A film that broke many rules for a blockbuster - it was set in Russia, about Russians, had a passive hero who just mopes around for three hours (compared to Lawrence, Ben Hur and company who got out and did stuff). Zhivago is always swept up in events - mum dies, World War One, Russian Revolution, bands of partisans. He's bailed out of trouble twice by Alec Guinness, once by Rod Steiger, his wife and mistress seem to make decisions. The only decision he really makes is to cheat on his wife.
Of course it also had David Lean and his stunning compositions. And watching it again, Lara carries as much action as the real hero is Lara - she's the one who is loved by Tom Courtney's revolutionary, is raped by Rod Steiger, shoots Steiger, becomes a nurse, goes looking for Courtney.
And the film has real emotional sweep. I mean, it's full of nice people - Omar Sharif, Geraldine Chaplin, Julie Christie. Even tough Alec Guinness loves his half brother and tries to help him. Tom Courtney becomes ruthless but starts off idealistic. Rod Steiger is nasty, raping Christie, but saves her in the end. Then there's this horrible war and revolution. The pettiness and meanness of the Bolshevieks is well depicted. You can't help feel sorry for Sharif being whisked away for two years by those partisans, and then separated from Christie, and dying of a heart attack calling out to her. Of course his life has compensations - doting wife and mistress, people looking out for him, a house to hide out with cool ice all over it.
Acting is consistently excellent - Guinness is terrific as a creepy commie, so too Courtney (I wish we'd seen his death scene instead of it being described), a restrained Rod Steiger, Geraldine Chaplin and Sharif moon. Klaus Kinski is electric in a brief appearance.
The X factor was Julie Christie - beautiful, smart, capable, fresh. Sharif's youthful romantic looks suit the part very well - he's better I think than original choice Peter O'Toole would have been. The Brits make good Russians.
It ticks the boxes of a successful epic. It has a simple storyline to follow - will Sharif root Julie Christie despite being married, will everyone avoid being killed - but all sorts of complexities around it. Plus cool stuff like the compositions - cavalry charges, cuddling in sleds, ice on the window, flowers.
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