Born 1908 (age 83) · Croydon, Surrey, England, UK
Appears in 69 titles

Sir David Lean CBE (25 March 1908 – 16 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Widely considered one of the most important figures in British cinema, he is best remembered for adapting the works of Charles Dickens and Noël Coward, and for his large scale period 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. Nominated seven times for the Academy Award for Best Director, winning twice for The Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia, he has seven films in the British Film Institute's Top 100 British Films (with three of them being in the top five).

Filmography

Lawrence of Arabia
8.0
Lawrence of Arabia
1962
Director
The Bridge on the River Kwai
7.8
The Bridge on the River Kwai
1957
Director
Doctor Zhivago
7.5
Doctor Zhivago
1965
Director
Brief Encounter
7.7
Brief Encounter
1945
Director
Great Expectations
7.3
Great Expectations
1946
Director
A Passage to India
6.8
A Passage to India
1984
Director
Oliver Twist
7.6
Oliver Twist
1948
Director
Ryan's Daughter
7.1
Ryan's Daughter
1970
Director
Summertime
6.8
Summertime
1955
Director
Blithe Spirit
7.0
Blithe Spirit
1945
Director
Hobson's Choice
7.4
Hobson's Choice
1954
Director
In Which We Serve
6.8
In Which We Serve
1942
Director
This Happy Breed
7.1
This Happy Breed
1944
Director
The Passionate Friends
6.9
The Passionate Friends
1949
Director
The Sound Barrier
6.5
The Sound Barrier
1952
Director
Madeleine
6.9
Madeleine
1950
Director
Lost and Found: The Story of Cook's Anchor