Doctor Zhivago (/ʒɪˈvɑːɡoʊ/) is a 1965 epic historical romance film directed by David Lean with a screenplay by Robert Bolt, based on the 1957 novel by Boris Pasternak.

The film stars Omar Sharif in the title role as Yuri Zhivago, a married physician and poet whose life is altered by the Russian Revolution and subsequent civil war, and Julie Christie as his lover Lara Antipova.

Geraldine Chaplin, Tom Courtenay, Rod Steiger, Alec Guinness, Ralph Richardson, Siobhán McKenna, and Rita Tushingham play supporting roles.

At the 38th Academy Awards, Doctor Zhivago was nominated for ten Oscars (including Best Picture) and won five: Best Adapted Screenplay, Original Score, Cinematography, Art Direction, and Costume Design.

After his mother's burial, the orphaned child Yuri, owning only an inherited balalaika, was taken by family friends Alexander and Anna Gromeko to Moscow.

Lara's friend, the idealistic Pasha Antipov, who wishes to marry her, is wounded by mounted police at a peaceful demonstration.

Their heavily guarded train travels through contested territory where Bolshevik commander Strelnikov is fighting anti-communist White forces.

Recently appointed as a Far Eastern Republic official, he says the Cheka allowed Lara to remain in the area only to lure Strelnikov; he had been captured five miles away, and committed suicide.

[11][12][7] A target of the Soviet government's fervent campaign to label him a traitor, Pasternak felt compelled to refuse the Prize.

Pasternak's novel had been an international success, and producer Carlo Ponti was interested in adapting it as a vehicle for his wife, Sophia Loren.

Sharif loved the novel, and when he heard Lean was making a film adaptation, he requested to be cast in the role of Pasha (which ultimately went to Tom Courtenay).

Peter O'Toole, star of Lawrence of Arabia, was Lean's original choice for Zhivago, but turned the part down;[15] Max von Sydow and Paul Newman were also considered.

[16] Michael Caine tells in his autobiography that he also read for Zhivago and participated in the screen shots with Christie, but (after watching the results with David Lean) was the one who suggested Omar Sharif.

Lean convinced Ponti that Loren was not right for the role of Lara, saying she was "too tall" (and confiding in screenwriter Robert Bolt that he could not accept Loren as a virgin for the early parts of the film), and Jeanne Moreau, Yvette Mimieux, Sarah Miles and Jane Fonda were considered for the role.

[19] Ultimately, Julie Christie was cast based on her appearance in Billy Liar (1963)[15] and the recommendation of Jack Cardiff, who directed her in Young Cassidy (1965).

The team filmed some locations with natural heavy snow, such as the snowy landscape in Strelnikov's train sequence, somewhere in Campo de Gómara near Soria.

[22] Nicolas Roeg was the original director of photography and worked on some scenes but, after an argument with Lean, he left and was replaced by Freddie Young.

[23] Principal photography began on 28 December 1964, and production ended on 8 October the following year; the entire Moscow set was built from scratch outside Madrid.

[2] Most of the scenes covering Zhivago's and Lara's service in World War I were filmed in Soria, as was the Varykino estate.

The charge of the partisans across the frozen lake was also filmed in Spain; a cast iron sheet was placed over a dried river-bed, and fake snow (mostly marble dust) was added on top.

[4] The film sold an estimated 124.1 million tickets in the United States and Canada,[27] equivalent to $1.1 billion adjusted for inflation as of 2018.

[43] Brendan Gill of The New Yorker called the film "a grievous disappointment ... these able actors have been given almost nothing to do except wear costumes and engage in banal small talk.

Doctor Zhivago is one of the stillest motion pictures of all time, and an occasional bumpy train ride or crudely inserted cavalry charge only points up its essential immobility.

Boris Pasternak's sprawling, complex, elusive novel is held together by its unity of style, by the driving force of its narrative, by the passionate voice of a poet who weaves a mass of diverse characters into a single tapestry.

[46] Arthur D. Murphy of Variety declared, "The sweep and scope of the Russian revolution, as reflected in the personalities of those who either adapted or were crushed, has been captured by David Lean in 'Doctor Zhivago,' frequently with soaring dramatic intensity.

'"[47] Philip K. Scheuer of the Los Angeles Times called the film "as throat-catchingly magnificent as the screen could be, the apotheosis of the cinema as art.

With Spain and Finland doubling, absolutely incredibly, for Moscow and the Urals in all seasons, we are transplanted to another land and time ... if you will brace yourself for an inordinately lengthy session—intermission notwithstanding—in a theater seat, I can promise you some fine film-making.

He identified the film's length as its "greatest drawback" but wrote that "we weary of the long train ride or become impatient with individual scenes, but, thinking back on them, we perceive their proper intent.

"[49] Clifford Terry of the Chicago Tribune wrote that director David Lean and screenwriter Robert Bolt "have fashioned out of a rambling book, a well controlled film highlighted by excellent acting and brilliant production.

The critical consensus reads: "It may not be the best of David Lean's epics, but Dr. Zhivago is still brilliantly photographed and sweepingly romantic.