''Eliso'' is a 1928 Soviet silent

adventure film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, an ...

directed by

Nikoloz Shengelaia Nikoloz Shengelaia ( ka, ნიკოლოზ შენგელაია, russian: Николай Михайлович Шенгелая; Obudzhi, Tsalenjikha District – Tbilisi, 4 January 1943) was a Soviet Georgian film director. Nikoloz Sh ...

and loosely based on the short story by

Alexander Kazbegi Alexander Kazbegi ( ka, ალექსანდრე ყაზბეგი, ) (1848–1893) was a Georgian writer, famous for his 1883 novel ''The Patricide''. Early life Kazbegi was born in Stepantsminda the great grandson of Kazibek Chop ...

. It was made in the

Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic The Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic (Georgian SSR; ka, საქართველოს საბჭოთა სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკა, tr; russian: Грузинская Советская Соц� ...

. It was released in the United States in 1929 by

Amkino Nicola Napoli, was the President of Artkino Pictures, Inc., the primary distributor of Soviet films in the United States, Canada, Central America and South America from 1940 to 1982. Napoli was a double agent Soviet Spy for the United States. In 19 ...

under the

alternative title An alternative title is a media sales device most prominently used in film distribution. Books and films are commonly released under a different title when they are screened or sold in a different country. This can vary from small change to the t ...

of ''Caucasian Love''.

Plot

The film is set in the 19th century. To consolidate its power in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

region, the Russian government intends to evict the

Chechens The Chechens (; ce, Нохчий, , Old Chechen: Нахчой, ''Naxçoy''), historically also known as ''Kisti'' and ''Durdzuks'', are a Northeast Caucasian ethnic group of the Nakh peoples native to the North Caucasus in Eastern Europe. "Europ ...

from the

Russian empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

. A

cossack The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

Ataman Ataman (variants: ''otaman'', ''wataman'', ''vataman''; Russian: атаман, uk, отаман) was a title of Cossack and haidamak leaders of various kinds. In the Russian Empire, the term was the official title of the supreme military comman ...

fraudulently obtains signatures from illiterate residents for a petition which calls for resettlement to

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, by disguising it as a request for permission to stay on their land to the governor-general of Muslims of the Verdi mountain

aul An aul (; ce, oil; russian: аул) is a type of fortified village or town found throughout the Caucasus mountains and Soviet Central Asia, Central Asia. The word itself is of Turkic origin and simply means ''village'' in many Turkic language ...

. The daughter of the village elders, Eliso falls in love with

Khevsurian Khevsurians ( ka, ხევსურები) are an ethnic sub-group of Georgians, mainly living in Khevsureti, on both sides of the Caucasus Mountain Chain in the watersheds of the rivers Aragvi and Argun. There are some villages in Khevi, E ...

Vajia, who is a Christian. He is seeking the abolition of the decree to expel Chechens, but his heroic efforts to save the village are futile. Residents have already been banished from their homes and leave the village. Vajia as a

kafir Kafir ( ar, كافر '; plural ', ' or '; feminine '; feminine plural ' or ') is an Arabic and Islamic term which, in the Islamic tradition, refers to a person who disbelieves in God as per Islam, or denies his authority, or rejects ...

has no right to leave with them out of their homes. Eliso can not accept the fate of an outlaw, she sneaks at night into the village, which is already inhabited by the Cossacks, and sets fire to it.

Cast

Aleksandre Imedashvili Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

as Astamur * Kokhta Karalashvili as Vajia *

Kira Andronikashvili Kira may refer to: People * Kira clan, a Japanese clan, descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) * Kira (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Kira Chikazane (1563–1588), Japanese retainer * Kira (German singer) (Janine ...

as Eliso * I. Mamporya as Seidulla * Tsetsilia Tsutsunava as Zazubika *

Aleksandre Jorjoliani Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

as General * K. Gurianov as Billeting officer * I. Galkin as Village constable *

Marika Chimishkian Marika is a feminine given name of Polish, Greek, and Japanese origin. It has its origin in the Hungarian and Greek nickname for Maria, or its Silesian diminutive "Maryjka". Marieke is the Dutch and Flemish equivalent. Marika is also a Fijian gi ...

as Muslimati

Reception

Sergei Eisenstein Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein (russian: Сергей Михайлович Эйзенштейн, p=sʲɪrˈɡʲej mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ ɪjzʲɪnˈʂtʲejn, 2=Sergey Mikhaylovich Eyzenshteyn; 11 February 1948) was a Soviet film director, screenw ...

expressed to

Ivor Montagu Ivor Goldsmid Samuel Montagu (23 April 1904, in Kensington, London – 5 November 1984, in Watford) was an English filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, film critic, writer, table tennis player, and Communist activist in the 1930s. He helped to de ...

that there were only two good portrayals of the

lezginka The Lezginka ( lez, Лезги кьуьл; russian: Лезгинка; Tat: ''Ləzgihəngi''; az, Ləzginka or ) is the collective name originally given by Russians to all Caucasian dances united by fast rhythm. It can be solo male or pair danc ...

in film, and that Shengelaya's in Eliso was better than in '' October: Ten Days That Shook the World'', the film he directed.

References

Bibliography

* Christie, Ian & Taylor, Richard. ''The Film Factory: Russian and Soviet Cinema in Documents 1896-1939''. Routledge, 2012.

External links

* 1928 films Soviet silent feature films Soviet adventure drama films Georgian-language films Silent films from Georgia (country) Soviet black-and-white films 1920s adventure drama films 1928 drama films Black-and-white films from Georgia (country) Adventure drama films from Georgia (country) Silent drama films Silent adventure films Soviet-era films from Georgia (country) {{1920s-USSR-film-stub