Beloe solntse pustyni / White Sun of the Desert

One of the most popular films in the Soviet Union and Russia, White Sun of the Desert portrays the Russian Civil War (1917-1922) in the style of a classic American western. Fyodor Sukhov (Anatoly Kuznetsov), a Red Army soldier on his way home, wanders in Central Asia and is caught up in a desert fight between a Red Army cavalry unit and Basmachi guerrillas. The cavalry unit commander, Rakhimov, leaves to Sukhov the harem, which was abandoned by the Basmachi leader Abdullah, for temporary protection. Sukhov attempts to modernize the harem and protect the women from their vengeful former owner as they make their way across the desert landscape to the Caspian Sea. Since its release, the film has received wide acclaim and high domestic ratings.