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David Lean


What members say | Filmography

David Lean - what members say


  • Great Expectations
  • Great Expectations review by from London
    Rated - 5 stars A TRUE CLASSIC 22 March 2005
    ... Anyone who has a passing interest in British films should watch David Lean's 'Great Expectations'. Say no more. ...  
  • Oliver Twist
  • Oliver Twist review by RJNeb2 from London
    Rated - 5 stars You'll want more 3 August 2006
    ...oring successfully with his superb adaptation of 'Great Expectations', director David Lean took another bash at Dickens with this equally adept version of one of the auth...  
  • This Happy Breed
  • This Happy Breed review by from the New Forest
    Rated - 5 stars watched this for film studies 31 October 2005
    ...David Lean is so great, it just really transports you back, my Grandpa said it was very accurate, it was lovely to watch it with him and then chat about it all. ...  

David Lean - filmography


  • A Passage To India on DVD (1984)
    Starring: Peggy Ashcroft,  Judy Davis,  James Fox
    Director: David Lean
    Certificate: Certificate: PG
    David Lean returned to filmmaking after a 14-year absence to direct this award-winning adaptation of E.M. Forster's novel. Adela Quested (Judy Davis), a young and spirited Englishwoman, travels to India alongside the somewhat older Mrs. Moore (Peggy Ashcroft). Mrs. Moore's hope is that her son, an ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 69% from 2,202 members
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  • Lawrence Of Arabia on DVD (1962)
    Starring: Peter O'Toole,  Omar Sharif,  Anthony Quinn
    Director: David Lean
    Certificate: Certificate: 12
    David Lean's masterpiece--perhaps the greatest of screen epics--stars Peter O'Toole in one of the most electrifying debuts in film history. The film is less an ordinary adventure than an experience that leaves an overwhelming sense of the struggle between two powerful forces: the Arabian deserts, ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 74% from 19,281 members
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  • Sound Barrier on DVD (1952)
    Starring: Ralph Richardson,  Ann Todd,  Nigel Patrick
    Director: David Lean
    Certificate: Certificate: U
    Directed by David Lean (LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI), THE SOUND BARRIER charts the life of a fighter pilot who marries into a wealthy family; a family that are developing technology in order to break the sound barrier.
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 72% from 53 members
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  • Madeleine on DVD (1949)
    Starring: Alec Guinness,  Trevor Howard,  Celia Johnson
    Director: David Lean
    Certificate: Certificate: U
    The David Lean Collection - 9 Disc Box Set showcases a brilliant selection of classic films by the director David Lean. Titles include: "Brief Encounter"; "Great Expectations"; "Oliver Twist"; "Madeleine"; "The Passionate Friends"; "The Sound Barrier"; "Hobson's Choice"; "This Happy Breed"; and "..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 67% from 81 members
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  • Oliver Twist on DVD (1948)
    Starring: Alec Guinness,  Robert Newton,  Anthony Newley
    Director: David Lean
    Certificate: Certificate: U
    David Lean's prodigious adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic expands fervently on the theme of a lonely boy in a world of bullies. When the orphan hero, Oliver (John Howard Davies), escapes to London, the Artful Dodger (Anthony Newley) delivers him to the notorious Fagan (Alec Guinness), who ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 69% from 2,924 members
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  • Great Expectations on DVD (1946)
    Starring: John Mills,  Alec Guinness,  Jean Simmons
    Director: David Lean
    Certificate: Certificate: PG
    David Lean directs this definitive version of the Charles Dickens classic about an orphaned boy befriended by a mysterious benefactor who enables him to become a gentleman of means. In the gloom of a country graveyard, the young boy encounters an escaped convict, and a chance meeting years later ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 71% from 4,302 members
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  • Blithe Spirit on DVD (1945)
    Starring: Rex Harrison,  Kay Hammond,  Margaret Rutherford
    Director: David Lean
    Certificate: Certificate: U
    Noel Coward's favourite play, Blithe Spirit, was certainly a departure for David Lean, best known at the time for adapting Dickens. While it's the director's only comedy, the result is a delightful gem. Rex Harrison is an acerbic author haunted by the ghost of first wife Elvira (Kay Hammond), who ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 70% from 1,189 member
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  • Brief Encounter on DVD (1945)
    Starring: Celia Johnson,  Trevor Howard,  Stanley Holloway
    Director: David Lean
    Certificate: Certificate: PG
    David Lean adapts Noel Coward's heartbreaking tale of two ordinary people caught up in the extraordinary power of love. Laura (Celia Johnson) is a seemingly happy, middle-class housewife who meets the equally married physician Alec (Trevor Howard) at a London railway station, and so begins a chaste ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 73% from 10,102 members
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  • This Happy Breed (1944)
    Starring: Robert Newton,  Celia Johnson,  John Mills
    Director: David Lean
    Certificate: Certificate: U
    Three classic wartime dramas: A TOWN LIKE ALICE sees female prisoners of war at the mercy of the notoriously sadistic Japanese Army, a man and woman find hope and love in each other as they are forced at bayonet point on a long march of death. Based on Nevil Shute's best-seller, this film saw Best ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 70% from 463 members
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David Lean facts

5 most recent films

A Passage To India - 3.5 stars
Ryan's Daughter - 3.5 stars
Doctor Zhivago - 3.5 stars
Lawrence Of Arabia - 3.5 stars
The Bridge On The River Kwai - 3.5 stars

5 highest-rated films

Hobson's Choice - 4.0 stars
Great Expectations - BLU-RAY Version - 3.5 stars
Lawrence Of Arabia - 3.5 stars
Brief Encounter - 3.5 stars
Brief Encounter - BLU-RAY Version - 3.5 stars

5 lowest-rated films

The Passionate Friends - 3.0 stars
Summertime - 3.5 stars
Madeleine - 3.5 stars
In Which We Serve - 3.5 stars
Ryan's Daughter - 3.5 stars

Most frequent co-stars

Alec Guinness - 10 times - show films
John Mills - 9 times - show films
Celia Johnson - 7 times - show films
Trevor Howard - 6 times - show films
Francis Sullivan - 5 times - show films

Most frequent directors

Noel Coward - 2 times - show films