Yuri Zhivago, a doctor and poet, is torn between his wife Tonya and Lara, the woman he loves, while the Russian Revolution tears the country apart. Lean built the whole of Moscow outside Madrid, since the novel was banned in the Soviet Union.
At a glance
Doctor Zhivago is a 1965 drama, romance and war film directed by David Lean. This breakdown covers 4 techniques (1 sound, 1 narrative and 2 cinematography), each with the scene where you can see it. If you like how it is made, In the Mood for Love uses several of the same techniques.
Repeating a short piece of music or a sound every time a certain character, idea or feeling comes up. You learn to connect the 2.
How this film uses it
Maurice Jarre's Lara's Theme returns whenever Lara and Yuri's love comes up. Each time, the balalaika-flavored tune carries more longing. By the end, you hear her in the music even when she is not on screen.
Where to see it
The ending. Lara's theme lingers as the general sees the girl with a balalaika.
Building a love story around 3 people, where each pair has its own relationship and the third person always gets in the way. Your sympathy shifts because each of them has a fair claim.
How this film uses it
Yuri loves his wife Tonya and also loves Lara. Lara has Pasha and Komarovsky pulling at her. Each pair has a fair claim, and your sympathy keeps shifting.
Where to see it
Varykino. Yuri and Lara hide in the main house, and Komarovsky arrives to offer them an escape.
Building a set so complete, with its own weather, crowds, architecture and social rules, that it feels lived in. It reads as real until one deliberate slip shows that it was built.
How this film uses it
The Moscow set was built from scratch outside Madrid, and the film was shot mostly in Spain. The streets and crowds feel complete. You believe you are in Russia.
Where to see it
The Moscow scenes. The revolution reaches the city and reshapes the lives of Yuri's family.
Letting rain, storms, sunshine or changing scenery reflect what characters feel, often breaking at the story's peak. The environment says what the characters cannot.
How this film uses it
Winter takes over the film as the revolution and the war worsen. The ice at Varykino shows the cold the characters feel. The frozen house becomes a place where love and danger meet.
Where to see it
The frozen house at Varykino. Yuri and Lara hide in the ice-covered house, where he writes poems for her.
Questions
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