Dr. Zhivago

Monday I finished watching Doctor Zhivagothe 1965 version with Julie Christie and Omar Sharif. Although the movie omitted some parts that even our highly abridged Penguin Reader had, I was swept up in the story. It's an epic and director David Lean captures the immensity of Russia. There's restraint and passion so you don't feel like you've had to check your intelligence at the door when you come to see Yuri and Lara together.

The end of the novel was chopped off. We don't see Yuri's lassitude and his third woman. Also, the BBC mini-series which I just saw a couple hours, is far clearer in Lara's mother's character flaws and Victor Komarovsky's exploitation of Lara. In that version, Lara really looks like a school girl, while Christie looks more like a woman during that part of the film.

The film is filled with captivating images. It deserves to be a classic and is perfect to watch on a winter's night. I can't forget seeing the deserted estate house, shown below: