I'm a huge O'Toole fan, and he is great in Lawrence, but I don't mind that he didn't win, as Gregory Peck gives the performance of his career. The Oscars do tend to favor veterans over newbies, but O'Toole got 6 more nominations, and a life achievement award so clearly he was a favorite over the years.
My biggest argument against giving O'Toole the award is that he did far better work in other films, as opposed to Peck who is really at his best here.
The O'Toole loss that upsets me to this day came a few years later, when he lost for The Lion in Winter. He was at the top of his form here, and far superior to Cliff Robertson or any of the other nominees. (In all of his other losses there was someone just as worthy nominated. He had bad luck in his nominations. He's brilliant in The Stunt Man, for example, but I would put both Robert DiNiro and John HUrt ahead of him, in what may have been the best Mens acting class ever). The award he should have won was for his second go at Henry II It is not our abilities that show who we truly are...it is our choices
You’re joking right ? Lawrence of Arabia is one of the finest acting performances ever put on screen and even WON best picture over To Kill a Mockingbird!
What does Gregory Peck do in the movie besides wear really ugly sweaters and look sullen? He barely speaks over a whisper, has no sense of humor, and puts me to sleep when he’s rambling on during the court scenes. If he was such a great lawyer he would have won the case. Instead the jury actually believed that dumb hick woman with the eduction of a 5 year old.
Indeed. In fact, there's an entire book just about the films of '62: Cinema '62 : the greatest year at the movies / Stephen Farber and Michael McClellan
I agree that O'Toole deserved an Oscar for The Lion in Winter.
i suppose that with respect to Lawrence of Arabia, people saw all the glorious shots and felt that what was greatest about the film was the direction and cinematography and that the excellence of that rubbed off on the performance, rather than it coming from the actor himself.
I always thought Gregory Peck as one of the least talented award winning actors. His performance here, might be above his usual level, but O'Toole deserved the accolade. The Oscars have pulled stuff like that over the years, every single year. Then they are surprised their TV ratings are in decline.