Dr. Zhivago - A Raving Classic

It's almost Winter and Winter reminds us of one one thing - Zhivago. No place is more famous for their terrible Winters than Russia. Time and again the Russian Winter as played a role in history defeating conquering armies lead by Napoleon and Hitler. The Russian Winters seem to define what it is to be Russian (although we don't really have a clue because we're not Russian so what we really mean is that they define our perception of what Russia is). The Russian Gulag is a Winter place too. David Lean's epic adaptation of the Boris Pasternak novel Dr. Zhivago captures the Russian Winter in all its glory and infamy. It's a historical treatise, a love story and a defiant tale written about how real people struggled to survive in the newly formed Soviet state.

Energy-efficient, but a bit chilly in the Wintertime

Perhaps the two most memorable aspects of the film are the soundtrack and the cinematography. While Mr. Lean wasn't permitted to film in the Soviet Union at the time (they were still somewhat ticked off at Boris for writing Zhivago) a number of similar striking locations were used. Lara's Theme  may be the single most recognized film score in history and certainly qualifies as the most haunting. If ever an instrumental song could capture longing, love and heartbreak - this is it. The story and the score together make this movie perhaps the greatest romance ever filmed.

It's all about Lara...

Romance, true romance is not idyllic, but it is real. The power of Zhivago's tale is not that it makes any sense, but that it seems as though this really happened - not to just a few people but to an entire people. When the world was toppling around them - the revolution, world wars - the one thing that mattered were those handful of people closest to you. Zhivago's crime and the reason Pasternak was always one step away from being sent to a Gulag was "living" and thinking in terms of those who they loved rather than the state. This is perhaps the ultimate story of tyranny of the state versus the freedom to be oneself. Amidst all this history the movie is peppered with several standout performances namely from Sir Alec Guinness (as Zhivago's half-brother) and Rod Steiger as one of the great jerky characters in film history. 

The original Zhivago trailer

The character of Zhivago himself is curious - he is an observer mostly. He is surrounded both by fascinating characters and remarkable events. He reacts to them all but seems helpless to control even his own destiny - he swept along the path of history only to be discarded in the end - forgotten to all but those who read banned poets. This movie is as much about Lara as anything and in Julie Christie's capable hands she becomes a fascinating anti-heroine. Lara is Christie's most memorable performance by far. She reminds us of that song by Alanis Morissette - she's got it all going on; bad girl, good mom, nurse, home-wrecker. Lara is awesome - no wonder Zhivago wrote all that poetry for her.

we wouldn't want it any other way

Get her drunk and she like to party

Nations rise and nations fall, but people go on - they go on loving, living and making a reality with each other and all those little stories fill the gaps behind the big picture that is our history. Zhivago gives us a glimpse into both personal side and the epic backdrop of the Russian drama - and it may have been the first movie during the Cold War that helped break the ice between ordinary Americans and their then Soviet counterparts. We're not so different after all, are we?

This song seems to have been inspired by Zhivago - we miss you Robert Palmer

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