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Product Description

LAWRENCE OF ARABIA50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION Winner of 7 Academy Awards® including Best Picture of 1962, LAWRENCE OF ARABIA stands as one of the most timeless and essential motion picture masterpieces. The greatest achievement of its legendary, Oscar®-winning director, David Lean (1962, Lawrence of Arabia: 1957 the Bridge on the River Kwai), the film stars Peter O’Toole — in his career-making performance — as T.E. Lawrence, the audacious World War I British army officer who heroically united rival Arab desert tribes and led them to war against the mighty Turkish Empire. Newly restored and re-mastered at 4K resolution, the massive scope and epic action of the Director’s Cut of LAWRENCE OF ARABIA can now be experienced like never before in this landmark 50th Anniversary Edition.

Product details

Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 2.20:1
Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 10.72 Ounces
Item model number ‏ : ‎ 1201
Director ‏ : ‎ David Lean
Media Format ‏ : ‎ Blu-ray, NTSC, DTS Surround Sound
Run time ‏ : ‎ 3 hours and 47 minutes
Release date ‏ : ‎ November 13, 2012
Actors ‏ : ‎ Peter O'Toole
Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ Japanese, French
Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ Arabic, English, Dutch
Studio ‏ : ‎ Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0017O1MIM
Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 4

Best Sellers Rank: #104,740 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
- #493 in Military & War (Movies & TV)
- #6,692 in Drama Blu-ray Discs
- #7,078 in Action & Adventure Blu-ray Discs

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Lawrence of Arabia, 50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition – BluRay: A Treasure Chest of Wonderful Films and Other Special Things

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 8, 2017

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This film begins at T.E. Lawrence’s funeral in 1935 and works backward to the point of his learning to be, first, a map-maker at the beginning of WWI (1914-1918), but acquiring this skill while he was still a student at Oxford. He is now known as an archaeologist, writer, military officer, and diplomat, especially during the Sinai and Palestinian Campaign and Arab Revolt, effectively ending the Ottoman Empire.

Like many people who have seen the original 1962 release of Lawrence of Arabia (winner of 7 Academy Awards) in the theaters, I wanted to then re-watch it and other great epic films with important world history themes on DVDs - then the paramount technology (Note that Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg had helped restore a version of the original film for DVD release in 2000). After BluRays had come out, I found and purchased this 50th Anniversary newly-restored 4K version, which also included 3 other discs and other items in special packaging to mark this occasion, to whet my appetite to buy this package.

What does this special set contain?
I. 8 Things: A 4-disc set (3 film and 1 sound CD) & Other Things:
A. Sound Track CD, plus a few new songs
B. Disc 1: The newly-restored film an 8K scan/ immediate 4K film restoration, along with
“Secrets of Arabia: Picture in Graphs Track”
C. Disc 2: Backstories and extras (like Omar Sharif and Peter O’Toole finishing filming on different dates, but both racing though the desert and Atlas Mountains of Morocco, where some scenes were shot, and heading for some carousing, courtesy of Sharif in Casablanca! The two became pals for life after this entire experience! Another good one is King Hussein of Jordan, also a pilot, welcoming the planes bringing in the cast and crew to southern Jordan, where most of the desert battle scenes were filmed. This area in real life has been shot in many films, and for those of us who have visited/ lived in Jordan, it is a source of wonder and amazement.
D. Disc 3: Anniversary Gift Set Exclusive
E. A free, authentic sample of 70 mm film frames, whose packet lists its limited edition # on its front
G. An 88-page coffee table book with color photos
H. A special 50th Anniversary package, housing all of these items, making this truly a treasure trove of wonderfully-packaged items that owners are proud to show, by placing THIS entire package with items inside on a coffee table!
I. The Ultraviolet Download Code (mine was expired, but I would never watch this epic film on anything other than a large-screen HD TV)

II. The Exact Quantities of Minutes (Hours) on All Discs, excluding the CD:
A. Disc 1, BluRay film: Lawrence of Arabia - 227 minutes (3.78 hours)
B. Disc 1, “Secrets of Arabia: Picture in Graphs Track” – 130 minutes (2.16 hours)
C. Disc 2 Backstories and related information – 144 minutes (2.40 hours)
(TOTAL FILM TIME: 501 minutes (8.35 hours)

