''Dubrowsky'' ( it, Il vendicatore) is a 1959 Italian - Yugoslav

historical drama A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romance film, romances, adventure f ...

film directed by

William Dieterle William Dieterle (July 15, 1893 – December 9, 1972) was a German-born actor and film director who emigrated to the United States in 1930 to leave a worsening political situation. He worked in Hollywood primarily as a director for much of his ...

. It is based on the posthumously published 1841 novel '' Dubrovsky'' by

Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...

Plot

Russia in 1831: two families, the Dubrowskys and the Petrovichs, have been at loggerheads with each other ever since the nouveau riche Kirila Petrovich once deprived old Dubrowsky of large parts of his property. Dubrowsky's son Vladimir, called Wladja, does not want to submit to this fraud and fights for his rights with all means, especially since he accuses Petrovich of being complicit in his father's death. Eventually he puts himself at the head of other betrayed, especially peasants, who have also been harmed, and the generally disenfranchised. The young Dubrowsky has to realize how much the people are starving and suffering under the bondage of serfdom and sets himself up as the avenger of the dispossessed by taking it from the rich and giving it to the poor, in the tradition of Robin Hood. In the fight against Petrovich's reign of terror of money, Vladja's love intervenes one day, because the beautiful Masha is, of all people, the daughter of his worst adversary, the landowner Kirila.

Cast

John Forsythe John Forsythe (January 29, 1918 – April 1, 2010) was an American stage, film/television actor, producer, narrator, drama teacher and philanthropist whose career spanned six decades. He also appeared as a guest on several talk and variety s ...

as Vladja Dubrowski * Rosanna Schiaffino as Masha Petrovieh * Paul Dahlke as Kirila Petrovich *