Movie Night: LAWRENCE OF ARABIA

Three thoughts about LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, coming up...


* This is my first viewing, and the first thought I have is that DANCES WITH WOLVES stole the (more or less) true story of T.E. Lawrence, fictionalized it and transported it to the American West. A white guy ventures out to the hinterlands of empire, "goes native," is lauded by the natives as a kind of demigod, but ultimately can't lead them to real freedom. It's a white savior narrative where the saving, ultimately doesn't really happen.

* It's possible I've let THE CELLULOID CLOSET burrow too deeply into my brain, but it seems like this could also be read a story of a closeted young gay artist who lets himself be his real self -- an extraordinary man -- for a time, only to ultimately accept the closet because it is what is expected of him. (There are one or two scenes where the gay themes aren't really subtext -- the interrogation scene above leads to a beating that really isn't subtle in its implications.) Lawrence (spoilers) walks away from his Arab allies at the end of the movie to return to England. The end of the movie feels like a tragedy.

* I try to watch movies with an eye toward the context in which they were made, but honestly, there are some parts of this that don't age real well. Alec Guinness as an Arab, Anthony Quinn as an Arab wearing a fake hook nose -- super-obvious -- and Peter O'Toole delivering a portrayal of a descent into madness that strays into over-acting. It doesn't make the movie unwatchable, at least for me, but these things are hard not to notice.

BONUS THOUGHT: I do love the old epics, where instead of painting thousands of soldiers in CGI on a computer, they actually had to round up thousands of extras and thousands of horses in order to make some of the battle scenes work. I miss the old days. 

Comments

Greg DiVilbiss said…
I would have to say that I enjoy looking at movies from a metaphysical point of view. I am now going to have to rewatch Lawrence of Arabia to see what you have found. Good thing I like the movie.
July 30, 2020 at 11:31 PM
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