The classic movie that “cast a spell” on Steven Spielberg
There are some names that are simply synonymous with the very essence of cinema, and one of those is certainly the film legend Steven Spielberg. Ever since his 1975 breakthrough with Jaws, Spielberg has consistently delivered some of the most awe-inspiring moments in cinema history.
He followed up with the massive box office successes Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial and Indiana Jones before cementing his place as one of the all-time great filmmakers from a blockbuster perspective with the likes of Jurassic Park, Schindler’s List and Saving Private Ryan to name but a few of his classics.
While Spielberg has provided cinema fans with many of their favourite movie experiences over the years, for the filmmaker himself, there looks to be one particular film that sticks out in his memory, with it clearly being his most beloved and cherished from his life watching movies: David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia.
Spielberg first watched Lean’s film when it opened in Phoenix, Arizona, in his teens with his parents. He told Empire he “sat bolt upright for the entire film.” The epic biographical drama was released in 1962 and tells of the British archaeologist and writer T.E. Lawrence and his experience in the Ottoman province during the First World War.
A few scenes took to stick out for Spielberg in the movie, though. The first is a scene in which Lawrence, Sherif Ali and “50 other true believers cross the Nefud desert”. It “cast a spell” on the young Spielberg, and he noticed that it seemed to have done the same to the other audience members, who stopped lighting cigarettes and just watched instead.
When the scene ended, Spielberg saw the great effect that cinema could have on its viewers. “Dozens of people in the audience suddenly rose to their feet and left the theatre,” he noted. “I didn’t understand what was happening. We had all watched one of the greatest moments in movie history, and people were walking out…”
However, the effect was that the desert scene had made the audience so thirsty and hot that they simply had to refuel and rehydrate. “That sequence had dehydrated 800 people, many of whom rushed to the oasis of the concession stand to quench their thirst,” Spielberg said. “I haven’t witnessed anything like it since.
The film impacted the young Spielberg, but it took him several years to realise its effect. “At the time, I didn’t quite understand the impact that it had on me,” he said. “I couldn’t comprehend the enormity of the experience. So, I wasn’t able to digest it in one sitting. I actually walked out of the theatre stunned and speechless.”
Check out the trailer for Lawrence of Arabia below.
