“Lawrence of Arabia” is more than a motion picture. It is an event which transcends the feelings, emotions, and experiences emitted by the average film. David Lean’s epic on the military escapades of T.E. Lawrence, chronicling his efforts to unite and lead differing Arab tribes against the Turks during World War I, simultaneously astounds the eye with gorgeous imagery and stimulates the brain with a story of depth and substance driven by rich, engaging, and well-developed characters performed by sublime actors.

I had never seen “Lawrence of Arabia” before last Saturday. Upon hearing that it was playing at the Robert Osborne Film Festival in Athens, GA, I jumped at the opportunity to see it for the first time. It is not every day that one gets to see a nearly fifty-year old film for the first time in a movie theater. The experience reminded me of the joys, and almost necessity, of seeing great films where they are meant to be seen: on the big screen. If ever there was a movie that was intended to be seen in the cinema, it would have to be “Lawrence."  There is no way the sheer scope and beauty of Lean’s film can be appreciated to the fullest extent on a television.

The stunning 70mm print which played at the Classic Center wholly emitted the awesome visual power of “Lawrence” and washed over the audience like one of the sandstorms featured in the film. It is this visual power which was caused me to fall in love the film. It was its visual impressiveness, combined with its fascinating, well-acted story which persuaded me to agree with the prevalent critique that “Lawrence of Arabia” is one of the great films of all time. Much attention must be focused on the imagery Lean presents to the viewer.

Lean photographs the desert landscape of Egypt and Arabia in such a way that we feel as if we are there marching with Lawrence on the way to defeat the Turks. It is as if we feel the sun baking our skin as it does Lawrence’s. We too experience the stinging of the sand as it whips across the faces of the characters. We too wonder with the characters if that image lingering in the flat, desert setting is in fact a mirage or the sight of a man mounted upon a camel. We as an audience have these notions concerning the film because of the way Lean presents the desert to us. He effectively makes the desert a character in the film because he emphasizes the sheer size of the desert in relation to the picture’s characters and the almost perfection of the desert’s physical features. The desert’s vastness first appears before our eyes in its entirety in a beautifully composed high shot of its rolling, sandy hills which is preceded by a shot of the rising sun.

It is in these first few moments of Lean presenting the desert to us that we marvel at the setting’s size and the exact shot composition he uses to emphasize the setting’s volume. As we are astonished by the rich brown color of the sand and the clarity of the blue sky, we realize that two tiny figures are emerging over one of the hills. It is the image of two men riding camels up the hill. Their slow emergence into the shot from behind the hill set to the amazing, triumphant musical score by Maurice Jarre is one of those great cinematic moments in which the motion of the characters in the frame eloquently melds together with a musical score. In fact, this entire sequence, in which Lawrence and his guide ride across the desert, reminded me of other great movie moments where music and motion have come together harmoniously (one of these moments would be the docking of the spaceships to the Blue Danube in “2001”). This sequence, along with the numerous desert battle scenes featuring hundreds of extras, epitomizes the glory which can occur when a series of well-framed shots occurs in a film.

Every instance where the characters appear in the desert always seems flawlessly framed and the desert looks physically perfect (Lawrence himself in the film even remarks that the reason he is attracted to the desert is because “It’s clean”). The characters are frequently placed within the frame in such a way that garners awe from the audience. Whether they are placed among towering mountains of rock which dwarfs them, photographed charging the Turks on camel and horseback or situated in a trench while waiting to blow up an oncoming train, Lean knows how to photograph his characters within the awesome desert setting.

The visual magnificence of “Lawrence of Arabia” is only half the story. The performances and story are equally expertly crafted. Peter O’Toole, in what was his first major starring role, is a revelation as T.E. Lawrence. His Lawrence is a man who is flamboyant, egotistical, and certain of his powerful leadership attributes. Willingly, almost joyfully, rejecting the customs and ways of his British superiors, he openly immerses himself within the Arab tribes, proudly adopting their clothing and inspiring them to follow his lead against the Turks. What is fascinating about Lawrence is that the aide he seeks to provide to the Arabs appears to have less to do with defeating the Turks and more to do with satisfying his desires to be perceived as a charismatic leader achieving glory. He even goes so far as stating that some of the Arab fighters who desert his band of soldiers will come back and fight simply because of him. And of course they would because they love Lawrence. They cheer him as he brings back a left-for-dead comrade dying in the desert and laud him as he triumphantly parades for them on top of a destroyed Turkish train. Complete with his Arab clothing, Lawrence is essentially one of them.

Keeping Lawrence in check and mindful of reality is Omar Sharif in the role of Ali, Lawrence’s confidant and aid. Sharif first appears on screen as the hazy image of a man slowly appearing out of the desert heat. It is a wonderful introduction to the character and Sharif is the best actor in one of the many supporting roles in the film. Other great performances come from Lean regular Alec Guinness in the role of Prince Feisal, the Arab leader who knows Lawrence’s knowledge of the area can help his people, Claude Rains as Mr. Dryden, the British leader who recommends Lawrence for the Arabia assignment, and Anthony Quinn as Auda abu Tayi, a leader of one of the Arab tribes who comes to provide men to Lawrence against the Turks.

“Lawrence of Arabia” ends up becoming a tale with two distinct messages. The first involves Lawrence’s own hubris in thinking that the Arabs, once the Turks have been defeated because of his leadership, will be able to govern themselves without the help of the British. This is not to be the case, which leads to the second message of the film revolving around the ideas of imperialism. As Lawrence leaves the conquered Damascus at the end of the film, he realizes that the British will not just leave the Arabs alone to govern and run things themselves because of interests they have in the area. He also recognizes that the Arabs have too many differing, bickering tribes squabbling at one another, making it difficult to achieve effective governmental rule without the aide of the British.

David Lean’s epic is one of those rare instances were amazing visuals and great acting and storytelling come together for an unforgettable experience. I am so glad that I have finally seen “Lawrence of Arabia”. It did not disappoint. See it if you have not and if you can find some way to do it, see it on the big screen. There are few events quite like seeing it in a theater.