Judy Davis (1982). In 1984, she was cast as Adela Quested in David Lean's final film "A Passage to India", an adaptation of E. M. Forster's novel, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress. The film became a critics' favourite, opening to tremendous praise worldwide and "Variety" praised Davis for having "the rare gift of being able to look very plain (as the role calls for) at one moment and uncommonly beautiful at another. Likewise, "The Washington Post" wrote, "With makeup the color of smudged ivory, her pallor enhanced by the off-white linens she wears, Davis is
David Lean its televised versions; the theatrical re-release greatly revived Lean's reputation. Several of the many other later twentieth century directors who have acknowledged significant influence by Lean include Stanley Kubrick, George Lucas, Spike Lee, and Sergio Leone. John Woo once named "Lawrence of Arabia" among his top three films. More recently, Joe Wright ("Pride & Prejudice", "Atonement") has cited Lean's works, particularly "Doctor Zhivago", as an important influence on his work, as has director Christopher Nolan ("The Dark Knight Rises)". The critical verdict was not unanimous, however. For example, David Thomson, writing about Lean in his "New Biographical Dictionary of Film",