Lawrence of Arabia (re-release) 23rd November

don ramo

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the film, its being re-released next week, this is one of them films i've never got around to watching,

i was gonna watch it there a few months back, but i found out about this re-release, so now im hoping a cinema in cork is gonna show it, especially after holding off watching it:o,

Kess73

Only got it on blu ray recently, but if it is going to be on a big screen soon, then I would defo sit through it again as it is a quality film.

rednik

The restoration on blu ray is superb, to see it in the cinema would be a great opportunity to see this great film. Not too short of 4 hours.;)

krudler

is this a general re-release? would love to see it on a big screen

Technocentral

krudler wrote: »

is this a general re-release? would love to see it on a big screen

IFI so far.

Technocentral

don ramo wrote: »

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the film, its being re-released next week, this is one of them films i've never got around to watching,

i was gonna watch it there a few months back, but i found out about this re-release, so now im hoping a cinema in cork is gonna show it, especially after holding off watching it:o,

I envy you the joy of a first viewing, one of my very favorite films since I was a kid in the early 80s.

don ramo

damn doesnt seem to be any showings of this in Cork, WTF like, why do a re-release and then limit it, i would have expected mahon points omniplex to at least pick it, god knows they have the screen capacity:(:(

Squelchy

Technocentral wrote: »

IFI so far.

They won't have it in their Cinema 1 though, just 2 and 3. Which makes it sort of pointless, frankly.

Technocentral

Squelchy wrote: »

They won't have it in their Cinema 1 though, just 2 and 3. Which makes it sort of pointless, frankly.

Wasted opportunity there alright.

thegreengoblin

Saw it last Friday in the IFI and while it was great to see it in the cinema, it felt like I was invited over to some millionaire's gaff to see the film in his private cinema. There are probably some TVs that are bigger than Screen 3 in the IFI but all in all it was still a worthwhile experience to watch a remarkable film again.

And at least if you have to run to the toilet at some stage (and most will) there is one just outside the other exit near the back, which is handy enough. Or else you could just hang on for the intermission.

Edit: Just checked the IFI website and it's being shown on Friday (it's final day) in Screen 1!

mike65

I remember when I first saw this on TV 4:3 (pan and scan!) in my early teens, we were settled down to watch but didn't realise how long it was. The conversation went something like this

After about two hours

"how long is this film?"
"dunno it can't be that long, over by 4 I'd say"

an hour later

"it doesn't look like ending end does it"
"nope"

half an hour later, amid stretching and shuffling

"well the Angelus is on at 6 so it'll have to be over by then!"

Catcher7791

thegreengoblin wrote: »

Saw it last Friday in the IFI and while it was great to see it in the cinema, it felt like I was invited over to some millionaire's gaff to see the film in his private cinema. There are probably some TVs that are bigger than Screen 3 in the IFI but all in all it was still a worthwhile experience to watch a remarkable film again.

And at least if you have to run to the toilet at some stage (and most will) there is one just outside the other exit near the back, which is handy enough. Or else you could just hang on for the intermission.

Edit: Just checked the IFI website and it's being shown on Friday (it's final day) in Screen 1!

It's on Saturday and Sunday in Cinema One too. Sunday is its last day.

Technocentral

mike65 wrote: »

I remember when I first saw this on TV 4:3 (pan and scan!) in my early teens, we were settled down to watch but didn't realise how long it was. The conversation went something like this

After about two hours

"how long is this film?"
"dunno it can't be that long, over by 4 I'd say"

an hour later

"it doesn't look like ending end does it"
"nope"

half an hour later, amid stretching and shuffling

"well the Angelus is on at 6 so it'll have to be over by then!"

Pan and scan was an abomination, ruined many a good movie on tv before proper anamorphic broadcasting came in.

Ant

Catcher7791 wrote: »

It's on Saturday and Sunday in Cinema One too. Sunday is its last day.

Woohoo! I got soaked on Sunday when I went in to town hoping to catch the 6:30pm screening only to find out it wasn't being shown on Screen 1. I'd never considered the possibility that they'd show it on their smallest cinema and that it would sell out.

Where does the IFI web-site show which screen films being shown?

Technocentral wrote: »

Pan and scan was an abomination, ruined many a good movie on tv before proper anamorphic broadcasting came in.

Indeed. Letterbox seems wasteful of screen real estate but it's still the best solution when you realise you're missing almost half the film in some cases. I remember once watching a scene where a speaking character wasn't shown on screen. :eek:

e_e

Ant wrote: »

Where does the IFI web-site show which screen films being shown?

Go to book a time and you'll see it.

johnny_ultimate

Saw it in cinema one today, first viewing. Pristine restoration - as clean as could be, really. Some gorgeous visuals throughout - Lean and his crew manage to capture 'vastness' to a degree I've rarely seen before. Truly epic, and I'd imagine you could barely make out the characters as dots in certain shots on the small screen. The 'match cut' might be one of my all time favourite moments of cinematography / editing. Beautiful.

The film itself? I was most engrossed most during, before and after the 'desert rescue' sequence, which is just masterly filmmaking. The pacing, the tone, the visuals, the perfectly judged mix of sound and silence... On that note, the soundtrack is indeed glorious. Found the post-intermission a bad harder to get back into, although I did very much appreciate the complex themes and ambiguous morality of the characters.

Ant

I finally caught this on Sunday (after getting soaked to the skin on the previous Sunday only to find it had sold out). I agree with all of Johnny's views. As he points out, it was great to see the vast desert landscapes on the big screen (I noticed Nicolas Roeg's name in the credit for the photography).

I like a film with a good story and this was a compelling story which the film gave enough time to be told as well as it could be. Though you'd never guess that the events being depicted were the dying breaths of an empire that had lasted 500 years with vast territories in Europe, Africa and Asia, I thought the film-makers did a pretty good job of depicting the politics and background of the Arab revolt. Apparently, the original screenplay focussed more on the political background while the re-write focussed more on Lawrence as an individual.

I also thought the all the actors' performances were excellent - particularly Alec Guinness. The only downside for me was that the ending was something of an anti-climax - though in this regard, they couldn't deviate too far from the historical record.