Review of The White Sun of the Desert (1969) by Jens T — 12 Dec 2012

What most people doesn't know is that in the Soviet Union and the east-block countries, western films was also popular. Not the western set in the american wild west, but a sub-genre known as "Red western" or "Revolutionary western", or "Osterns" to be more specific. This genre mostly takes place on the Central Asian steppes, during the Russian civil war, between red and white forces, where the focus is mainly set on the red ones. And therefor "Red Westerns". It has many of the same elements as an american western. Like: good vs. evil, lawlessness, and a lot of desert.

One of the most famous of them all is Vladimir Motyl's "The White Sun of the Desert", in which we follow the red army soldier, Sukhov, who's after years of fighting finally can go home to his wife, Katerina. But while he wanders through the deserts of Turkmenistan, he's being stopped by a red army platoon who's chasing after the war lord, Abdullah, who works for the white army. But the reds have manage to liberate his twelve wives. But they can't bring them along, so they ask Sukhov to escort the twelve wives to the nearest village, where they can hide. But Abdullah has men everywhere.

Although White Sun of the Desert isn't so well known internationally, it's actually one of the most popular Russian films of all time. It was a successful hit, that nobody expected. It has it's own cult status. Some of the quotes have even written itself into the Russian vocabulary, like "The East is a delicate matter" or "His grenades are of a wrong caliber". In other words, White Sun of the Desert is like an eastern "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly". It's also become a tradition for every cosmonaut to watch this film before every space launches, to bring good luck.

White Sun of the Desert is a wonderful combination of comedy, action and drama, with a lot of good action scenes, where Sukhov is often up against three men or more, and seems to always get out of that knot, easily. There's even some comic relief with Abdullah's twelve wives, who's wears burqas, and whom Sukhov constantly have to remind are free from the burdens of polygamy. Some comic relief does also the former czar officer Vereschagin give us, with his drinking and singing, longing back to the czarist era. But in this case I have to agree with the critics, that this film is in fact just another action, adventure escapist film, and it's suppose to be. But for me it isn't outstanding, or it's me who thought it was gonna be another Tarkovsky flick. But it's entertaining enough. Thumbs up.