Director David Lean’s “Lawrence of Arabia” still stands as one of cinema’s most universally celebrated motion pictures. The breathtaking and beloved 1962 historical epic was the winner of seven Academy Awards including Best Picture. It also won Best Film at the BAFTAs and Best Motion Picture – Drama at the Golden Globes. But perhaps the ultimate testament to its greatness lies in the many acclaimed filmmakers it has influenced – Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Ridley Scott, Sam Peckinpah, Kathryn Bigelow, Oliver Stone, and James Cameron, just to name a few.

“Lawrence of Arabia” is an astonishing accomplishment, or as the late film critic Roger Ebert described it, “a bold, mad act of genius“. It’s a movie born out of ambition and imagination that dared to defy the conventional Hollywood formulas of its time. For example, it exchanged the traditional big screen war hero with a quirky, flawed protagonist. It fearlessly spends nearly four hours centering its grand spectacle with a deeply psychological character study. And it relies more on visual cinematic language than dense dialogue-driven exposition.

There are countless ways that “Lawrence of Arabia” could have went belly-up. Yet David Lean captains the production with confidence and even a necessary defiance. The screenplay by Robert Bolt and Michael Wilson is based on the life of British officer and diplomat T.E. Lawrence, and their portrayal of him and key moments in his history stirred up several controversies. But Lean doesn’t treat this as a standard biography or a purely historical piece. It’s a cinematic experience first and foremost, although one brimming with rich themes of imperialism, reality vs myth, and the corrupting nature of power.

Prior to “Lawrence of Arabia”, actor Peter O’Toole was a relatively unknown actor. But after first picks Albert Finney and Marlon Brando turned down the role of T.E. Lawrence, O’Toole was hired for the part that would make him a star. With his uniquely sculpted face, crystal blue eyes, and golden blonde hair, the lanky Englishman looked the part of the eccentric misfit in the British Army who would become a ruthless military leader struggling to live up to the growing myth surrounding him.

As the First World War is being waged, the enigmatic Lieutenant Lawrence is stationed in Cairo where he spends his time outlining maps and doing match tricks. He’s summoned by General Edmund Allenby (Jack Hawkins) and Mr. Dryden (Claude Rains) of the Arab Bureau who assign him a mission in the Arabian desert. He’s to meet with Prince Faisal (Alec Guinness) who is leading a revolt against the Turks. With the help of Colonel Harry Brighton (Anthony Quayle), Lawrence is to observe and assess the Prince’s forces and report back to Cairo.

But Lawrence steps beyond his orders in ways that impresses Prince Faisal. He goes from mere observer to a crafty strategist, urging the Prince to sanction a surprise attack on the heavily guarded Turkish port of Aqaba. Faisal gives Lawrence just fifty of his men including his most trusted advisor, Sherif Ali ibn el Kharish (Omar Sharif). Rather than being deterred, Lawrence gathers the men and heads for Aqaba. But it’s no ordinary journey. It’s a dangerous trek that requires crossing the harsh and unforgiving Nefud Desert.

The crossing of the Nefud Desert is one of the film’s most gripping scenes, in large part due to Freddie Young’s spectacular sun-soaked cinematography. Young shot the film on Super Panavision 70mm which features an ultra-wide, high-resolution aspect ratio that vividly captured the vastness of the scorching desert. It’s just as astounding elsewhere as we’re treated to one grand vista after another. Or when literally hundreds of extras fill the wide frame to a jaw-dropping effect.

The sands take its toll, but it’s also where Lawrence earns the trust of his men. They not only follow him across the desert, but into the camp of rival tribe leader Auda Abu Tayi (Anthony Quinn), who Lawrence cunningly recruits to join them for the attack on Aqaba. Now with an army at his disposal, Lawrence can carry out his true goal of Arab independence, by unifying the many tribes into one powerful force against the Ottomans. But he learns unity among lifelong enemies and independence in a land coveted by powerful foreign interests may be nothing more than pipe dreams.

Lawrence’s successes turn him into a near mythic hero. But his attempts at living up to the myth cause him to slowly lose his moral compass. He begins a guerrilla war against the Turks which only feeds his growing god complex. Lawrence’s psychological evolution is masterfully explored and it forms the backbone of the story. Lean shows the intoxicating allure of notoriety and power. We also witness how violence hardens hearts and scars humanity. In Lawrence’s case, once reality sets in, he’s left broken and disillusioned. It makes for a riveting case study wrapped within one of the most visually stunning epics ever made.

In 1988, “Lawrence of Arabia” received an extensive restoration after film historians Robert A. Harris and Jim Painten discovered rusting film cans holding the original negative of Lean’s final cut sitting in the Columbia Pictures vault. The painstakingly reconstructed director’s cut featured over 30 minutes of restored footage that had been cut by distributors. Since then the film has received a digital restoration and is now available in full 4K resolution. So there’s no better time than now to finally see or revisit this true time-honored classic.

VERDICT – 5 STARS

“Everyone remembers where they were when the rains came.” Those early words introduce us to the high-concept premise of Netflix’s new apocalyptic science fiction thriller “The Last House”. Director Louis Leterrier, working from a script by screenwriter Matthew Robinson, takes a suspenseful setup, infuses it with survival elements, and even dabbles in classic creature feature territory. But it surprises most as a domestic drama, where family dynamics are challenged as the situations intensify.