In a nutshell, what is this film about? Historically, it is about the early 20th century British Empire, with the help of their agent, T.E. Lawrence, loosely following history by uniting the disparate Bedou tribes of Saudi Arabia (Note Anthony Quinn’s stunning portrayal of Auda abu Tayi) to help end the Ottoman Empire (1299-1922), ruled by the Turks which had mercilessly and brutally ruled the ME for 623 years (and caused the Armenian Genocide/ Holocaust from 1915-1917). Specifically related to this include the following: the scene on the British HQ balcony in Cairo. In it, the bleeding Lawrence (whose back was severely lashed in Dara’a, Syria by the Turkish Bey [played brilliantly by Jose Ferrer] who took sadistic pleasure in humiliating Lawrence while torturing and possibly sodomizing him) talked to his commander, General Allenby, played by Jack Hawkins, in which Lawrence agrees to go back in country (Syria) and head Allenby’s men to the meeting in Damascus, to supervise and divvy up the goods/ commodities of the ME. Note that Lawrence had problems with slipping back and forth between the British and Arab Bedou cultures in terms of behavior and dress. The scene in Damascus showed this cognitive dissonance, with his being dressed in desert regalia while behaving like a British Officer reading from the ledger the list of things to be divided and meted out by means of a pre-approved British plan for who would get what. The people in the room, throughout this time were in a state of chaos, gave him no respect, and more chaos broke out amongst the attendees. The end result is that the British then got most of Damascus.

This activity, in turn, led to the slicing up of the entire ME region, in chessboard fashion, to change the landscape/ boundaries of certain countries to serve the ruling empires at the time (the UK and France) and then to transfer them to the countries that would later rise to have power. The was done very slowly and almost imperceptively, at a snail’s pace, by means of the following international stepping stones of important documents: The McMahon-Hussein Correspondence (1915-1916); The Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916); Balfour Declaration (1917); The Treaty of Versailles (1919).

All of these pieces of paper seemed to sandwich WWI (The Great War to End All Wars), fought from July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918, with later documents and plans ready to guide what would be mapped out afterwards.

In T.E. Lawrence’s 1922 autobiography, he states that “The Arab Revolt had been made under false pretenses.”….”Had I been honorable, I would have sent my men home.” At least he was being honest even if it was in retrospect.

All of these disparate parts combined together later to create a new entity in 1948, with the birth of Israel.

Lawrence wouldn’t have known about these long-terms plans, though, – very few people would have. His story was only a small cog in a larger system that would later emerge.

Current US high school world history educational curricula doesn’t really cover much of this part of world history then, but UK (and French) curricula would. US audiences, then, would have had much of this important historical background and dialog fly right over their heads, especially for younger students who may see this as an action film instead of one that is historical. In today’s global world, though, Americans, especially those who do much reading and travel, would eventually learn what this piece of history was and the results of this that were birthed around the mid-point of the 20th Century. They would specifically learn what really happened, especially to the Palestinians –even though the Balfour Declaration says that they would be respected and protected as a result of this maneuver.

During this time period, how could 1 country be given away in order to birth another? Who let it happen and why? Who rules that country today, and who is paying for it? Have these actions led to a better world for everyone involved today?

For viewing this film, there are 3 different sections of activities that could be created and used, to create critical dialog according to the age levels of the viewers: Pre-viewing; Viewing; and Post-Viewing. Educators and others could create these activities and share them online.

Would I recommend this 50th Anniversary Set? Yes! For the 8.35 hours of film alone, this set is a bargain. For the knowledge of our world history, this set provides immeasurable resources for learning and understanding about our current world today because ‘this current world’ is a result of the activities portrayed in this film. All of these pieces are a pre-‘Chessboard’ to events that continue to shape our world today, with the victors and the losers of Empire, as Zbigniew Brzezinski later showed in his book on the same topic, The Grand Chessboard (1997).

121 people found this helpful

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jartwo

60th Anniv Steelbook Is INSANE!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 11, 2022

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Let me get right to it. This is not a review of this glorious film, it needs no introduction. I'm just focusing on this new Sony, 60th Anniv. video release.

