Huh. I did find the touching of his skin weird, but I guess it went over my head.
Texags classic movie of the week: Lawrence of Arabia
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Last: 2 yr ago by Zombie Jon Snow
for big time classics to watch on a big screen:
ZULU DAWN
the musical score is amazing!
ZULU DAWN
the musical score is amazing!
I actually saw the real train in Northern Saudi Arabia back in 1981.. Have pictures somewhere...DTP02 said:
If you've ever been in the deep deserts of Arabia or somewhere similar (I've never been to the Sahara but imagine it's quite the same) it's incredibly impressive visually and in terms of scope. Really nothing like it in the Western Hemisphere.
This movie captures that amazingly well, and, IMO, the "camel riding" scenes are necessary and additive because they develop what is essentially one of the main characters of the movie, the desert itself.
I love this movie, even though I find O'Toole's acting at times to border on overly dramatic and unrelatable.
I haven't watched the movie in years so I can't remember if they implied he was raped but it may have happened in real life.powerbelly said:I believe that is what they are implying as it is most likely what acutally happened to TE Lawrence (athough that is debated.)Brian Earl Spilner said:
Wait a second. That's what you gathered from that part? That he was raped in addition to beaten? What are you basing that on?
Read this biography on him and a few years ago and I highly recommend it. Truly a fascinating individual:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17262206-lawrence-in-arabia
Lol, seriously? You never heard all the jokes about turkish prisons? Yes, i think it is pretty clear he was raped.Brian Earl Spilner said:
Wait a second. That's what you gathered from that part? That he was raped in addition to beaten? What are you basing that on?
Like I said, it went over my head, but it definitely wasn't clear. I think it's only clear if you already know. Otherwise it's pretty subtle.
Not ragging on you. I guess i saw airplane right before i saw lawrence of arabia, so i was predisposed to figure that one out.Brian Earl Spilner said:
Like I said, it went over my head, but it definitely wasn't clear. I think it's only clear if you already know. Otherwise it's pretty subtle.
Brian Earl Spilner said:
Like I said, it went over my head, but it definitely wasn't clear. I think it's only clear if you already know. Otherwise it's pretty subtle.
Lawrence never said definitely what happened but his writing seem to give the impression that did happen. He basically said he came out of that a much harder and jaded man. He was also a masochist and appears to have enjoyed getting beaten on purpose. The homosexual aspect is very questionable. It's mostly believed he was asexual but derived pleasure from being beaten.
He was a strange dude.
I had to look it up because that scene just hit me funny. Was like, "did that mean what I thought it meant?" Sure enough my hunch proved out (debatably)
I watched this over 4 nights & agree with this. The second half was a slog to get through.Quote:
It almost feels like the movie could have ended right at the intermission. Part 2 felt a bit like an extended epilogue. Certainly not bad, but it did feel a bit meandering and like the climax of the movie had already happened.
The scenery was absolutely amazing... yet looked familiar & for good reason: The Martian was shot in the same location(Wadi Rum, Jordan), as was the latest Dune.
One of my favorites. My dad had me watch it with him a couple times - one of the many fond memories I have with him. Michael Caine is great in that film.LMCane said:
for big time classics to watch on a big screen:
ZULU DAWN
the musical score is amazing!
that's actually different. Caine was in Zuly in like 1965. Both good movies.Capstone said:One of my favorites. My dad had me watch it with him a couple times - one of the many fond memories I have with him. Michael Caine is great in that film.LMCane said:
for big time classics to watch on a big screen:
ZULU DAWN
the musical score is amazing!
That movie has Simon Baker in it.Brian Earl Spilner said:
Movies you enjoy but don't know why?
Devil Wears Prada for me. I have absolutely zero interest in fashion, nor am I a particularly big rom-com watcher, but any time I come across that movie, I have to watch it.
Australia has a requirement for Australian content on the broadcast channels so, they used to show - Devil Wears Prada at least once a year on Australian TV. I've probably seen it 3-4 times. Also has Adrian Grenier as a sous chef while he was Vinny Chase on Entourage.
