← Back to Directory
The White Sun of the Desert
Movie

The White Sun of the Desert

1969 • Unknown

Woke Score
2
out of 10

Plot

The setting is the east shore of the Caspian Sea (today's Turkmenistan) where the Red Army soldier Fyodor Sukhov has been fighting the Civil War in Russian Asia for a number of years. After being hospitalised and then demobbed, he sets off home to join his wife, only to be caught up in a desert fight between a Red Army cavalry unit and Basmachi guerrillas. The cavalry unit commander, Rahimov, "convinces" Sukhov to help, temporarily, with the protection of abandoned women of the Basmachi guerrilla leader Abdullah's harem. Leaving a young Red Army soldier, Petrukha, to assist Sukhov with the task, Rahimov and his cavalry unit set out to pursue fleeing Abdullah.Sukhov and women from Abdullah's harem return to a nearby shore town. Soon, looking for a seaway across the border, Abdullah and his gang come to the same town...

Overall Series Review

The film follows Red Army soldier Fyodor Sukhov, who, after being demobilized, is tasked with guarding the large harem of a defeated Central Asian Basmachi bandit leader, Abdullah. Sukhov must protect the nine wives from Abdullah and his gang, who are trying to flee the country. The movie is an 'Ostern'—a Soviet Western—that blends action, comedy, and drama, focusing heavily on a culture clash. Sukhov, a Russian hero, embodies duty, loyalty, and a deep yearning to return to his beloved wife and home, a core motivation for his survival. The narrative positions the progressive ideals of the Soviet/Russian perspective against the brutal, feudal patriarchy represented by the bandit leader and his practices. It features strong, competent male heroes, including the silent, vengeful Central Asian ally Sayid, who fight against clear villainy.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics2/10

The core of the plot is a clear 'White Savior' narrative where the Russian Red Army soldier Sukhov is the competent, moral agent of change against the Central Asian bandit Abdullah. The film promotes an ideological and cultural hierarchy where the Russian/Soviet civilizing force is superior to the patriarchal local customs. The white male protagonist is depicted as heroic and highly competent, which is the reverse of modern vilification.

Oikophobia1/10

The protagonist, Sukhov, is constantly motivated by his powerful desire to return home to his Russian countryside and his wife, Katerina Matveyevna. The film frames the Soviet (Russian-led) system as the progressive, modernizing, and therefore superior civilization, which stands in direct contrast to self-hatred. Institutions like the family and the state (Red Army) are sources of purpose and strength.

Feminism1/10

The narrative is centered on a strong, protective male figure, Sukhov, who is attempting to liberate a group of women from the institution of a harem and polygamy. The hero's personal life is anchored in his loving, monogamous marriage, and his wife is idealized in his daydreams. Men are protective and resourceful, and the female characters are objects of rescue and are not depicted as 'Girl Boss' figures or Mary Sues.

LGBTQ+1/10

The story adheres strictly to normative structures, centering on traditional male-female pairing in the hero’s motivation (Sukhov and his wife) and focusing on the conflict around polygamy. There is no presence of alternative sexualities, gender ideology, or deconstruction of the nuclear family as a societal element.

Anti-Theism3/10

As a product of the Soviet era, the film operates within an officially secular and anti-religious state-ideology framework. The 'progressive Communist ideals' are implicitly anti-theistic as they clash with Central Asian 'mores.' However, the hero’s actions are driven by objective concepts of honor, duty, and love—a transcendent moral code separate from political slogans—rather than overt vilification of faith or embrace of moral relativism.