Video quality: I was expecting it to be a good-looking edition, but this is was unexpectedly the most Stunning home video viewing experience I've ever had of this or any other film. Even better IMO than the HDR version of 2001. From the first moments of O'Toole on the motorcycle, the image is dazzlingly clear - sharp yes, but I was expecting that - but what I mean is the depth and clarity are beyond anything I've seen from home video that was derived from film...just a new level of experience. Striking contrast and clarity. And in the first interior shots in London and then In Cairo, it's almost as if one were looking straight through the camera lens directly onto the live set - as if the celluloid itself has been somehow entirely, magically removed from the light path...! Were it not for the fine (and lively) film grain in broad expanses of sky and sand, it might on occasion be hard for it to easily compute that one is in fact watching the medium of film. (I made my casual observations on a 65" LG C1 oled and a middle of the road, 2021 model Sony 4k player).

DEEP DIVE ON THE SOUND:
Chosen by the director, certain dramatically emphatic gunshots and explosions here are surprisingly hard-hitting – and no, I don’t just mean loud – I mean hard-hitting! – and will make any jaded moviegoer positively flinch in reaction (p-r-e-c-i-s-e-l-y in the way and at the Exact moment that I’m sure Lean intended!) - or it will if you have some kind of appropriately bass-capable audio setup, naturally (which I do). It’s not even as though they had gone back and simply re-equalized or ‘tinkered with’ the existing bass response at all – so, there’s just no sign of anyone’s ‘restoration fingerprints’ on any of it – it plays instead as if they had completely unearthed pristine, original elements (if so, not credited per se, that I saw), and were now presenting it for the first time as it was meant to be heard. These same explosion effects on the bluray were nothing so much as a grumbling, droning ‘steady roar’ (even put in my old bluray just to compare) – but now, we seem to be literally getting what Lean actually conceived of – and truthfully it’s a revelation – fantastic!! What was buried without a trace on the bluray soundtrack is plain as day and out in the open on the 4K, not just the sound effects themselves, but I mean clearly Lean’s cinematic intent for them, and in dazzlingly sharp relief, if your system is up to snuff. I doubt few if any theaters in 1962 could outclass, bass-wise, the performance of many, modern, home theater installations these days and I’d say anyone who owns one of those will definitely get a kick in the pants out of this edition. When this movie was over – I definitely felt “movied” – as we say in our family.

If you've been waiting to see if this version was a worthy upgrade, I'd say take the plunge, I doubt you'll regret it, especially if you have a large screen or otherwise any decently nice setup.

Remember: if the grain at first seems a little bothersome, you might actually try turning Down the sharpness level to improve the picture - you may be surprised at just how much inherent image sharpness still remains in the transfer here (as with many 4K discs), making it easy work to get to the best-looking sharpness-vs-grain ratio.

To me, this is a terrific video release of a great film that is not to be missed!

Way recommended!!

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Tinley

Unmatched

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 30, 2016

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What can be said about this landmark piece of cinema that hasn't already been said? David Lean's masterpiece among a peerless body of work is presented here in a stunning remastered 1080p transfer, with a suitably beefed-up DTS-HD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This is probably as close as home viewers are going to get to Lean's original vision of the audacious British officer who united Arabia's disparate tribes to fight off the invading Turks during World War I. Seriously, this film looks better than any 50+ year-old film should look, with a warm film grain, bright, colourful highlights and satisfyingly deep blacks. Add career-best performances from Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif and you have one of the greatest screen epics ever made.

Audio options are the original English track and a Spanish dub, while the subtitles are in English, Hindi and Spanish. Unsurprisingly for a movie with a running time of nearly four hours, the majority of the bonus features are bundled on a second blu ray disc. A must for lovers of the movie, these include an hour-long 'making of' documentary, featuring archive interviews with some of the key players involved in the film, including David Lean himself, a wonderful 20-minute featurette from 2009 with Peter O'Toole reminiscing over the film's production, and a short segment with Steven Spielberg, who declares Lawrence of Arabia to be his favourite film of all time. Can't argue with that. Essential.