I grew up in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia about 2 hours north of Al-Khobar.AggieEP said:
You'll thank me later, but consider timing your restroom breaks for the camel riding scenes and don't bother pausing the movie. I like this movie, I speak Arabic, I've lived in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia and even rode camels there with Bedouins.... but some of the camel riding scenes do drag a bit even for me.
Also, take the intermission, particularly because i think it is in the middle of a long camel riding scene.
I'm not telling you not to watch the movie, because it is good, but know that there is probably 45 minutes of camel riding set to dramatic music in a 4 hour long movie.
When I was in 9th grade, we got to take a field trip to the Nabatean Tombs at Madain Saleh. We also got to see a part of the Hejaz Railway that was blown up by TE Lawrence 65 or so years earlier.
We made it as a day trip from our hotel in Medina (Sheraton just outside the city).
It took 6 hours by bus each way which made for a very long day.
So, TE Lawrence riding camels across the desert for 45 minutes is a bargain compared to the real deal.
That was the longest bus ride I had ever done until 3 1/2 years later when I was a fish in the Aggie Band and we took a 15 hour long bus trip to Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Just wanted to say this thread got me to finally pull the trigger on something I've thought about doing that I just haven't done and that's start watching classic movies. This film is the absolute definition of "they don't make them like this anymore." A huge sweeping historical epic, no CGI, tremendous score, great scenery. This is the kind of film that you just couldn't get made today.
I followed this up with Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid, I really enjoyed that. I honestly had no idea there'd be that much humor in it, Newman and Redford were great. Felt like Clooney and Pitt in the Oceans movies. I thought it would be more of a standard western, but I was pleasantly surprised.
When there's nothing I specifically want to watch out there I'm going to try and watch a classic I've never seen.
I followed this up with Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid, I really enjoyed that. I honestly had no idea there'd be that much humor in it, Newman and Redford were great. Felt like Clooney and Pitt in the Oceans movies. I thought it would be more of a standard western, but I was pleasantly surprised.
When there's nothing I specifically want to watch out there I'm going to try and watch a classic I've never seen.
I finally watched Casablanca and really liked it.
Love the vista shots in this movie. I'm having a hard time getting through it though. I'm too impatient to enjoy classic movies
Zombie Jon Snow said:
In my short list of classics I have never seen
Casablanca
A Streetcar Named Desire
The African Queen
The Philadelphia Story
Roman Holiday
West Side Story
Lawrence of Arabia
Ben-Hur
It Happened One Night
On the Waterfront
Holy hell though LoA is 227 minutes long. Wow.
Well for whatever reason this list and thread was bouncing around in my head and this weekend I chose to dive into one of these classics I had never seen.
I watched Lawrence of Arabia. And it was absolutely stunning.
The cinematography alone would have made it great. But the performances and the directing were also incredible and not a bad (mostly true) story too. Peter O'Toole and Alec Guinness and Omar Sharif were excellent. Definitely was form an era of great epic filmmaking.
What really struck me though and hit me hard several times in the first hour was the obvious influence this had on some of the great directors of my time. I almost jumped out of my seat a few times as certain vistas, scenes and shots immediately brought to mind scenes from Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Dune, Last Temptation of Christ, and more indirectly in storytelling and themes like Avatar. People complain about the long boring camel riding scenes but it reminded me of long shots of nothing but placid water in Jaws. Like here, it worked to great affect there to build that tension and set the mood. And in the character of Lawrence I can see the flawed fragile lead character of Close Encounters for example.
I've always been a huge Kubrick fan and amazed at some of his groundbreaking methods and shots seen in many other works. This was every bit as impactful from a film making point of view. I have seen other David Lean movies and some are great. But this was a masterpiece of filmmaking and I can see why it influenced many of the great directors who followed.
Now I can't believe I never saw this earlier.
I'm going to work my way through this list.
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