Robinson wrote a big chunk of “The Last House” during the COVID-19 pandemic, and much of his story mirrors the emotional and psychological impact the lockdowns had on people across the globe. The same feelings of fear, isolation, and uncertainty that paralyzed many parts of society is baked into Robinson’s story. And it fits nicely within the dystopian sci-fi world he and Leterrier creates.

Wagner Moura plays Jason Delgado, an unemployed engineer and part-time fisherman who lives in Seattle with his wife Ann (Greta Lee) and their two children, 12-year-old Graham (Noah Alexander Sosnowski) and 8-Year-Old Ruth (Riley Chung). After a sudden and unexpected rainstorm drives them inside, the Delgado family makes an alarming discovery. They and everyone in their neighborhood find themselves sealed inside their homes by the mysteriously anomalous rainwater.

Jason tries everything – breaking windows, hammering through walls, even escaping through the attic. But every attempt is thwarted by the seemingly sentient rainwater which forms impenetrable barriers that he can’t break through. While they have electricity, water, and gas, they immediately lose phone and internet service. It’s the same with all their neighbors who the Delgados are able to communicate with via signs. Yet with plenty of food and water, Jason and Ann have the supplies needed for what they hope is a short confinement.

But that’s not the case. Quickly days turn into weeks, and soon months turn into years. Rather than giving up, the family adapts, turning their home into its own micro-ecosystem. As Ann finds a way to grow vegetables inside, Jason rigs several contraptions to catch animals outside. But things take a chilling turn when the family discovers terrifying creatures that only come out when it rains. Suddenly surviving gets a little tougher as they now must avoid drawing the attention of the monsters.

The family dynamic is a good one with Jason relishing his role as family protector. He keeps everyone alive, but as time goes by and reality sets in, his ‘survival is living’ mentality crumbles. On the flip side, despite being gripped by fear early on, Ann later grows better in tune with their circumstances and becomes the reality check Jason needs. Meanwhile the kids watch and absorb it all, losing key years from their childhood which takes a psychological toll.

Again, it’s hard to miss seeing the movie as a COVID allegory. Perhaps it’s a little on the nose, but Leterrier manages to capture the intense feelings of isolation and dread in a number of visceral ways. He also has a lot of fun with the sci-fi and survival components which take center stage in the film’s second half. And he really goes for broke once the final act arrives and the movie goes full creature feature. Some will inevitably push back on the choice. But as a genre fan, I loved the ambition.

To be honest, things do get a little corny in the final twenty minutes as the Delgado family goes full MacGyver. We’re also left with a ton of questions that never get answers. And the ending is a little too tidy considering everything that came before it. Still “The Last House” remains solid entertainment, especially for anyone with the right expectations and a hearty appetite for end-of-days thrillers and old-fashioned monster movies. It had me onboard from the start and kept me involved till the very end.

VERDICT – 3.5 STARS

I still have memories of the first movie screen I ever saw. They’re faint but definite, and very precious to me. Once upon a time my small South Arkansas hometown had a drive-in movie theater. And while I don’t remember the specific movies playing while I was there, I do remember sitting in the backseat of my family’s 1974 Chevelle Malibu Classic and being in awe of the images bouncing off the massive outdoor screen. That theater has been gone for decades now. But those memories remain, and I’m grateful for them.

That childhood memory, along with other experiences that would follow, are big reasons I responded so strongly to the new documentary “The Last Picture Shows”. Writer, director, and producer Rustin Thompson set out across the American West in search of small-town movie houses either still in operation or long gone. The film is Thompson documenting his findings. Along the way he injects some compelling history while voicing valid concerns about the future of cinema, and not just for the struggling movie houses that have steadily been fading from existence.

Thompson’s journey across the American West spanned ten states and covered 10,825 miles. As he made stops in such communities as Burns, Oregon, Goldfield, Nevada, Susanville, California, Cortez, Colorado, and Springer, New Mexico (just to name a few), he came upon the remains of countless movie houses that once buzzed with life. As his movie’s opening scroll succinctly puts it, “they’ve been abandoned, destroyed, replaced, or forgotten.”

But Thompson also discovered a handful of locally owned theaters still open for business. He has several insightful conversations with the owners who candidly share their struggles. They talk about the difficulty in turning profit, the costly transition from 35mm projection to digital, the crippling impact of the COVID mandates, the restrictive demands of the studios, the influx of streaming, and the challenge of competing with big multiplexes. They’re fascinating testimonies from people who have poured their hearts and souls into keeping these cultural landmarks alive.

Thompson’s film is more than a nostalgic stroll down memory lane. He does take time to chronicle the history of moviegoing, from the genesis of movie theaters, to the boom of the 1940s, the decline in the late 60s and early 70s, and the blockbuster resurgence. But it all builds towards a timely warning about where things are heading. He notes how we’re nurturing a collective disregard for the movie theater experience. As a result, there is a younger generation who hasn’t developed a love for moviegoing meaning they’ll have nothing to pass on to the next generation.

It’s said that in 1929 there were 22,000 theaters in the United States. Today there are fewer than 3,000. Those are sobering stats for those of us who deeply cherish the history and the experience of watching movies in a theater. Thompson impressively transports us back in time while also connecting us to the reality of today. And it’s all evocatively filmed in ways that will bring both a nostalgic smile to your face and a melancholic tear to your eye as you lament a bygone era and feel the growing uncertainty for the future.

VERDICT – 4.5 STARS