38 people found this helpful

Benminx

A classic that earns its accolades with bravery and brilliance - genuinely epic cinema.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 29, 2016

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Approaching such a revered milestone of cinema, I was reluctant for two reasons: The first reason it's LONG - did I really want to give up that much time to watch an old film that might not live up to the hype? The second is that 'biographical' pieces can be dull, especially if produced in a more 'twee' era.
I needn't have worried on either account. While I'll recommend that you save it for a Sunday or a Bank Holiday simply due to the size of the film, which comes with it's own Intermission break, this is no dry, fusty hero-worship piece.
The Blu-Ray transfer is spectacular, and although you can tell it's an older film, it's very clear and amazingly good looking. The scenery photography on its own led to several jaw-drop moments of genuine, rare awe. But between that scenery there's a story.
Lawrence isn't held up as a flawless hero but a playful, flawed egotist - one with great military guts and a mountain of determination and self belief - which bordered on the self-eulogising and nearly a messiah complex.
The British are surprisingly portrayed the way that the CIA tend to be portrayed in modern movies; shifty types with a moral superiority complex who think the end justifies the means and aren't afraid of throwing their men to the wolves, but with the occasional touching moment of comradeship.
The Arab characters also come off better than in many later films, being shown some degree of respect by the story as victims of cultural expectations and tradition as much as victims of exploitation by the Turks and the British. Alec Guinness gives a layered performance of Faisal, Omar Sharif fills his supporting role with fiery personality and pride, and O'Toole is mesmerising as the soldier who feels a fish out of water with his own people, but comes into his own in the desert.
It's decently full of action and spectacle as well, from the striking attack upon Aqaba to saboteur attacks and the massacre of a convoy of Turkish foot-soldiers that the film is brave enough to paint as nothing but the results of blood-lust and Lawrence's temporarily unbalanced psyche - an unbalance that may be down to wartime sexual abuse that's heavily hinted at in a key scene.
Overall, it's an astonishingly brave film - brave for its pacing which insists upon bouts of patience to soak up the astounding vistas and cultural moments in between the politics and violence, brave for casting two little known performers in lead roles, and brave for its controversial and fascinating plot details.
This is certainly not the fuzzy, watered down museum piece you may have been taught to expect. A breathtaking piece of British cinema.

32 people found this helpful

Brian. (Uk).

Probably one of the best movies of all time

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 15, 2022

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I first saw this film when I was about 10 years old. I am now 69. As a David lean film you get even more than you may expect. Now presented in 4K with perfect picture and sound this has to go down as probably one of the best movies ever made that can now be seen in all its quality. Fortunately I can see it on my 76” 4K UHD TV so as long as you are interested in the actual events and T E Lawrence in the first place this is one of the best movies you can see ( using the right equipment ). I also recommend David Lean’s Dr Zhivago. - Superb entertainment and such value for money ( if you have money to spare on 4K Bluray purchases. ). Brian. UK

3 people found this helpful

Adrian Garcia

Marvellous Cinematic Experience

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on April 21, 2022

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Settle back as the introductory score plays over a blank screen, then you're in for a cinematic treat. There is a similar intermission, where you can go and get an ice cream or pause for the second half. Harks back to the days when one dressed up for a visit to the cinema, the locations are exotic and quite beautiful, the characters are complex (and rarely likeable), but a film that you will return to again and again. Thoroughly recommended.

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Michael J. Lee

A Masterwork from Britain's Greatest Director

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 21, 2021

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A visually stunning historical drama by David Lean, probably Britain's greatest film director, with stand out performances from Peter O'Toole and Omar Shariff. A polished script by playwright Robert Bolt and screenwriter Michael Wilson is transformed, through luminescent directing, cinematography and acting in the lead role by O'Toole, into a masterwork and a milestone in world cinema. The only downside for me is the movie's length, at 227 minutes, resulting in the impression that the director was, in the end, as over-ambitious in this project as Lawrence's character became in the movie.

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Genre	Action, Adventure, Drama, Biography, War, Award Winning
Format	Blu-ray, NTSC, DTS Surround Sound
Contributor	David Lean, Peter O'Toole
Language	English
Runtime	3 hours and 47 minutes

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Lawrence of Arabia (50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition) [Blu-ray]

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