Years ago I read The Seven Pillars of Wisdom, the remarkable account, by T E Lawrence, of his experiences while serving as a liaison officer with rebel forces during the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Turks between 1916 and 1918. It’s a rollicking, rip-roaring tale, to say the least, replete with desert skirmishes, blowing up of trains and high-octane adventure but also much psychological struggle, with Lawrence having to ameliorate fractious tribal enmities in order to unite the Arabs against the common enemy. Then there is Lawrence’s own emotional turmoil in balancing his divided allegiance between the British Army, and its ultimate interests, and his new-found comrades within the desert tribes. The story was clearly ripe for an epic film to be made about it.
Suitable, then, that cinematic heavyweights Sam Spiegel and David Lean would be involved in the 1962 film version of these events, Lawrence of Arabia, and an array of big-name, dependable acting talents: Peter O’Toole (in the title role, of course), Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, Anthony Quinn, Omar Sharif, Anthony Quayle, Claude Rains (alongside several hundred extras). Actually, Peter O’Toole hadn’t been the first choice for Lawrence: Albert Finney had been cast but was fired after two days for unknown reasons; Marlon Brando, too, had been offered the role; and both Anthony Perkins and Montgomery Clift were considered. However, O’Toole’s screen test and perhaps his resemblance to the real-life Lawrence edged it for him. With his blond hair and piercing eyes, he certainly looked good on screen: Noël Coward quipped: “if you’d been any prettier, the film would have been called Florence of Arabia”.
The movie was helped tremendously by the combination of Super Panavision 70 cinematography with the incredible backdrops afforded by the deserts of Jordan, along with a suitably majestic score by Maurice Jarre. It won seven Oscars, and is recognised as one of the greatest and most influential films in the history of cinema. Let’s take a look at Lawrence entering the desert for the first time…
