MovieChat Forums > Doctor Zhivago (1965) Discussion > Very good

Very good

posted a month ago by PersistentViewer (2682)
2 replies | jump to latest

This is the first David Lean film I have now seen, and it was quite the adventure. Also, the first time I've seen Omar Shariff in film.

Loved that Alec Guinness was in this, and his character was great to see. Julie Christie was really good, and I loved Geraldine Chaplin as Tonya. Rod Steiger as Komarovsky played his part really well, and Tom Courtnay was also good as Pasha. All in all, no real complaints about the cast, acting and dialogue. Omar Shariff certainly has very expressive eyes, and the girl at the end was great casting as she looks like her parents.

The story itself is interesting and being a Russian story, albeit fiction, was still enough motivation to watch.

The cinematography was exceptional, and the film looked beautiful. The scenes flow smoothly.

For a film being 3 hours and 20 minutes, it is a long film, however it keeps you interested the whole time.

It's considered a classic, and it's definitely worth a watch, even if it's really long.

[–] Aylmer (620) a month ago

I have seen it a few times and agree that the film looks great and has a great cast. The middle third of the film I really love because it is about this great adventure with them fleeing Moscow and escaping to a little hideaway in the countryside.

However after that point the film really falls apart for me. It just feels too unfocused and has no climax to build up to. Instead it all just sort of fizzles out. The opening half hour in the city is very slow too.

I love Omar Sharif - he's even better in the (albeit much worse, but still very interesting film) NIGHT OF THE GENERALS in which he's cast curiously as a German officer in WW2.

I also love David Lean. BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI and LAWRENCE are two of my favorite films. This film however kinda broke the spell for me as it doesn't feel nearly as well-crafted as either of those (except the middle portion on the train I mentioned earlier). I've still yet to see RYANS DAUGHTER and I only got about 20 minutes into PASSAGE TO INDIA before switching it off due to sheer boredom.

[–] PersistentViewer (2682) a month ago

Thanks for your thoughts.