O'Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn, Jack Hawkins, Omar Sharif, José Ferrer, Anthony Quayle, Claude Rains, Arthur Kennedy, Donald Wolfit

Genre: Adventure, History, War

Released: 1962-12-11

Runtime: 228 minutes

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Lawrence of Arabia (1962): trivia & fun facts

Fun facts

• O'Brien filmed the Jerusalem scene and (according to Omar Sharif) Bentley's political discussion with Ali, but he suffered a heart attack on location and had to be replaced at the last moment by Kennedy, who was recommended to Lean by Anthony Quinn.
• Its critical consensus reads, "The epic of all epics, Lawrence of Arabia cements director David Lean's status in the film-making pantheon with nearly four hours of grand scope, brilliant performances, and beautiful cinematography."
• One anecdote has Quinn arriving on set for the first time in full costume, whereupon Lean mistook him for a native and asked his assistant to ring Quinn and notify him that they were replacing him with the new arrival.
• Finney underwent a successful screen test but turned down the part as he did not want to sign a long-term contract with producer Sam Spiegel.
• The first round of cuts was made at the direction and even insistence of David Lean, to assuage criticisms of the film's length and increase the number of showings per day; however, during the 1989 restoration, he passed blame for the cuts onto deceased producer Sam Spiegel.
• Sharif, who was already a major star in the Middle East, was originally cast as Lawrence's guide Tafas, but when other actors proved unsuitable, Sharif was given the part of Ali.
• David Lean had been approached to direct a 1952 version for the Rank Organisation, but the project fell through.
• Sir Adrian Boult is listed as the conductor of the score in the film's credits, but he could not conduct most of the score, due in part to his failure to adapt to the intricate timings of each cue, and Jarre replaced him as the conductor.
• In 1999, the film placed third in the British Film Institute's poll of the best British films of the 20th century.
• In the United Kingdom, the film set a record by selling over 1 million tickets from 13 theatres in six months.
• In 2006, AFI ranked the film #30 on its list of most inspiring movies.
• Principal photography began on 15 May 1961 and ended on 21 September 1962.
• Sam Spiegel grew furious and attempted to have the play suppressed, which helped to gain publicity for the film.
• Jordan banned the film for what was felt to be a disrespectful portrayal of Arab culture.
• Egypt, Omar Sharif's home country, was the only Arab nation to give the film a wide release, where it became a success through the endorsement of President Gamal Abdel Nasser, who appreciated the film's depiction of Arab nationalism.

Source: Wikipedia

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