“˜Lawrence of Arabia’ director honored for epic filmmaking

Oscar-winning editor Anne V. Coates remembers being excited but
also intimidated when she found out that David Lean wanted her to
edit “Lawrence of Arabia.”

Coates was a young editor then, and “Lawrence of
Arabia” not only gave her a big break into the editing
business, but her work eventually won her an Academy Award.

“(Lean) gave me a lot of confidence in a way,”
Coates said. “I would be trying to cut things shorter, but he
would say to leave it long.”

At 216 minutes, “Lawrence of Arabia” is one of
Lean’s longest films, but it is also one of his most
legendary. When the British Film Institute ranked the 100 best
British films ever made, Lean had directed three of the top five.
When the American Film Institute ranked the 100 best American films
ever made, three of Lean’s films appeared also on that
list.

To honor Lean and his work, the American Cinematheque will
present a retrospective look at Lean’s work, screening most
of his films over about a month. The series starts Friday night
with a 70 mm screening of “Lawrence of Arabia,”
followed by a discussion with Coates. According to the
series’ programmer, Dennis Bartok, the retrospective is the
biggest in Los Angeles since Lean’s death in 1991.

“(Lean) set the bar for filmmaking on an epic
scale,” Bartok said. “He represents the bar, so
filmmakers today are only trying to match his
achievements.”

The series will include all of Lean’s films but one,
“Brief Encounter.” All the films screened will be
either 35 mm or 70 mm prints, which will accentuate Lean’s
epic grandeur on the Egyptian Theatre’s large screen,
according to Bartok.

“To show (Lean’s) films, you’ve got to show
them on a really big screen, preferably in 35 mm or even 70
mm,” said UCLA professor and film historian Jonathan Kuntz.
“A place like the Nuart isn’t the place to show
Lean’s movies.”

The attention given to small details not even visible on a
smaller screen became a trademark of Lean’s filmmaking.
Coates remembers discussing every scene of “Lawrence of
Arabia” in detail with Lean before editing it on her own.
Even when re-editing it for a re-release years later, Lean was
involved with editing every scene. Coates and Lean tried to cut it
but eventually abandoned the idea.

“”˜Lawrence’ had its own pace, and it
didn’t work tightening it up,” Coates said.
“It’s better leaving it long and keeping the
rhythm.”

While epic in their settings, Lean’s films are intimate in
their stories. According to Bartok, Lean’s breathtaking shots
wouldn’t have the same impact if they weren’t part of a
human story.

“One of the things that make (Lean’s) films so
effective is how intimate they are,” Bartok said.

The combination of epic backdrop and intimate story Lean used is
what makes his films memorable, according to Bartok.

“There were very few directors in cinema who knew as much
about film as Lean,” Bartok said. “(His films) will
continue to work the way Lean wanted them to work, well,
forever.”

“These Mad Places: The Epic Cinema of David
Lean” runs in the Egyptian Theatre through Nov. 2. Log on to
www.egyptiantheatre.com for
the schedule.