David Lean

David Lean

Birth : 1908-03-25, Croydon, Surrey, England, UK

Death : 1991-04-16

History

Sir David Lean CBE (25 March 1908 – 16 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter, and editor, best remembered for bringing Charles Dickens's novels to the screen with films such as Great Expectations (1946) and Oliver Twist (1948), and for his big-screen epics such as The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Doctor Zhivago (1965), Ryan's Daughter (1970), and A Passage to India (1984). Acclaimed and praised by directors such as Steven Spielberg and Stanley Kubrick, Lean was voted 9th greatest film director of all time in the British Film Institute Sight & Sound "Directors Top Directors" poll 2002. Lean has four films in the top eleven of the British Film Institute's Top 100 British Films.   Description above from the Wikipedia article David Lean, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Profile

David Lean
David Lean
David Lean
David Lean
David Lean
David Lean
David Lean

Movies

Omar Sharif: Citizen of the World
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
Several high-budget epic films became Omar Sharif (1932-2015) a film star. He was an actor, but also a bridge player, a womanizer, a bon vivant; he was a man full of contradictions, who enjoyed card games more than movies; he was an eternal nomad who spent half his life in a hotel.
E.M. Forster: His Longest Journey
Himself (archive footage)
A film about the life of A Passage to India author EM Forster, following his huge growth as a writer and the twists and turns of his personal life.
Nostromo: David Lean's Impossible Dream
Self (archive footage)
Documentary about David Lean's unfinished attempt of adapting Joseph Conrad's novel Nostromo.
The Making of 'Lawrence of Arabia'
Self (archive footage)
The Making of 'Lawrence of Arabia'
Self (archive footage)
One-hour making of documentary from 2000, not to be confused with the 2003 film.
The South Bank Show: Noël Coward
Self (archival footage)
Television documentary on playwright, actor, composer, and film maker Noel Coward.
David Lean: A Life in Film
Self
A documentary video that profiles the life of David Lean, the director of Doctor Zhivago and Lawrence of Arabia.
The Golden Gong: The Story of Rank Films - British Cinema's Legendary Studio
Himself-Interviewee
Documentary - After starting his career producing religious film shorts, J. Arthur Rank went on to become Britain's first and only movie mogul with his establishment of the legendary Pinewood Studios. Narrated by Michael Caine, THE GOLDEN GONG chronicles Pinewood's rise to success. - Richard Attenborough, Dirk Bogarde, Betty E. Box
A Passage to India
Editor
Set during the period of growing influence of the Indian independence movement in the British Raj, the story begins with the arrival in India of a British woman, Miss Adela Quested, who is joining her fiancé, a city magistrate named Ronny Heaslop. She and Ronny's mother, Mrs. Moore, befriend an Indian doctor, Aziz H. Ahmed.
A Passage to India
Screenplay
Set during the period of growing influence of the Indian independence movement in the British Raj, the story begins with the arrival in India of a British woman, Miss Adela Quested, who is joining her fiancé, a city magistrate named Ronny Heaslop. She and Ronny's mother, Mrs. Moore, befriend an Indian doctor, Aziz H. Ahmed.
A Passage to India
Director
Set during the period of growing influence of the Indian independence movement in the British Raj, the story begins with the arrival in India of a British woman, Miss Adela Quested, who is joining her fiancé, a city magistrate named Ronny Heaslop. She and Ronny's mother, Mrs. Moore, befriend an Indian doctor, Aziz H. Ahmed.
Lost and Found: The Story of Cook's Anchor
Writer
Director David Lean became involved in the search for an anchor lost by Captain Cook in 1773. This documentary follows the search for this historic item.
Lost and Found: The Story of Cook's Anchor
himself
Director David Lean became involved in the search for an anchor lost by Captain Cook in 1773. This documentary follows the search for this historic item.
Lost and Found: The Story of Cook's Anchor
Director
Director David Lean became involved in the search for an anchor lost by Captain Cook in 1773. This documentary follows the search for this historic item.
David Lean: A Self Portrait
Self
A television documentary on the life and career of British film director David Lean. Scenes of Lean directing are intercut with personal interviews in which the director explains his methods, the beginnings of his career, and his relationships with actors and actresses.
Ryan's Daughter
Director
An Irish lass is branded a traitor when she falls for a British soldier.
Pasternak
Himself
Using still pictures and newsreel footage, this short film tells the life story of Russian author Boris Pasternak, who was forced by the Russian government to refuse the 1958 Nobel Prize in literature for his novel Dr. Zhivago.
Moscow in Madrid
Self
When David Lean made his film Doctor Zhivago (1965), he realized that it would be impossible to do location shooting in Moscow. Instead, he found a location on the plains outside Madrid, Spain and built a set to look like the Russian capital. This promotional film gives viewers a short look at the set under construction.
Doctor Zhivago
Director
The life of a Russian physician and poet who, although married to another, falls in love with a political activist's wife and experiences hardship during World War I and then the October Revolution.
The Greatest Story Ever Told
Director
From his birth in Bethlehem to his death and eventual resurrection, the life of Jesus Christ is given the all-star treatment in this epic retelling. Major aspects of Christ's life are touched upon, including the execution of all the newborn males in Egypt by King Herod; Christ's baptism by John the Baptist; and the betrayal by Judas after the Last Supper that eventually leads to Christ's crucifixion and miraculous return.
Wind Sand and Star
A short documentary about the making of David Lean's LAWRENCE OF ARABIA. A 1970 documentary with a similar title uses some footage but is otherwise a different film.
Lawrence of Arabia
Motorcyclist by Suez Canal (uncredited)
The story of British officer T.E. Lawrence's mission to aid the Arab tribes in their revolt against the Ottoman Empire during the First World War. Lawrence becomes a flamboyant, messianic figure in the cause of Arab unity but his psychological instability threatens to undermine his achievements.
Lawrence of Arabia
Director
The story of British officer T.E. Lawrence's mission to aid the Arab tribes in their revolt against the Ottoman Empire during the First World War. Lawrence becomes a flamboyant, messianic figure in the cause of Arab unity but his psychological instability threatens to undermine his achievements.
The Rise and Fall of a Jungle Giant
Self
A behind-the-scenes look at the building of the bridge in the film The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and the preparations for its destruction.
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Director
The classic story of English POWs in Burma forced to build a bridge to aid the war effort of their Japanese captors. British and American intelligence officers conspire to blow up the structure, but Col. Nicholson , the commander who supervised the bridge's construction, has acquired a sense of pride in his creation and tries to foil their plans.
Summertime
Screenplay
Middle-aged Ohio secretary Jane Hudson has never found love and has nearly resigned herself to spending the rest of her life alone. But before she does, she uses her savings to finance a summer in romantic Venice, where she finally meets the man of her dreams, the elegant Renato Di Rossi.
Summertime
Director
Middle-aged Ohio secretary Jane Hudson has never found love and has nearly resigned herself to spending the rest of her life alone. But before she does, she uses her savings to finance a summer in romantic Venice, where she finally meets the man of her dreams, the elegant Renato Di Rossi.
Hobson's Choice
Producer
Henry Hobson owns and tyrannically runs a successful Victorian boot maker’s shop in Salford, England. A stingy widower with a weakness for overindulging in the local Moonraker Public House, he exploits his three daughters as cheap labour. When he declares that there will be ‘no marriages’ to avoid the expense of marriage settlements at £500 each, his eldest daughter Maggie rebels.
Hobson's Choice
Screenplay
Henry Hobson owns and tyrannically runs a successful Victorian boot maker’s shop in Salford, England. A stingy widower with a weakness for overindulging in the local Moonraker Public House, he exploits his three daughters as cheap labour. When he declares that there will be ‘no marriages’ to avoid the expense of marriage settlements at £500 each, his eldest daughter Maggie rebels.
Hobson's Choice
Director
Henry Hobson owns and tyrannically runs a successful Victorian boot maker’s shop in Salford, England. A stingy widower with a weakness for overindulging in the local Moonraker Public House, he exploits his three daughters as cheap labour. When he declares that there will be ‘no marriages’ to avoid the expense of marriage settlements at £500 each, his eldest daughter Maggie rebels.
The Sound Barrier
Producer
Fictionalized story of British aerospace engineers solving the problem of supersonic flight.
The Sound Barrier
Director
Fictionalized story of British aerospace engineers solving the problem of supersonic flight.
Madeleine
Director
The middle-class family of a young woman cannot understand why she delays in marrying a respectable young man. They know nothing about her long-standing affair with a Frenchman.
The Passionate Friends
Adaptation
A woman is torn between the love of her life, who is married to someone else, and her older husband.
The Passionate Friends
Director
A woman is torn between the love of her life, who is married to someone else, and her older husband.
Oliver Twist
Screenplay
When 9-year-old orphan Oliver Twist dares to ask his cruel taskmaster, Mr. Bumble, for a second serving of gruel, he's hired out as an apprentice. Escaping that dismal fate, young Oliver falls in with the street urchin known as the Artful Dodger and his criminal mentor, Fagin. When kindly Mr. Brownlow takes Oliver in, Fagin's evil henchman Bill Sikes plots to kidnap the boy.
Oliver Twist
Director
When 9-year-old orphan Oliver Twist dares to ask his cruel taskmaster, Mr. Bumble, for a second serving of gruel, he's hired out as an apprentice. Escaping that dismal fate, young Oliver falls in with the street urchin known as the Artful Dodger and his criminal mentor, Fagin. When kindly Mr. Brownlow takes Oliver in, Fagin's evil henchman Bill Sikes plots to kidnap the boy.
Great Expectations
Screenplay
In this Dickens adaptation, orphan Pip discovers through lawyer Mr. Jaggers that a mysterious benefactor wishes to ensure that he becomes a gentleman. Reunited with his childhood patron, Miss Havisham, and his first love, the beautiful but emotionally cold Estella, he discovers that the elderly spinster has gone mad from having been left at the altar as a young woman, and has made her charge into a warped, unfeeling heartbreaker.
Great Expectations
Director
In this Dickens adaptation, orphan Pip discovers through lawyer Mr. Jaggers that a mysterious benefactor wishes to ensure that he becomes a gentleman. Reunited with his childhood patron, Miss Havisham, and his first love, the beautiful but emotionally cold Estella, he discovers that the elderly spinster has gone mad from having been left at the altar as a young woman, and has made her charge into a warped, unfeeling heartbreaker.
Brief Encounter
Additional Writing
Returning home from a shopping trip to a nearby town, bored suburban housewife Laura Jesson is thrown by happenstance into an acquaintance with virtuous doctor Alec Harvey. Their casual friendship soon develops during their weekly visits into something more emotionally fulfilling than either expected, and they must wrestle with the potential havoc their deepening relationship would have on their lives and the lives of those they love.
Brief Encounter
Director
Returning home from a shopping trip to a nearby town, bored suburban housewife Laura Jesson is thrown by happenstance into an acquaintance with virtuous doctor Alec Harvey. Their casual friendship soon develops during their weekly visits into something more emotionally fulfilling than either expected, and they must wrestle with the potential havoc their deepening relationship would have on their lives and the lives of those they love.
Blithe Spirit
Screenplay
An English mystery novelist invites a medium to his home, so she may conduct a séance for a small gathering. The writer hopes to gather enough material for the book he's working on, as well as to expose the medium as a charlatan. However, proceedings take an unexpected turn, resulting in a chain of supernatural events being set into motion that wreak havoc on the man's present marriage.
Blithe Spirit
Director
An English mystery novelist invites a medium to his home, so she may conduct a séance for a small gathering. The writer hopes to gather enough material for the book he's working on, as well as to expose the medium as a charlatan. However, proceedings take an unexpected turn, resulting in a chain of supernatural events being set into motion that wreak havoc on the man's present marriage.
This Happy Breed
Screenplay
In 1919, Frank Gibbons returns home from army duty and moves into a middle-class row house, bringing with him wife Ethel, carping mother-in-law Mrs. Flint, sister-in-law Sylvia and three children. Years pass, with the daily routine of family infighting and reconciliation occasionally broken by a strike or a festival.
This Happy Breed
Director
In 1919, Frank Gibbons returns home from army duty and moves into a middle-class row house, bringing with him wife Ethel, carping mother-in-law Mrs. Flint, sister-in-law Sylvia and three children. Years pass, with the daily routine of family infighting and reconciliation occasionally broken by a strike or a festival.
In Which We Serve
Director
The story of the HMS Torrin, from it's construction to its sinking in the Mediterranean during action in World War II. The ship's first and only commanding officer is Captain E.V. Kinross, who trains his men not only to be loyal to him and the country, but—most importantly—to themselves.
One of Our Aircraft Is Missing
Editor
During the Allied Bombing offensive of World War II the public was often informed that "A raid took place last night over ..., One (or often more) of Our Aircraft Is Missing". Behind these sombre words hid tales of death, destruction and derring-do. This is the story of one such bomber crew who were shot down and the brave Dutch patriots who helped them home.
