A battle of wills develops between two Russian revolutionaries, one of whom wants to destroy everything connected with the old order, and the other of whom wants to accomplish his goals with as little bloodshed as possible.
Bavu, an illiterate, uncouth brute, rises to power during the Russian Revolution, plots to wreak vengeance on all who cross him, and incites the peasantry to burn the city. Mischa Vleck, on the other hand, is a more humane official who decides to protect Princess Annia, whom he loves and whose house he once served. Mischa tries to trick Bavu into signing papers permitting Annia and him to marry and leave the country, but Bavu's faithful Olga reveals their contents. Mischa and Bavu fight, and Bavu seals a passage in which he believes Mischa to be hiding. To his horror, Bavu too late realizes that he has trapped Olga, while Mischa and Annia have escaped.—AFI
A battle of wills develops between two Russian revolutionaries, one of whom wants to destroy everything connected with the old order, and the other of whom wants to accomplish his goals with as little bloodshed as possible.—[email protected]
During the Russian Revolution, Felix Bavu, an illiterate peasant, is carried into political power, along with Mischa Vleck, an educated and idealist peasant. When the council meets to determine the means of raising funds to operate the new government, Bavu proposes taking money by bloodshed and pillage, while Mischa is for levying taxes on the wealthy nobility. The council decides in favor of Mischa's plan. Bavu returns to his home, where he is taunted by his sweetheart, Olga Stropik, who had plotted with him. Enraged, Bavu inflames a mob to burn and pillage. When Mischa sees the mob, he rushes to the home of Prince Markoff, who was the reigning power in the community, in order to save the prince's daughter, Annia, with whom he is in love. Mischa takes Annia to his home. But Markoff refuses to be saved and is taken prisoner. Bavu, taking his plunder to his attic, plans a way to escape to neutral territory. He has a secret vault in the wall of his attic, where he can hide his treasure, and return to it when all is quiet. Bavu then goes to Mischa, who is commissioner of licenses, and asks for passports and a license to wed Olga. Bavu discovers Annia is staying with Mischa, and forces Mischa to issue the permits. Mischa then takes Annia with him to Bavu's attic, where he tells Bavu that he, Bavu, must marry Annia and take her to safety. Bavu agrees to the plan, and possesses the ring which is used to seal official documents. But Olga, who has overheard, refuses to give up the ring which is necessary to make the license valid. Bavu orders her from the house. Olga reads the license before going, and finds that it has been made out to Mischa and Annia. Knowing that Bavu can neither read nor write, Mischa has pretended the permit was for Bavu so he could get the seal for the document. Olga tells Bavu, who rushes after Mischa. But by this time, Mischa has disappeared. Thinking Mischa is in a clothes basket, Bavu runs his sword through it, but finds the basket is empty. Then, believing Mischa has hidden in the vault, he orders his servants to wall it up. Annia, not knowing where Mischa has gone, and hearing some pounding on the wall of the vault, thinks he is in there and pleads with Bavu to let him out. Bavu laughs at her, and she faints as the vault is sealed. Bavu prepares to leave and goes for Olga to tell her to get ready. While he is gone, Annia awakens and desperately tears at the vault, dislodging some of the stones. Bavu returns and grabs Annia in his arms, derisively telling Mischa to look. Suddenly, Mischa jumps from the rafters above them and the two battle with swords. As Mischa finally beats Bavu, a hand is seen protruding from the hole in the vault wall. To his horror, Bavu realizes he has walled up Olga, who is dead. After a pursuit in the snow, Bavu is killed.
