After riding off the success of “Lawrence of Arabia,” English filmmaker Sir David Lean (“Brief Encounter”) decided to tackle Boris Pasternak’s (“The Last Summer”) novel “Doctor Zhivago.” In the film, NKVD General Yevgraf Zhivago (Alec Guinness, “The Ladykillers”) tries to find the daughter of his half-brother and the title character, a doctor named Yuri (Omar Sharif, “Funny Girl”), who yearns to be a poet and who falls in love during the chaos of the Russian Revolution and subsequent civil war, a time of bloodshed and uncertainty.

The book the film was based on was originally published in 1957, but it was not published in the author’s home country. The book painted an unfavorable picture of the Bolsheviks during the Revolution, and the Soviet censors refused to publish it. Thus, Pasternak had to smuggle its manuscript into Italy. Pasternak was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for literature, but he was forced to decline the award by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, which was enraged that he was even nominated for the award.

It is not hard to see why the Communist Party wanted the book banned, as Zhivago does not shy away from condemning the Bolsheviks. Throughout the film, the Bolsheviks are depicted as immoral and blood thirsty. We see a village burnt to ground by the Red Army commander Strelnikov (Tom Courtenay, “Billy Liar”) over allegations that they supported the anti-Communist White Army. We also see property belonging to the main character and his family being stolen by members of the Bolshevik Party, and we see people being forced into mandatory labor. Some of the Bolsheviks even behave like automatons.

A main theme that can be interpreted from “Doctor Zhivago” is individualism. In spite of all of the collectivism and hive mind attitude from the Bolsheviks, all of the characters are flawed in some way or another, some more flawed than others. Yuri is a doctor who longs to be a poet. He falls in love with Strelnikov’s estranged wife Lara (Julie Christie, “McCabe & Mrs. Miller”), despite already being married. In spite of the chaos and bloodshed, Yuri is idealistic and hopeful. He tries to find the best of things in the worst-case scenario. Regardless, he is constantly confronted by the harsh realities of life in Soviet Russia. During his interrogation, he is told by Strelnikov that “the private life is dead in Russia”.

One thing that “Doctor Zhivago” can be praised for is how gorgeous the film is. For “Zhivago”, Lean works with the most talented cinematographer in the history of film, Freddie Young (“Lawrence of Arabia”). Since the book was banned in Russia at the time, it would not have been possible to film in Russia, and thus production was done mostly in Spain. In spite of the setback, the crew does a fair job trying to make Spain look like Russia. The set design of Moscow feels as if you are actually in the city of Moscow before the civil war that would eventually tear the country apart, it feels cold and grimy as well as decrepit and eerie. On a visual aspect, “Doctor Zhivago” feels like a Christmas film of sorts.

“Doctor Zhivago” is a unique picture. It is a damning indictment of the ideological enemy of the West at the time, especially since the censors in Moscow refused to have it published. But more importantly it is a story of the individual during a time in which individualism was looked down upon, all the while providing the most gorgeous cinematography in the history of film, that even modern films cannot top. “Doctor Zhivago” is definitely a must-watch.

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