49th Parallel
Editor
In the early days of World War II, a German U-boat is sunk in Canada's Hudson Bay. Hoping to evade capture, a small band of German soldiers led by commanding officer Lieutenant Hirth attempts to cross the border into the United States, which has not yet entered the war and is officially neutral. Along the way, the German soldiers encounter brave men such as a French-Canadian fur trapper, Johnnie, a leader of a Hutterite farming community, Peter, an author, Philip and a soldier, Andy Brock.
Major Barbara
Assistant Director
Idealistic young Barbara is the daughter of rich weapons manufacturer Andrew Undershaft. She rebels against her estranged father by joining the Salvation Army. Wooed by professor-turned-preacher Adolphus Cusins, Barbara eventually grows disillusioned with her causes and begins to see things from her father's perspective.
Spy for a Day
Editor
During World War I, a British farmer is abducted by the Germans to take the place of a spy about to be executed whom he closely resembles.
French Without Tears
Editor
It is based on the popular West End stage comedy by Terrence Rattigan. It all begins when Diana (Ellen Drew), the sister of a British boy studying in France, arrives in town to flirt with all of her brothers' schoolmates. Alan (Ray Milland), one of the students, successfully resists Diana's charms-meaning of course that Alan and Diana will be in each other's arms by fadeout time. (AllMovie)
Spies of the Air
Editor
Set just before the outbreak of WWII, this is the story of a test pilot who works for the (unnamed) enemy. Made in 1939, by the time it was released in 1940, war had been declared.
Pygmalion
Editor
When linguistics professor Henry Higgins boasts that he can pass off Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle as a princess with only six months' training, Colonel George Pickering takes him up on the bet. Eliza moves into Higgins's home and begins her rigorous training after the professor comes to a financial agreement with her dustman father, Alfred. But the plucky young woman is not the only one undergoing a transformation.
The Wife of General Ling
Editor
In this espionage drama, a Secret Service agent must discover who has been smuggling British arms into China. The prime suspect is a prosperous Chinese merchant-philanthropist and the agent thinks the merchant is working with the notorious Chinese guerilla warlord General Ling.
Dreaming Lips
Editor
Dreaming Lips was lovingly assembled by filmmaker Paul Czinner as an "ideal" vehicle for his popular actress wife Elizabeth Bergner. The star plays Gabrielle, the glamorous, spoiled wife of world-famous orchestra leader Peter (Romney Brent). Left alone by her constantly touring husband, she inaugurates a romance with brilliant but reclusive violinist Miguel de Vaye (Raymond Massey).
As You Like It
Editor
Film version of Shakespeare's comedy of a young woman who disguises herself as a man to win the attention of the one she loves.
Ball at Savoy
Editor
A British diplomat falls in love with a famous singer when he meets her in Cannes.
The Crouching Beast
Editor
In 1915 during the First World War, a British secret agent is killed while stealing secret Turkish plans for the Gallipoli Campaign but manages to pass his information to an American journalist.
The Secret of the Loch
Editor
A batty Scottish professor attempts to prove the existence of the Loch Ness Monster, but everyone thinks he's crazy. Meanwhile, a foolish young reporter attempts to get a scoop on the story.
Dangerous Ground
Editor
Two insurance detectives work with the police to identify and bring down a crime kingpin. One is murdered, but his partner and his daughter continue.
The Fortunate Fool
Editor
A wealthy author, looking for material, 'adopts' an incorrigible thief he finds in the streets, together with an attractive typist who is down on her luck.
Song of the Plough
Editor
'Farm life on the South Downs. A gentleman farmer beats his unscrupulous rival in sheepdog trials.' (British Film Institute)
Money for Speed
Editor
A motorcycle champion becomes a stunt rider after he is banned from speedway racing.
The Ghost Camera
Editor
When a photograph is taken at the scene of a murder, the camera is tossed out of a castle window to destroy the evidence and lands in the back of a passing car belonging to chemist John Gray who becomes amateur sleuth after developing the film and goes in search of the woman captured by the photograph. When the camera is stolen from his laboratory, Gray's suspicions are further aroused.
These Charming People
Editor
A drama film directed by Louis Mercanton
The Night Porter
Editor
George, the inebriate night porter at the Hotel Splendide, develops a series of increasingly outlandish suspicions about Billy and Percy, two guests who have arrived separately yet claim to be a married couple and demand to share a room together.