History Film / DoctorZhivago

It's a [[EpicMovie generation-spanning epic]] about UsefulNotes/TheRussianRevolution, starring Creator/OmarSharif as Yuri Zhivago, a doctor meeting the challenges of a WorldGoneMad, with Creator/JulieChristie as TheIngenue Lara, the object of his [[TheDulcineaEffect affections]], and Creator/RodSteiger as the manipulative [[MagnificentBastard Komarovsky]]. Other cast members include Creator/GeraldineChaplin, Creator/AlecGuinness, Tom Courtenay, Siobhán [=McKenna=], Rita Tushingham, Creator/KlausKinski, and Creator/RalphRichardson. Creator/IngridPitt, who would go on to become a legendary star of Film/HammerHorror movies, makes her film debut in a bit part.

* AnachronicOrder: The movie begins after the second World War with an old Yevgraf Zhivago trying to find his niece and conversing with a worker named Tanya who may be this niece. The rest of the movie then jumps back to the past as Yevgraf narrates what happened to Yuri Zhivago and Lara before and during the Revolution, before concluding with a return to Yevgraf and Tanya's conversation.

* FramingDevice: Yevgraf and Tanya meet in the '50s, and most of the story is Yevgraf telling Tonya about his past.

** Yevgraf is likewise Tanya's perhaps ''only'' living relative.

* MathematiciansAnswer: Tanya is prone to these when being quizzed by Yevgraf. When asked what her mother's name was, Tanya says "Mummy." When asked to describe her, Tonya says she was "big", because Tanya was small.

* MementoMacguffin: The balalaika, passed on from Yuri's mother, to Yuri, and possibly to Tanya if she is his daughter.

* OneSteveLimit: Averted - Tonya, Zhivago's wife, and Tanya, Zhivago's daughter with Lara, have names with almost-identical pronunciation.
* OrphansPlotTrinket: How does Yevgraf know that young Tanya is in fact his niece? She has the balalaika that previously belonged to Yuri, that came from his mother.

* RichesToRags: Alexander, Tonya and Zhivago are a well-off family of the haute-bourgeoisis. By the time the Revolution comes, their every possession, including their home, is requisitioned to be shared with other people or is stolen.

* WellIntentionedExtremist: Pasha believes in the Red revolution.

It's a [[EpicMovie generation-spanning epic]] about UsefulNotes/TheRussianRevolution, starring Creator/OmarSharif as Yuri Zhivago, a doctor meeting the challenges of a WorldGoneMad, with Creator/JulieChristie as TheIngenue Lara, the object of his [[TheDulcineaEffect affections]], and Rod Steiger as the manipulative [[MagnificentBastard Komarovsky]]. Other cast members include Creator/GeraldineChaplin, Creator/AlecGuinness, Tom Courtenay, Siobhán [=McKenna=], Rita Tushingham, Creator/KlausKinski, and Creator/RalphRichardson. Creator/IngridPitt, who would go on to become a legendary star of Film/HammerHorror movies, makes her film debut in a bit part.

It's a [[EpicMovie generation-spanning epic]] about UsefulNotes/TheRussianRevolution, starring Creator/OmarSharif as Yuri Zhivago, a doctor meeting the challenges of a WorldGoneMad, with Creator/JulieChristie as TheIngenue Lara, the object of his [[TheDulcineaEffect affections]], and Rod Steiger as the manipulative [[MagnificentBastard Komarovsky]]. Other cast members include Creator/GeraldineChaplin, Creator/AlecGuinness, Tom Courtenay, Siobhán [=McKenna=], Rita Tushingham, Creator/KlausKinski, and Creator/RalphRichardson. Creator/IngridPitt, who would later become a legendary star of Film/HammerHorror movies, makes her film debut in a bit part.

[[quoteright:315:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/doctor_zhivago_1965.jpeg]]

It's a [[EpicMovie generation-spanning epic]] about UsefulNotes/TheRussianRevolution, starring Creator/OmarSharif as Yuri Zhivago, a doctor meeting the challenges of a WorldGoneMad, with Creator/JulieChristie as TheIngenue Lara, the object of his [[TheDulcineaEffect affections]], and Rod Steiger as the manipulative [[MagnificentBastard Komarovsky]]. Other cast members include Creator/AlecGuinness, Creator/GeraldineChaplin, Tom Courtenay, Creator/KlausKinski, and Creator/RalphRichardson. Creator/IngridPitt, who would later become a legendary star of Film/HammerHorror movies, makes her film debut in a bit part.

With its epic scope, vivid performances, and dramatic SceneryPorn vistas, this is widely regarded as one of Lean's greatest films. Nominated for ten UsefulNotes/{{Academy Award}}s, it won for Best Adapted Screenplay (Bolt), Cinematography (Freddie Young), Original Score (Music/MauriceJarre), Art Direction, and Costume Design.

* AdaptationDistillation: The movie removes several key characters from the book (eg. Lara's brother, Pasha Antipov's father, himself a revolutionary leader, Yuri's friend Misha Gordon), compresses the time span and excises a good amount of the story's historical and cultural background. Especially evident in Yuri's service with the Red partisans, much more prominent in the novel than the film.

