David Lean David Lean Sir David Lean (25 March 190816 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter and editor, responsible for large-scale epics such as "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957), "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962), "Doctor Zhivago" (1965) and "A Passage to India" (1984). He also directed adaptations of Charles Dickens novels "Great Expectations" (1946) and "Oliver Twist" (1948), and the romantic drama "Brief Encounter" (1945). Originally a film editor in the early 1930s, Lean made his directorial debut with 1942's "In Which We Serve", which was the first of four collaborations with Noël Coward. Beginning with "Summertime" in
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",