Comments on: Doctor Zhivago Anniversary Edition

By: Steven Y.

Steven Y. — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 13:23:01 +0000

David Lean's "Doctor Zhivago" is the epic that will cure your insomnia. It suffers from a fatal overdose of melodrama and a running time that will wear down the resolve of even the most resilient filmwatcher.

Russian poet-doctor Yuri Zhivago (Omar Sharif) weds Tonya Gromeko (Geraldine Chaplin) but continuously finds himself separated from her because of war. Into his life enters Lara Antipova (Julie Christie), a woman worn down by her relationships with the politician Viktor Komarovsky (Rod Steiger) and the revolutionary Pasha (Tom Courtenay). Despite his love for his wife, Yuri cannot deny his passionate feelings for Lara.

The production design of "Doctor Zhivago" is tremendous and Omar Sharif turns in a magnificent performance as the soulful doctor. However, these high points are undone by a saccharine love story, an annoying musical score, and Lean's determination to prolong his film as long as possible. Watching "Doctor Zhivago" is such a taxing experience that there should be warning labels attached to all copies of it to alert new viewers of the anguish that awaits them. A lot of editing and a lot less soap opera moments would have done wonders for "Doctor Zhivago." Lean has been responsible for some terrific films in his career, but this outing is certainly not one of his finer efforts. Rating: 2 / 5

By: Jaime

Jaime — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 11:09:20 +0000

I am writing this review for my film appreciation class at Lowry High School in Winnemucca Nevada.
Doctor Zhivago was a very long an boring movie (3 hours-17 minutes)! I just kept on going without having any exciting parts to it. At times it was hard to understand what was going on. I don’t even know what the point of it was.
The only good part about this movie was some of the scenery. The snow, trees and mountains looked pretty good. The photography was exceptional The movie needs to have a better plot to it.
The only part i really understood about the movie was that Lara (Julie Christie) was Doctor Zhivago’s(Omar Sharif) mistress.
I wouldn’t recommend watching this movie. Rent or buy some other movie instead.
Rating: 1 / 5

By: S. Francis

S. Francis — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 09:56:02 +0000

If you are a man, start running now! Although this movie is so slow that you could probably slither on your belly and still escape it.

If you are a woman you may be able to sit through this seemingly unending saga of Soviet slush. But you better have plenty of patience. A good test might be to see "Dances with Wolves" first. If you can watch that without wishing that 90 minutes had been left on the cutting room floor, you MIGHT have the grit for Zhivago.

I gave it 2 stars on the assumption that somewhere out there exists a movie which is even more torturous than this one. Rating: 2 / 5

By: A Reader in Washington, DC

A Reader in Washington, DC — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 07:24:57 +0000

This simplified version of the revolution in Russia just doesn’t hold up over time. Where’s the revolution? Why do we care that Zhivago and Lara want each other? Isn’t Geraldine Chaplin ten times classier than Julie Christie? Worse, the absurdity of seeing English actors with an Egyptian lead playing Russians feels very 1960s. The movie sports a tediously repetitive score and a made-for-TV script, making for a long sit at three-and-a-half hours. In the IMDb trivia notes it says that Lean suffered at the hands of the critics, though the film was popular and won so many Oscars. I can see why the critics howled, and not with glee. Watch this one only if you have a particular interest in any of the actors. SPOILER ALERT. By the end of it I was yelling at the screen “Zhivago, you wimp! Don’t just stand there with your suitcases and that long face. Go after her!” He acts like a passive twit who deserves to lose the girl. They say that director Lean wanted 1960s-yummy Peter O’Toole for the role, but I can’t quite see him playing such a weak man. Sharif is also sexy, and surely more powerful than this flaccid lead would suggest. He has zero, and I mean no chemistry with the barbie-esque Christie, who only needs a gingham dress to remind me of one of the gals from Petticoat Junction.
Rating: 1 / 5

By: Jaime

Jaime — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 07:16:42 +0000