EPIC GRANDEUR
CAPTURED IN BLU-RAY GIFT SET
By Raymond Benson
It’s
probably the quintessential motion picture epic. If you’re looking for an intimate story told
on a grand scale, an adventure set in an exotic location and against the
backdrop of significant historical events, and an engrossing portrait of an
important First World War figure… seek no further. Lawrence
of Arabia has it all. This 1962
roadshow attraction from arguably Britain’s greatest director, David Lean, Lawrence is simply a magnificent
achievement—both technically and artistically. With star power such as Peter O’Toole (in his first major role), Omar
Sharif, Anthony Quinn, Alec Guinness, Claude Rains, Jack Hawkins, and Jose
Ferrer, and a master cinematographer such as Freddie Young, Lawrence of Arabia is not only gorgeous
to look at, it is dramatically compelling.
O’Toole
states that on the first day of shooting, Lean told him, “We’re off on a great
adventure, Pete!†Indeed. With a director like Lean, an actor had to
trust the helmsman and follow him, whether it was to the universe of Charles
Dickens, war torn Southeast Asia, Russia at the time of the Revolution,
Colonial India, or the deserts of the Middle East. Lean tackled big subjects with equally large productions. In this case the
director took on the life of T. E. Lawrence, the famed British army officer who
acted as a liaison to the Arabs during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign and the
revolt against the Turks during World War I. In O’Toole, Lean found his Lawrence, the role the actor was born to
play, and the picture exhibits the man’s greatness as well as his
vulnerabilities and enigmas. This is
fabulous stuff.
Seeing
a David Lean picture was always an event. You knew you were going to step back into another time and place, and
learn a little something about the historical events surrounding the
story. You knew you would examine in
great detail the lives of ordinary and extraordinary people. For three to four hours, you would live in a
world only the magic of the movies could reproduce. Columbia/Sony’s new limited collectors
Blu-ray gift set replicates the epic grandeur of the film with a lavish,
handsomely-packaged treasure trove of material that will enhance your immersion
experience.
The
film itself, on disc 1, is an all-new 4K restoration, along with an optional
picture-in-graphics track, exclusive to the Blu-ray. Two additional Blu-ray discs are loaded with
extra features, providing hours of in-depth coverage of the making of the film
and retrospective interviews and analyses. The most complete reconstruction of the deleted “balcony scene†between
O’Toole and Jack Hawkins, never-before-released, appears on the third disc. A fourth disc, a CD, contains the soundtrack
by Maurice Jarre with two unreleased tracks. If that wasn’t enough, a terrific hardbound coffee-table style book, informatively
written by Jeremy Arnold and with a Preface by Leonard Maltin, is full of
photographs surrounding the production and insight into the challenges the
filmmakers faced. Finally, an
individually-numbered, mounted 70mm frame of the film completes the
enthusiast’s collection.
Just
in time for Christmas, this collector’s gift set is a movie buff’s dream.
Note: the following is a press release sent by Sony UK pertaining to this major restoration:
“Lawrence of Arabia is universally
considered to be one of the greatest epic films of all time and is certainly
the crown jewel in the Columbia Pictures library,†noted David Bishop,
President of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. “Finally, the long anticipated
and much in-demand release of David Lean’s masterpiece will be available on
Blu-ray, which will provide consumers the chance to experience the sheer
spectacle and beauty of this movie with the finest image and sound available.
Additionally, in honor of Lawrence of
Arabia’s
50th Anniversary, we have created a special gift set composed of a coffee table
book and soundtrack, which will add further dimension to the enjoyment of this
film.â€
Never-before-seen
bonus content included in both the four-disc Gift Set and the two-disc release
include the “Secrets of Arabia: Picture-in-Graphics Track,†which allows the
viewer to become immersed in the world of Lawrence of Arabia and
learn about the customs and rituals of desert existence. The set also comes with the “Peter
O’Toole Revisits Lawrence of Arabiaâ€
featurette, as well as the previously released, hour-long behind-the-scenes
documentary “The Making of Lawrence of
Arabia,†and the featurettes “The Camels are Cast (Maan Jordan),†“In
Search of Lawrence,†“Romance of Arabia,†and the 1970 version of “Wind, Sand
and Star: The Making of a Classic.†Both sets include newsreel footage of the
New York premiere and advertising campaigns. Exclusive to the Gift
Set are featurettes including “In Love with the Desert,†“King Hussein Visits Lawrence of Arabia Scene,†the original
1963 35mm version of “Wind, Sand and Star,†and conversations with Steven Spielberg and Martin
Scorsese. Also included is a never-before-released deleted scene complete with
an introduction by Lawrence of Arabia’s
Oscar® winning film editor Anne V. Coates, A.C.E.
Bonus Features:
DISC 1:
Feature
Film, including overture, intermission, entr’acte and exit music
Newly
re-mastered 5.1 English audio
“Secrets
of Arabia: A Picture-in-Graphics Track
DISC 2:
§ Featurettes:
- “Peter
O’Toole Revisits Lawrence of Arabia†-
All-New Interview
- The
Making of Lawrence of Arabia†documentary
- “A
Conversation with Steven Spielbergâ€
- “The
Camels Are Castâ€
- “In
Search of Lawrenceâ€
- “"Wind,
Sand and Star: The Making of a Classic†(1970 version)
- Newsreel
Footage of the New York Premiere
DISC 3 (Gift Set Exclusive Disc):
Never-Before-Released
Deleted Scene with Introduction by Anne Coates
“The
Lure of the Desert: Martin Scorsese on Lawrence of Arabia†All-New Interview
with Martin Scorsese
Featurettes:
- "“In
Love with the Desertâ€
- “Lawrence
at 50: A Classic Restoredâ€
- King Hussein Visits Lawrence of Arabia
Sceneâ€
- “Wind,
Sand and Star†(original version, 1963)
- Archival
Interviews with William Friedkin, Sydney Pollack, Martin Scorsese and Steven
Spielberg
Trailers/TV
Spots:
- 70mm
Restoration Trailer (1989 Release)
DISC 4 (Gift Set Exclusive Disc):
Exclusive Lawrence of Arabia Soundtrack CD
including original score and two previously unreleased tracks
Lawrence of Arabia has a running time
of 227 minutes and is rated 12.
Click here to order from Amazon
For an interview with Grover Crisp, the man who spearheaded the restoration for Sony, see forthcoming issue #25 of Cinema Retro.