LAWRENCE OF ARABIA RETURNS TO THE CINEMATHEQUE IN A NEW 70MM RESTORATION

The American Cinematheque has struck a new 70mm print of Lawrence of Arabia (1962) and will have the exclusive rights in the Los Angeles region to exhibit the Best Picture Academy Award Winner at the Aero and Egyptian Theatres in 70mm. Lawrence of Arabia is one of the all-time favorites of American Cinematheque audiences and has been shown several times a year since we re-opened the Egyptian Theatre on December 4, 1998. The Cinematheque will schedule two extended runs per year, one at the Aero Theatre and one at the Egyptian Theatre. The first of these runs will take place December 15-30, 2017 at the Egyptian.

"When we completed the digital restoration of Lawrence of Arabia in 2012, we also wanted to preserve on film all the hard work that went into the image restoration. So, we produced a new 65mm negative primarily for preservation purposes. In the intervening time, renewed interest in 70mm print exhibition has generated many requests for new 70mm prints of Lawrence, and we decided that this would be a good time to honor those requests. The new 70mm prints are really meant for those audiences who truly appreciate the art and technology of film production and exhibition," explains Grover Crisp, Executive Vice President of Asset Management, Film Restoration & Digital Mastering, Sony Studios.

Lawrence of Arabia received nine Oscar® nominations and won seven, including Best Picture (Sam Spiegel, producer), Best Director (David Lean), Best Cinematography (Fred A. Young), Best Editing (Anne Coates), Best Score (Maurice Jarre), Best Art Direction (John Box, John Stahl & Set Decoration, Dario Simoni) and Best Sound (Shepperton Studio Sound Department, John Cox, Sound Director).

The debut screening of the new print will be Friday, December 15, 2017 at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood. The program will feature an introduction by Grover Crisp.

Lawrence of Arabia stars Peter O'Toole as a character based on the real-life British Lieutenant T.E. Lawrence, an iconoclast with intimate knowledge of the native Bedouin tribes. During WWI he accepted a mission to locate Prince Faisal (Alec Guinness) and serve as a liaison between the Arabs and the British in their fight against the Turks. With the aid of native Sherif Ali (Omar Sharif), Lawrence rebels against the orders of his superior officer and strikes out on a daring journey on camelback, across the harsh desert, to attack a well-guarded Turkish port. The film was directed by David Lean from a screenplay by Robert Bolt and Michael Wilson.

More opportunities to see the new 70mm print of Lawrence of Arabia (1962, Sony Repertory, 216 min.) starring Alec Guinness Anthony Quinn Jack Hawkins Jose Ferrer Anthony Quayle Claude Rains Arthur Kennedy with Omar Sharif as "Ali" and introducing Peter O'Toole as "Lawrence" are as follows:

Friday, December 15, 2017 - 7:30 PM introduction by Grover Crisp.
Saturday, December 16 - 7:30 PM
*Sunday, December 17 - 7:30 PM
Thursday, December 28 - 7:30 PM
Friday, December 29 - 7:30 PM
*Saturday, December 30 - 7:30 PM

* Introduction by film historian Jeremy Arnold and author of Lawrence of Arabia: The 50th Anniversary.