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/doctor_zhivago_1965_film_poster.PNG]]

And the greater silence of Lovers.''"
-->--'''{{Tagline}} for the film'''

Though there have been many screen adaptations of the [[Literature/DoctorZhivago epic novel]] by Russian poet and writer Boris Leonidovich Pasternak, this one -- scripted by Creator/RobertBolt, directed by Creator/DavidLean, and released in 1965 -- is probably the most famous.

A [[EpicMovie generation-spanning epic]] about UsefulNotes/TheRussianRevolution, starring Creator/OmarSharif as Yuri Zhivago, a doctor meeting the challenges of a WorldGoneMad. Featuring Creator/JulieChristie as TheIngenue Lara, the object of Yuri's [[TheDulcineaEffect affections]], and Rod Steiger as the manipulative [[MagnificentBastard Komarovsky]]. Other cast members include Creator/AlecGuinness, Creator/GeraldineChaplin, Tom Courtenay, and Creator/RalphRichardson. Creator/IngridPitt, who later would be a legendary star of Film/HammerHorror movies, made her film debut in a bit part.

With its epic scope, vivid performances, and dramatic SceneryPorn vistas, this is generally regarded as one of Lean's greatest films. It was nominated for ten UsefulNotes/{{Academy Award}}s, winning for Best Adapted Screenplay (Bolt), Cinematography (Freddie Young), Original Score (Music/MauriceJarre), Art Direction, and Costume Design.

''Doctor Zhivago'' was also heralded as the last of Creator/{{MGM}}'s great {{Epic Movie}}s, as they announced even during production. They simply didn't have the money to finance these vast vista works with thousands of extras and a cast full of stars: the next movie they made was one twentieth of this cost. The effort seemed to be worth it; when adjusted for inflation, ''Zhivago'' is currently the 9th-highest-grossing film of all time; according to [=BoxOfficeMojo.com=], its $111 million domestic take in 1965[[note]]as well as subsequent rereleases[[/note]] comes out to nearly ''a billion dollars'' in the 2020s.

''Doctor Zhivago'' was also heralded as the last of Creator/{{MGM}}'s great {{Epic Movie}}s, as they announced even during production. They simply didn't have the money to finance these vast vista works with thousands of extras and a cast full of stars: the next movie they made was one twentieth of this cost. The effort seemed to be worth it; when adjusted for inflation, ''Zhivago'' is currently the 9th-highest-grossing film of all time; according to [=BoxOfficeMojo.com=], its $111 million domestic take in 1965[[note]]as well as subsequent rereleases[[/note]] comes out to nearly ''a billion dollars'' in 2014.

* AnachronicOrder: The movie begins after the second World War with an old Yevgraf Zhivago trying to find his niece and conversing with a worker named Tanya who may be this niece. The rest of the movie then jumps back to the past as Yavgraf narrates what happened to Yuri Zhivago and Lara before and during the Revolution, before concluding with a return to Yevgraf and Tanya's conversation.

* CaptainErsatz: Strelnikov, the Red Army officer, shares a lot of similarities to UsefulNotes/LeonTrotsky, who was leader of the Red Army during the Russian Civil War (most notably, travelling up and down the front on an armored train).

* WarIsHell: The movie depicts World War I in its whole horrible glory, lingering on several shots of frozen corpses as Yevgraf narrates how every soldier was living through hell and was thrown into the Germans' fire as CannonFodder. The cripples who returned from the war with a missing limbs are deemed to be lucky. Then the Russian Civil War is also depicted as a horrible conflict where both Whites and Reds commit atrocities on the locals.

A [[EpicMovie generation-spanning epic]] about UsefulNotes/TheRussianRevolution, starring Creator/OmarSharif as Yuri Zhivago, a doctor meeting the challenges of a WorldGoneMad. Featuring Creator/JulieChristie as TheIngenue Lara, the object of Yuri's [[TheDulcineaEffect affections]], and Rod Steiger as the manipulative [[MagnificentBastard Komarovsky]]. Other cast members include Creator/AlecGuinness, Creator/GeraldineChaplin, Tom Courtenay, and Creator/RalphRichardson. Creator/IngridPitt, who later would be a legendary star of HammerHorror films, made her film debut in a bit part.

A [[EpicMovie generation-spanning epic]] about UsefulNotes/TheRussianRevolution, starring Creator/OmarSharif as Yuri Zhivago, a doctor meeting the challenges of a WorldGoneMad. Featuring Creator/JulieChristie as TheIngenue Lara, the object of Yuri's [[TheDulcineaEffect affections]], and Rod Steiger as the manipulative [[MagnificentBastard Komarovsky]]. Other cast members include Creator/AlecGuinness, Creator/GeraldineChaplin, Tom Courtenay, and Creator/RalphRichardson.

* {{Adorkable}}: Pasha, who is an earnest revolutionary but also plainly adores Lara.