Tempest (1958): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1958, Tempest is an adventure and history film directed by Alberto Lattuada, running about 120 minutes. “Overwhelming as the Elements!” — that tagline sets the tone.

What it’s about. A young officer in the army of Empress Catherine of Russia is on his way to his new duty station at a remote outpost. During a blinding snowstorm he comes upon a stranger who was caught in the storm and is near death from freezing. He rescues the man and eventually brings him back to health. When the man is well enough to travel, the two part company and the man vows to repay the officer for saving his life. Soon after he arrives at his new post, a revolt by the local Cossacks breaks out and the fort is besieged by the rebels. The young officer is astonished to find out that the leader of the rebellious Cossacks is none other than the stranger whose life he had saved during the storm.

Who’s in it. Tempest stars Silvana Mangano as Masha, Van Heflin as Emelyan Pugachov, Viveca Lindfors as Catherine II and Geoffrey Horne as Piotr Grinov, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 5.2/10, Tempest has proved divisive with audiences.

Where to watch. In US you can rent or buy it from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies and YouTube. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Tempest page.

If you liked it. Fans of Tempest tend to enjoy The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Inception, Interstellar and The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.