Doctor Zhivago 1965

     This film is based on a novel by Boris Pasternak published in 1958.  Publishing this work was a daring defiance of Russian censorship. The setting of this film is during the Russian Revolution of 1917-1922.  Yuri Zhivago is a young doctor and his aunt and uncle raised him after his father’s suicide.  He falls in love with beautiful Lara Guishar.  Then, he learns that Lara has been having an affair with her mother’s lover, Victor Komarovski.  He is an unscrupulous businessman.  Instead of marrying Lara, he marries his cousin Tonya.  Years later, Yuri meets Lara again and the spark of love returns.

     This is one of my favorite movies and I would watch it more times if it was not so long!!  It has a magical and mystical quality despite the sadness.  It’s a wonderful and enduing love story.  The music on the soundtrack is also very beautiful.  4 ½* (I really liked this movie)

197 minutes Drama directed by David Lean with Omar Sharif, Julie Christie, Geraldine Chaplin, Rod Steiger, Alec Guinness, Tom Courtenay, Siobhan McKenna, Ralph Richardson, Rita Tushingham, Jeffrey Rockland, Tarek Sharif, Bernard Kay, Klaus Kinski, Gerard Tichy, Noel Willman.

Note:  Imdb 8 out of 10, Roger Ebert 3*, The Guardian 5* Peter Bradshaw, 82% citric 88% audience on rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic 69 out of 100 with 14 critics 8.1 out of 10 with 16 user reviews, Empire Online 4* out of 5*, Amazon 4.6 out of 5 with 1567 reviews, the book has 4.1* out of 5* with 391 reviews.

Special Note:  Filmed in Alberta, Canada; Kiihtelysvaara, Helsinki, Joensuu, Punkaharju, Punkasalmi, Phyaselka and Lieksa, Finland.  Estudios CEA, Madrid, Andalucia and Castilla y Leon, Spain.  The filming in Spain was during the regime of General Francisco Franco.  During filming of a revolutionary scene, police showed up at the set thinking a real revolution was taking place.  The film was not shown in Russia until 1994.  Omar Sharif’s son Tarek plays the young Yri Zhivago at his mother’s funeral scene.  Sharif had his eyes taped back and his hair straightened daily to disguise his Egyptian looks.  His hairline was shaved up about 2-3 inches and his skin was waxed.  This process was repeated every three days.  Julie Christie slaps Rod Steiger.  He slaps her back and this was not in the script and also not discussed during filming.