So much has been written about this work in the past five decades that there seems little point in attempting to relate the plot. Based on the Boris Pasternak novel, the film concentrates largely on the romantic tale of Zhivago (Omar Sharif) and Lara (Julie Christie), largely glossing over the complex political undertones of the original.
The early dialogue seems stilted, dated, and only begins to work more effectively when the plot moves on from the Imperial world of the Tsar and into the Soviet era of Lenin. Both geographically and socially the action travels across distance and into extremes. Where there is violence, inevitably commonplace in setting of war, revolution and counter revolution, there is little that would be considered graphic by today's standards, with suggestion playing a greater role.
However it's the Sharif/Christie pairing that dominates ones memories of the film. She can be less than convincing at times, but they must be one of the most beautiful screen couples of all time. The eyes have it. His, mournful, bloodshot and brown, hers a luminous blue, the eyes of lovers. Add in the haunting tune that is Lara's Theme and it's impossible not to swept up in the passion of the affair. Strong performances too from Tom Courtenay, Rod Steiger and Geraldine Chaplin.
This being Lean, there are some glorious shots throughout. Horizon seeking landscapes, a train traveling through the snow, a sunset in the mountains, the drama of Strelnikov's armoured train thundering past. But my favourite, the image that remained, was off Zhivago slowly walking off and up the steps in a deserted field hospital while, in the foreground, the petals fall from a vase of sunflowers put in place by the recently departed Lara.
A thing of beauty, even if lightweight. It's left me with a resolution to revisit the Pasternak original in 2016.
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