Doctor Zhivago

1965 · directed by David Lean · 200 min

26,549 feet · Prominence

155th of 24,106 films scored

Not coveredThe 155th highest film on the mountain, and The Rewatchables has never done it.

How this film scores

Draw81

Lifetime worldwide gross $112m, re-releases included; about $1.17bn in 2026 money.

Rank128 of 11,051In 19653 of 33

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise87

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics75 baseAwards97 signal → +12 lift

Oscars5 won Adapted Screenplay, Costume Design, Production Design, Original Score, Color5 nominated Picture, Director, Supporting Actor, Film Editing, Sound

Golden Globes5 won Motion Picture, Director, Actor, Screenplay, Original Score

BAFTAs2 nominated Best Picture, Lead acting

How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy72

Judged directly: Doctor Zhivago reviewed.

Verdict72 of 100IMDb7.9 from 87kWikipedia55k views a monthAge61 years

On the listsAFI 100evidence, not an input to the score

Scored beside it · 229 of 4,039 films judged

72Spider-Man 2 (2004)

72La La Land (2016)

72Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

72Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)

72Shrek 2 (2004)

72The Departed (2006)

72Doctor Zhivago (1965)

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 81 praise 87 legacy 72averages 80, placing it at26,549 ft

How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

Whose apex this is

▲ Omar Sharif

In these careers — elevation for this film

Omar Sharif20,822 ft Julie Christie20,021 ft Rod Steiger19,278 ft Tom Courtenay18,803 ft Geraldine Chaplin18,502 ft Alec Guinness18,455 ft Ralph Richardson18,096 ft Klaus Kinski17,656 ft