I preferred this to the 1965 film, possibly because of the greater time period since reading the book and possibly because it was Masterpiece Theater not Hollywood and probably because four hours gave it a better chance to be true to the book and realistic acting styles have improved since 1965. The acting was excellent and the story is a classic but I was a little put off with the language; accents included British, Russian and American and, while the central characters spoke English, the background chatter was in Russian, giving the impression that early twentieth century Russia was as Cosmopolitan as Toronto is today.
The film realistically portrays how it is possible for a loving, devoted husband to fall in love with someone else when he is separated from his wife for a long time, knows that he may never see his wife again and is working closely with another, very attractive female. Past films have portrayed this problem, including M*A*S*H in a humorous manner and The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, a serious study. Doctor Zhivago (2002) was the most convincing. It provided a gripping four hours but I will not seek it out again.
The film realistically portrays how it is possible for a loving, devoted husband to fall in love with someone else when he is separated from his wife for a long time, knows that he may never see his wife again and is working closely with another, very attractive female. Past films have portrayed this problem, including M*A*S*H in a humorous manner and The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, a serious study. Doctor Zhivago (2002) was the most convincing. It provided a gripping four hours but I will not seek it out again.