Storm Over Asia
In 1918 a young and simple Mongol herdsman and trapper is cheated out of a valuable fox fur by a European capitalist fur trader. Ostracized from the trading post, he escapes to the hills after brawling with the trader who cheated him. In 1920 he becomes a Soviet partisan, and helps the partisans fight for the Soviets against the occupying British army. However he is captured by the British when they try to requisition cattle from the herdsmen at the same time as the commandant meets with a reincarnated Grand Lama. After the trapper is shot, the army discovers an amulet that suggests he is a direct descendant of Genghis Khan. They find him still alive, so the army restores his health and plans to use him as the head of a puppet regime. The trapper is thus thrust into prominence as he is placed in charge of the puppet government. By the end, however, the "puppet" turns against his masters in an outburst of fury.
From the archive
I've been researching newly public domain films from 1929 and earlier, so I'm uploading the best possible copies that I can find. This Soviet propaganda film is notable not only for brisk and exciting camerawork, but also for having an Asian lead and starring many Asian actors in a time when this was exceedingly rare in Western film. The fictional storyline follows a descendant of Ghengis Khan who repeatedly comes into negative contact with the occupying British army. Eventually, when his heritage is discovered, the occupiers intend to use him to set up a puppet regime under their control, with surprising results.
Why this is free to watch
Storm Over Asia (1928) is hosted by the Internet Archive as a public-domain or openly licensed work, which means its copyright has expired, lapsed, or was released by the rights holder. The uploader declared an explicit licence, linked in the source panel. Nitrate streams the file directly from the Archive and hosts no video itself.
- Director
- Vsevolod Pudovkin
- Starring
- Valéry Inkijinoff, A. Dedintsev, Aleksandr Chistyakov, Anel Sudakevich, Boris Barnet, Karl Gurnyak, Vladimir Tsoppi, L. Belinskaïa
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