David Lean, celebrated filmmaker born March 25, 1908

When I first saw Lawrence of Arabia it was in the theaters for the late eighties rerelease and certainly it was damn impressive (had the advantage of seeing it on a huge screen in San Diego at a standalone theater rather than a mall minibox or the like).

When I last saw it a couple of years back I thought, "You know, there's some spectacular scenes in this movie but I can't say I'd want to sit through it all again."

well, the first (romantic, historically superficial) half of Lawrenceis the one that works; the second (relatively hard-eyed, bummer) half is just a letdown.

Hmmm, I don't think I knew David Lean and I shared a birthday. I was only aware of Elton John, Aretha Franklin, Howard Cosell, and Gloria Steinem.

I thought this was inspired by the Anthony Lane essay in this week's New Yorker.

What do you make of "Oliver Twist" then?

Summertime is my sentimental favorite; never seen the Dickens adaptations.

the Lane essay is linked in the GreenCine roundup, I haven't read it. Haven't seen Twist in many years either, or Zhivago (which a few serious ppl seem to consider an improvement on Pasternak).

Lawrence famously had an intermission scheduled when L. and his assistant have just arrived at a British outpost after a long desert crawl, and go to the bar asking for lemonade. Cue stampeding exodus of audience to drinks stand at interval, forever.

I saw "Brief Encounter" a couple of months ago and thought it was basically a perfect movie.

NYC retro... would love to get to a pair of the pre-epic double bills:

http://www.filmforum.org/films/lean.html

The NYT has run a cupla of these retrospectives recently, no?

hey, i should go see The Sound Barrier

Yeah, those double bills look good. I'm thinking of going on Tuesday.

Haha, when I first saw this I was like "Dang, David Foster Wallace and David Lean in the same week?". DURR!

Great Expectations is really good.

When a director dies, he becomes a photographer.

David Gates is not far behind.

(xpost)

Actually I've been worried about DFW's hero David Markson, but that's for another thread.

I would go tonight if I didn't have to review a no-doubt-lousy new film.

RIP

Wasn't even sold out last night.

For 2 of his most obscure films, why would it be? It's not like they're Shaw Bros chopsocky epics.

or judd apatow films right?

Bridge over the River Kwai was maybe the most boring movie I ever sat all the way through. Like, seriously it's so boring.

s1ocki, I'm surprised you didn't interview Lean @TIFF this year.

i met him, he was nice

im actually just jealous you guys get to see this

50th anniversary showing of "digitally restored" Lawrence next week at the Cinemark in Tupelo. I've seen the film twice in the last couple of years, but I'm tempted.

looks like archival 70mm print of Ryan's Daughter at Lincoln Center today

http://www.filmlinc.com/films/on-sale/ryans-daughter

Would love to see it but can't make it.

I once left a screening of that about 30-45 minutes into it, something I rarely do (maybe three or four times my whole life). I was really tired, drifting in and out of sleep, and, as I remember it, the film wasn't helping.

Man, that is where you and I are different people. If I am drifting in and out of sleep at a screening it is a sign I need to sleep and should stay put, not a criticism of the film in question. In fact the waking up in the middle of a scene reminds me of that primal cinema experience we used to have in the early days of moviegoing, when we would n'tbother would the screen times and simply show up in the middle and wonder what was going on.

You're right that there was too much implied criticism of the film in my post--it's not David Lean's fault I'm dumb enough to attend a film knowing I haven't had enough sleep beforehand. I just meant it's much more likely I would have stayed if it had been a different kind of film: Lean's big projects are meticulous and move slowly, and there wasn't a lot incentive to stay at that point. If the 70mm shows up at the Lightbox, which tends to follow what's going on in New York, I'll try it again.

apparently Ryan actually made money? so why did it take him 14 years to make another film?

Isn't there that story in the Kael book where he was really shook up by the critical drubbing Ryan's Daughter received? Including an very unpleasant evening at the New York Critics dinner, where people were openly voicing their hostility.

Lean spent much of the '70s trying to get an adaptation of Mutiny On The Bounty off the ground w/UA (ships being built etc.) IIRC, he left the project and it eventually became the Hopkins/Gibson/Day-Lewis version in the '80s.

yeah, w/ script by Robert Bolt.

I don't know that RD is underrated, but it's innnnteresting, and a number of the intimate scenes, esp btwn Sarah Miles and Mitchum, work. Of course the epic shit is totally at war with that side of the film, and John Mills' Oscar-winning "village idiot" is really hard to watch, since Maurice Jarre usually has circus music going in his scenes.

Not the biggest John Mills fan.

well he's fine in Great Expectations, bcz Pip is the dullest character. The Ryan's Daughter role is mortifying tho.

Don't even like him in GE, the little kid version of Pip is much more appealing.

I saw him play Eliza's dad in Pygmalion on Broadway, opp Peter O'Toole & Amanda Plummer.

Sarah Miles married Robert Bolt, twice.

Chris "Wild in the Streets" Jones isn't THAT bad as the shellshocked Brit officer in RD. The woodsy tryst between him and SM tho, oy vey... closeups of moss, pussy willows...

always thought the love scenes were pretty tasteful in RD. many years since i've seen it though.

Criterion Lean/Cowerd blu-ray box set looks tasty http://www.criterion.com/boxsets/861-david-lean-directs-noel-coward

http://s3.amazonaws.com/criterion-production/release_images/3737/603_BD_box_348x490.jpg?1328128348

no delivery of Irish nationalist arms w/ a backdrop of 50-foot waves in those.

is the whole saving the guy and then shooting the guy part of LoA the greatest extended punchline in movie history? i think it might be.

also, i got this old sealed SUPERBIT dvd of the movie and i gotta tell ya it looks fantabulous.

I've seen so many transfers/prints of "LoA" that I'm not even sure what is supposed to look right anymore. Same with "Halloween."

He has done better films, before and after, but there is something so beautiful and heartbreaking about The Passionate Friends, I wish it was talked about more. Ann Todd is a marvel of an actress.

^this movie is grebt, people!

^Based on a novel by H.G. Wells. Ronald Neame was originally supposed to direct. I just (re)watched the two Dickens adaptations and read up on their production, this one was next in line so maybe I will do the same.

Supposed to direct until Lean took it away from him.

Marius Goring was originally slated for the Trevor Howard role. Goring, by the way, played adult Pip in the Alec Guinness adaptation of Great Expectations that led to the film.

Found this link I posted on the Lawrence of Arabia poll.

https://www.sensesofcinema.com/2008/feature-articles/david-lean-ann-todd

Oh hey, and MADELEINE, which I’ve never seen, is up in Criterion as part of November noir.

A Passage to India has pluses: Victor Banerjee as Aziz, Peggy Ashcroft bringing good sense to Mrs. Moore, Lean's nailing the tinkling-teacup condescension of the British colonizers (he spent his life among them after all).

The minuses: the endless shots of animals and processions as if it were 1957 and we need exotic flavah, the attempts at externalizing Adela's sexual frustration, the gross casting of Guinness as Dr. Godbole. I'm not sure if Judy Davis is miscast as Adela Quested. James Fox is too on-the-nose as Fielding.

BRIEF ENCOUNTER is great.

otm