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.

 

On the Waterfront released 50 years ago today

On the Waterfront Released: July 28, 1954 Studio: Columbia Genre: crime drama/thriller Box Office (numbers in millions): Domestic: 9.60 Worldwide: ? Adjusted for Inflation: Domestic: 219.90 Worldwide: ?

Directing: Elia Kazan Screenwriting: Budd Schulberg Starring: Marlon Brando, Eva Marie Saint, Lee J. Cobb, Karl Malden, Rod Steiger Review: “Budd Schulberg’s unflinching account of N.Y.C. harbor unions (suggested by articles by Malcolm Johnson)” LM is a “powerful, gripping drama” VD “that mirrors the political climate of the early 1950s.” A07 “The theatrical trailer promised ‘a story that’s as warm and moving as Going My Way (but with brass knuckles!)’ – as good a description as any for this Oscar-winning morality tale. The characters struggling with pier pressure include an ex-boxer with a soft spot for pigeons, a luscious nun-in-training and a priest with a mean punch.” TV “Winner of eight Oscars…Leonard Bernstein’s music is another major asset. Film debuts of Saint, Martin Balsam, Fred Gwynne, and Pat Hingle.” LM In one of “his most famous performances” VD as a “longshoreman who ‘coulda been a contender,” A07 Marlon Brando is “inarticulate ex-boxer champ Terry Malloy.” FS He “witnesses the murder of a fellow dock worker, a victim of gangster union boss Cobb’s oppressive hold over the longshoremen – punished for ‘singing’ to an investigation commission. When Terry begins to fall in love with shy and frail Edie (Saint), the dead man’s sister, his allegiances are challenged.” FS He rebels against his brother Charlie (Steiger), a corrupt mob lawyer, and his world of “union violence, greed, and deceit.” VD “After his brother’s murder, he defiantly stands up against the hoodlums on the waterfront.” FS “Movie mogul Darryl F. Zanuck passed on the script for Twentieth Century-Fox, believing no one would ‘care about a bunch of sweaty longshoremen.’ Elia Kazan and screenwriter Budd Schulberg went to Columbia Pictures. Even then the script went through many drafts, including character Terry Malloy as an investigative reporter before becoming the iconic sweaty longshoreman.” MSN Sources: A07 American Film Institute (2007). “AFI’s 100 Years…100 Movies – 10th Anniversary Edition” FS Filmsite.org “100 Greatest Films” LM Leonard Maltin “100 Must-See Films of the 20th Century” MSN MSN Entertainment (7/19/2018). “100 Best Movies” by Shahnaz Mahmud TV TV Guide (August 8-14, 1998 issue). “50 Greatest Movies on TV and Video” VD Video Detective (1997). “Top 100 Films of All Time”

Awards/Honors/Lists: Dave’s Movie Database Lists: Awards: Oscars: Wins: 8 – including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Brando), Supporting Actress (Saint), Best Story and Screenplay Nominations: 12, including Best Supporting Actor (Cobb), Best Supporting Actor (Steiger), Best Supporting Actor (Malden) Other Lists/Honors: Critics’ Picks: Roger Ebert Leslie Halliwell/John Walker Leonard Maltin First posted 8/24/2019; last updated 6/2/2023.