Lean's mastery of the epic form makes up for a weak central love story
Doctor Zhivago (1965)
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Reviews Counted:30
Fresh:25
Rotten:5
Average Rating:7.3/10
Consensus: It may not be the best of David Lean's epics, but Dr. Zhivago is still brilliantly photographed and sweepingly romantic.
Runtime: 3 hrs 20 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: David Lean's DOCTOR ZHIVAGO is an exploration of the Russian Revolution as seen from the point of view of the intellectual, introspective title character (Omar Sharif). As the political landscape... David Lean's DOCTOR ZHIVAGO is an exploration of the Russian Revolution as seen from the point of view of the intellectual, introspective title character (Omar Sharif). As the political landscape changes, and the Czarist regime comes to an end, Dr. Zhivago's relationships reflect the political turmoil raging about him. Though he is married, the vagaries of war lead him to begin a love affair with the beautiful Lara (Julie Christie). But he cannot escape the machinations of a band of selfish and cruel characters: General Strelnikov (Tom Courtenay), a Bolshevik General; Komarovsky (Rod Steiger), Lara's former lover; and Yevgraf (Alec Guinness), Zhivago's sinister half-brother. This epic, sweeping romance, told in flashback, captures the lushness of Moscow before the war and the violent social upheaval that followed. The film is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Boris Pasternak. [More]
Starring: Omar Sharif, Julie Christie, Geraldine Chaplin, Alec Guinness
Starring: Omar Sharif, Julie Christie, Geraldine Chaplin, Alec Guinness, Tom Courtenay, Siobhan McKenna, Ralph Richardson, Rod Steiger, Rita Tushingham, Klaus Kinski, Adrienne Corri, Geoffrey Keen, Noel Willman
Director: David Lean
Director: David Lean
Producer: Carlo Ponti
Composer: Maurice Jarre
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Reviews for Doctor Zhivago
The movie is something that should be experienced by everyone at least once in a lifetime.
Laborious, but beautifully crafted 193 minute opus from the master of epic cinema, David Lean.
David Lean's 1965 adaptation of Pasternak's romance of the Russian Revolution is intelligent and handsomely mounted, though it doesn't use its length to build to a particularly complex emotional effect.
Although its portentous historical drama evaporates once you return to the fresh air, watching it can be seductive.
Plays as a sweeping, episodic tale set against the backdrop of World War I and the Russian Revolution, with some of the most stunning vistas ever captured on film.
The film is shot after shot, scene after scene, of glorious beauty...it remains in the hearts of countless moviegoers as one of the greatest romances ever filmed.
Combining skill and kitsch in equal measure, David Lean's overbloated epic (a disappointing follow-up to Lawrence of Arabia) offers guilty pleasure so long as you don't expect a faithful adaptation of Joe Pasternak's novel about the Russian Revolution.
Lean discovered, and fell in love with, Julie Christie, and knew straightaway that his audience would too.
Mr. Bolt has reduced the vast upheaval of the Russian Revolution to the banalities of a doomed romance.
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 66% 66% | Public Enemies |
| 83% 83% | Harry Potter and the H… |
| 44% 44% | Night at the Museum: B… |
| 75% 75% | Julie & Julia |
| 32% 32% | Terminator Salvation |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 88% 88% | Inglourious Basterds |
| 78% 78% | The Hangover |
| 49% 49% | Taking Woodstock |
| 26% 26% | The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard |
| 47% 47% | The Girl From Monaco |
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