A Cossack dance was seen in the bar at the Fourcroft Hotel on Monday, December 17, as people gathered to see 'Dr. Zhivago'.

The original 1965 version by David Lean was shown, which won five Academy awards. It was visually stunning, showing the wide landscapes of Russia (even though it was shot in Spain) to good effect.

The film was over three hours long, so an interval was planned, though everyone was taken by surprise when an intermission appeared on the screen!

The doomed love affair of Lara (Julie Christie) and Yuri Zhivago (Omar Sharif) is set during the First World War, the Russian Revolution and Civil War, and is told through General Yevgraf Zhivago (Alec Guinness) telling the story of her parents to his niece (Rita Tushingham). Lara has relationships with Pasha Antipov (Tom Courtenay), a young idealistic revolutionary, Victor Komarovsky (Rod Steiger), a businessman who seduces Lara, and with Yuri Zhivago, an idealist, doctor and poet, each from a different aspect of revolutionary Russia.

There are no happy endings, as all of their lives are thrown into turmoil by the revolution. The book this film is based on was banned in Russia, and it is easy to see why - it may not be an accurate picture of the revolution, but it is certainly not sympathetic to it.

A marvellous evening's entertainment.

The next film will be on Monday, January 7, at 8 pm, at the Fourcroft Hotel, and will be 'Black Swan'.