Lawrence of Arabia

He was the most extraordinary man I ever knew.

Did you know him well?

I knew him.

Well, nil nisi bonum.

But did he really deserve

a place in here?

Lord allenby, could you give me a few words about colonel Lawrence?

What, more words?

The revolt in the desert

played a decisive part in the middle eastern campaign.

Yes, sir, but about colonel Lawrence himself.

No, no. I didn't know him well, you know.

Now, Mr. Bentley, you must know as much about colonel Lawrence as anybody does.

Yes, it was my privilege to know him.

And to make him known to the world.

He was a poet, a scholar and a mighty warrior.

Thank you.

He was also the most shameless exhibitionist since barnum and Bailey.

You, sir. Who are you?

My name is Jackson Bentley.

Well, whoever you are, I overheard your last remark, and I take the gravest possible exception.

He was a very great man. Did you know him?

No, I can't claim to have known him.

I once had the honor to shake his hand in Damascus.

Knew him? No, I never knew him.

He had some minor function on my staff in Cairo.

Michael George hartley,

this is a nasty, dark, little room.

That's right.

We are not happy in it.

I am. It's better than a nasty, dark, little trench.

- Then you're a big noble fellow. - That's right.

Ah, here is William Potter with my newspaper.

- Here you are, tosh. - Thanks.

Would you care for one of corporal hartley's cigarettes?

- Is it there? - Of course.

Headlines.

But I'll bet it isn't mentioned in the times.

"Bedouin tribes attack Turkish stronghold."

And I bet that no one in this whole headquarters even knows it happened.

Or would care if it did. Allow me to ignite your cigarette.

- Mr. Lawrence? - Yes.

- Flimsy, sir. - Thank you.

You'll do that once too often. It's only flesh and blood.

Michael George hartley, you're a philosopher.

And you're balmy!

Oh!

- It damn well hurts! - Certainly, it hurts.

Well, what's the trick, then?

The trick, William Potter, is not minding that it hurts.

Oh, by the way, if captain gibbon should inquire for me,

tell him I've gone for a chat with the general.

- He's balmy. - He's all right.

Lawrence.

Yes?

You're supposed to be...

Do you usually wear your cap in the mess?

Always.

You're supposed to be on duty, aren't you? Where are you going?

Mustn't talk shop, Freddie, not in the mess.

Matter of fact, I'm going for a powwow with the general.

I'm not asking as your superior, Lawrence, I'm asking as the secretary of this mess.

We don't want chaps in here who should be on duty.

Where are you going, please?

I must say, Lawrence!

- Sorry. - You're a clown, Lawrence.

Ah, well, we can't all be lion tamers.

Sorry.

It's an intrigue, dryden.

And I do not propose to let an overweening, finicky, crass lieutenant

thumb his nose at his general officer commanding and get away with it.

It doesn't sound as though he'd be any great loss, sir.

Now don't try that, dryden. There's a principle involved.

There is, indeed.

He's of no use here in Cairo.

He might be in Arabia. He knows his stuff, sir.

Knows the books, you mean.

I've already sent out colonel Brighton, who's a soldier.

And if Brighton thinks we should send them some small arms, then we will.

Well, what more do you want?

That there would be no question of lieutenant Lawrence

giving military advice.

By god, I should hope not.

It's just that the arab bureau would like its own man on the spot, sir, to...

To what?

To make our own appraisal of the situation.

I may as well tell you, it's my considered opinion and that of my staff

that any time spent on the bedouin will be time wasted.

They're a nation of sheep-stealers.

They did attack Medina.

And the Turks made mincemeat of them.

We don't know that, sir.

We know that they didn't take it. A storm in a teacup, dryden, a sideshow.

If you want my own opinion, this whole theater of operations is a sideshow.

The real war's being fought against the Germans, not the Turks.

And not here, but on the western front in the trenches.

Your bedouin army, or whatever it calls itself,

would be a sideshow of a sideshow.

Big things have small beginnings, sir.

Does the arab bureau want a big thing in Arabia?

If they rise against the Turks, does the bureau think they're going to sit down under us when this war is over?

The bureau thinks the job of the moment, sir, is to win the war.

Don't tell me my duty, Mr. Dryden.

- Lawrence, sir. - Murray: Send him in.

Good morning, sir.

Salute.

If you're insubordinate with me, Lawrence, I shall put you under arrest.

- It's my manner, sir. - Your what?

My manner, sir. It looks insubordinate, but it isn't really.

I can't make out whether you're bloody bad-mannered or just half-witted.

- I have the same problem, sir. - Shut up.

The arab bureau seem to think you would be of some use to them in Arabia.

Why, I can't imagine.

You don't seem able to perform your present duties properly.

"I cannot fiddle, but I can make a great state from a little city."

- What? - Themistocles, sir.

A Greek philosopher.

I know you've been well-educated, Lawrence.

It says so in your dossier.

You're the kind of creature I can't stand, Lawrence.

But I suppose I could be wrong.

All right, dryden. You can have him for six weeks.

Who knows? It might even make a man of him.

Come in!

Yes, what is it?

Navy signal, sir. The convoy will be in port said tomorrow night.

- Is that certain? - Yes, sir.

There doesn't seem to be any artillery, sir.

But there must be artillery!

Sir, this is something of an expedition.

He has to get to yenbo, find a guide, find the arabs and then get back.

He can't do that in six weeks.

- Two months, then. - Three.

All right, three. Now, will you let me do some work, Mr. Dryden?

Thank you, sir.

I'd like to say, sir, that I am grateful for this.

Shut up and get out.

How can I fight a bloody war without bloody artillery?

How did you do it?

You might better ask why I bothered to.

- Because I'm the man for the job. - I just wonder about that.

Of course I'm the man forjob. What is the job, by the way?

Find prince feisal.

Good. And when I've found him?

Find out what kind of man he is.

Find out what his intentions are. I don't mean his immediate intentions.

That is colonel Brighton's business, not yours.

I mean, his intentions in Arabia altogether.

That's new.

Where are they now?

Anywhere within 300 miles of Medina.

They're hashemite bedouins.

They can cross 60 miles of desert in a day.

Oh, thanks, dryden. This is going to be fun.

Lawrence, only two kinds of creature get fun in the desert:

Bedouins and gods, and you're neither. Take it from me.

For ordinary men, it's a burning, fiery furnace.

No, dryden. It's going to be fun.

It is recognized that you have a funny sense of fun.

Here you may drink.

One cup.

You do not drink?

I'll drink when you do.

I am bed...

Truly, now, you are a British officer?

From Cairo?

- You did not ride from Cairo? - No.

Thank heaven. It's 900 miles. I came by boat.

From britain?

Truly?

From oxfordshire.

Is that a desert country?

No. A fat country. Fat people.

You are not fat?

I'm different.

Here...

Take it.

First I take you to lord feisal, then you give it to me.

Take it now.

Bedu food.

Tafas: Bedu. Lawrence: Where?

From here to lord feisal's camp is harith country.

Yes, I know.

- I am not harith. - No.

Hazimi, of the beni Salem.

Ah... ha, ha, ha.

Put the right foot in tight. Lock it with your left foot.

Then, when you are ready to go,

hit her on the shoulder and say, "hut-hut-hut."

Hut-hut-hut!

Tafas: Ah.

Today will be difficult, but tomorrow, good riding.

I think we reach masturah well tomorrow. Yes.

And from masturah well to lord feisal's camp, one day more.

It's all right.

This is a harith well.

The harith are a dirty people.

Turks?

Who is he?

Tafas!