Thursday, December 31, 2015

50 years ago: Doctor Zhivago, another epic from director David Lean, released

Doctor Zhivago

Released: December 31, 1965

Studio: MGM

Genre: epic/romance

Box Office (numbers in millions):

Domestic: 111.72 Worldwide: ?

Adjusted for Inflation:

Domestic: 1217.89 Worldwide: 2526.00

Directing: David Lean

Screenwriting: Robert Bolt

Starring: Omar Sharif, Julie Christie, Tom Courtenay, Rod Steiger, Geraldine Chaplin

Review:

Director David Lean, who’d already helmed The Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia, delivers yet another “sprawling, visually stunning epic.” ^BFI Doctor Zhivago, based on Boris Pasternak’s novel, is set in Russia during World War I and the Bolshevik Revolution. “Its stunning set-pieces include the huge crowd scenes in Moscow, the train sequences and the beautiful snowy vistas.” ^BFI

It tells the story of the titular character (Sharif) and how, although married (to Chaplin), falls for Lara (Christie). She “inspire[s] him to write beautiful love poems that contrast with the stark realities of life in Russia after the 1917 Communist Revolution.” ^A98

The movie is also “memorable for its haunting music score and stunning cinematography. Lean collaborated with cinematographer Freddie Young for the second time.” ^A07

Sources:

^A98 American Film Institute (1998). “AFI’s 100 Years, 100 Movies”
^A07 American Film Institute (2007). “AFI’s 100 Years…100 Movies – 10th Anniversary Edition”
^BFI British Film Institute (1999) “The BFI 100: A Selection of the Favourite British Films of the 20th Century”

Awards/Honors/Lists:

Dave’s Movie Database Lists:

Dave’s Movie Database Genre Lists:

Box Office:

Awards:

Oscars:

Wins: 5 – Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Art/Set Decoration, Best Costume Design, Best Original Music Score

Nominations: 5 – including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Tom Courtenay), Best Sound, Best Film Editing

Other Lists/Honors:

First posted 5/30/2023.

Monday, July 20, 2015

BBC: Top 100 Movies

BBC:

Top 100 Movies

These are the top 100 movies according to the British BBC News, as determined by aggregating five different lists. See the details and links at the bottom of the page.

1. The Godfather (1972)
2. Pulp Fiction (1994)
3. Casablanca (1942)
4. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
5. Citizen Kane (1941)
6. Back to the Future (1985)
7. Forrest Gump (1994)
8. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
9. Taxi Driver (1976)
10. The Searchers (1956)

11. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
12. Star Wars – Episode IV: A New Hope (1977)
13. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
14. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
15. Goodfellas (1990)
16. Some Like It Hot (1959)
17. Psycho (1960)
18. Schindler’s List (1993)
19. Jaws (1975)
20. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

21. Star Wars – Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
22. Gone with the Wind (1939)
23. Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
24. The Godfather Part II (1974)
25. Die Hard (1988)
26. Apocalypse Now (1979)
27. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
28. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
29. Raging Bull (1980)
30. Vertigo (1958)

31. The Graduate (1967)
32. Brief Encounter (1946)
33. West Side Story (1961)
34. Blade Runner (1982)
35. Titanic (1997)
36. Braveheart (1995)
37. Saving Private Ryan (1998)
38. Toy Story (1995)
39. The Great Escape (1963)
40. Aliens (1986)

41. Ben-Hur (1959)
42. The Sound of Music (1965)
43. Star Wars – Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983)
44. Alien (1979)
45. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
46. Trainspotting (1996)
47. The Third Man (1949)
48. Jurassic Park (1993)
49. The Usual Suspects (1995)
50. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

51. Ghost (1990)
52. Doctor Zhivago (1965)
53. Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979)
54. The Shining (1980)
55. The Dark Knight (2008)
56. The Terminator (1984)
57. North by Northwest (1959)
58. Se7en (Seven) (1995)
59. Annie Hall (1977)
60. L.A. Confidential (1997)

61. Do the Right Thing (1969)
62. The Italian Job (1969)
63. Scream (1996)
64. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
65. Dances with Wolves (1990)
66. Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)
67. Cinema Paradiso (Nuovo Cinema Paradiso) (1988)
68. Highlander (1986)
69. Thelma & Louise (1991)
70. 12 Monkeys (1995)

71. Reservoir Dogs (1992)
72. The Deer Hunter (1978)
73. The English Patient (1996)
74. The Fifth Element (1997)
75. Shakespeare in Love (1998)
76. The Lion King (1994)
77. The Exorcist (1973)
78. Brazil (1985)
79. The Blues Brothers (1980)
80. Blue Velvet (1986)

81. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
82. The Magnificent Seven (1960)
83. My Fair Lady (1964)
84. Stagecoach (1939)
85. Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
86. Bringing Up Baby (1938)
87. The Maltese Falcon (1941)
88. The Night of the Hunter (1955)
89. Shaun of the Dead (2004)
90. Star Wars – Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)

91. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)
92. Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
93. Inception (2010)
94. The Full Monty (1997)
95. Fight Club (1999)
96. The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)
97. Chinatown (1974)
98. The Big Lebowski (1998)
99. Grease (1978)
100. Nashville (1975)

Resources:

Dave’s Movie Database: Movie Lists
BBC (7/20/2015). “The 100 Greatest American Films”
BBC Radio (2011). “Favourite Movies”
BBC (2009?). “Top 100 Movie List”
BBC (12/8/1999). “The Film 99 top 100” (chosen by Film 99 viewers)
BBC (7/11/1999). “Star Wars hailed best film” (determined by fans)

Originally posted 5/26/2025.

Wednesday, April 1, 2015

The Sound of Music released 50 years ago today

The Sound of Music

Released: April 1, 1965

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Genre: musical/romance

Box Office (numbers in millions):

Domestic: 163.21 Worldwide: ?

Adjusted for Inflation:

Domestic: 1397.92 Worldwide: 2884.00

Directing: Robert Wise

Screenwriting: Ernest Lehman

Starring: Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Eleanor Parker, Peggy Wood

Review:

Music, comedy, romance, and drama “are woven perfectly into this beautiful film” ^VD “adaptation of the Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway musical,” ^A7 which, in turn, was based on the true story of the von Trapp family. Maria (Andrews) is a restless nun prone to daydreaming and, as seen in the memorable opening, roaming the hills and belting out the title song.

When it becomes clear the Abbey isn’t for her, she’s assigned as the governess to the von Trapp family. The seven children, ages 5 to 16, “have a well-deserved reputation for scaring off caretakers, but Maria wins them over” ^FS with their shared love of music through songs like “Do-Re-Mi” and “My Favorite Things,” which became iconic because of the movie.

It takes a bit more effort, but she also warms the heart of their stern, widowed father, Captain von Trapp (Plummer). Their blossoming romance, however, is overshadowed by the impending threat of Nazi occupation in their native Austria. Maria and the von Trapps have to find a way to escape before their country is invaded.