Lawrence of Arabia is a critically acclaimed film that won seven Oscars, and deeply influenced filmmaker Steven Spielberg.

Steven Spielberg has made some of the most influential films of all time, but the director was himself inspired by the 1962 adventure drama Lawrence of Arabia.
During an interview, Spielberg recalled watching the movie during his childhood and leaving the theater speechless and stunned.

Director Steven Spielberg has made some of the most memorable and impactful films of all time. The acclaimed filmmaker has won three Academy Awards in his lengthy career. However, there is one Oscar-winning movie outside his revered filmography that left Spielberg stunned and speechless upon watching it for the first time.

Steven Spielberg was profoundly impacted by 1962’s Lawrence of Arabia. (Image via CBS News)

Spielberg watched the movie for the first time during his childhood and admitted to being profoundly impacted by it. The film that left Spielberg stunned and speechless and most likely shaped the type of filmmaker he would go on to become was the 1962 epic biographical adventure drama Lawrence of Arabia. Here is what Spielberg revealed about his experience of watching Lawrence of Arabia.

Steven Spielberg Recalls Being Speechless After Watching Lawrence of Arabia

Lawrence of Arabia directed by David Lean won seven Oscars. | Columbia Pictures

Director Steven Spielberg‘s love for cinema is no secret and it has also been well documented in the semi-autobiographical film The Fabelmans. One of the films that had a profound impact on Spielberg as a child was the 1962 adventure drama Lawrence of Arabia directed by David Lean.

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During an interview, Spielberg recalled watching the seven Academy Awards-winning film for the first time during his childhood. Spielberg revealed that he watched the movie when he was in high school and could not fully comprehend the enormity of the experience.

I wasn’t really able to digest it in one sitting. I actually walked out of the theater stunned and speechless and didn’t quite understand the impact that someone had on me until months later.

Spielberg made the above statement expressing his admiration for the film while also underlining its impact on him. The director added that he was polarized after watching the movie and purchased the film’s soundtrack, which he listened to countless times over the next couple of months to develop a better understanding of the cinematic experience.

Steven Spielberg Reveals Why He Related to Lawrence of Arabia

Steven Spielberg admitted to being speechless after watching Lawrence of Arabia (Image via BBC)

During the same interview, Spielberg also spoke about why the film personally resonated with him. Lawrence of Arabia revolves around the experiences of T. E. Lawrence in the Ottoman deserts during the First World War. Meanwhile, Spielberg grew up in Phoenix, Arizona, which was also a desert community.

I was raised in the desert and so I had an affinity for Lawrence’s love of the desert and understood his obsession with how clean the desert was. 

Spielberg made the above statement, explaining how his personal experiences and the film’s narrative meshed to form an emotional resonance that he had not previously experienced. Given the time Spielberg spent obsessed with the film it is safe to say that it impacted the type of filmmaker he became years later

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In a separate interview, Spielberg admitted that meeting Lawrence of Arabia director David Lean was like meeting his guru. Spielberg has also revealed that he watched the film more times than any other film, making it safe to say that Lawrence of Arabia is among his all-time favorite movies.