The Pawnbroker
by Sidney Lumet
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Actor: Brock Peters, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Jaime Sánchez, Rod Steiger, Thelma OliverDirector: Sidney Lumet
Brand: Lions Gate
Producer: Joseph Manduke
Producer: Philip Langner
Producer: Roger Lewis
Producer: Worthington Miner
Writer: David Friedkin
Writer: Edward Lewis Wallant
Writer: Morton S. Fine
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); German (Original Language); Spanish (Original Language)
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 116 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-12-16
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Republic Pictures
DVD Reviews of The Pawnbroker
DVD Review: I Did Not Die......
Summary: 5 Stars
This devastating film about a holocaust survivor living (or rather existing) in Spanish Harlem NY, was an important, controversial and courageous exercise in 1965, and it retains its power all these years later. With what is without doubt Rod Steiger's finest performance, this study of a man haunted by his memories, and so traumatized by survivor's guilt and grief that he has numbed his emotions beyond human touch, and isolated himself completely from the humanity surrounding him, might even stun and disturb today's cynical sophisticates.
The only thing Sol Nazerman, the Pawnbroker, hasn't lost is his life. Everything he loved has been taken from him, and the wall he has erected to separate himself from his pain has likewise enured him to any human emotion, even pity and compassion for the human flotsam that daily appears before him with their pathetic possessions to pawn. He has no longer the ability to love, hate, desire or despair. He simply transacts, without care or consideration. Rod Steiger could be a bombastic and over-the-top actor, so his restrained, thoughtful, carefully modulated performance here is a revelation and an acting masterpiece.
Filmed with gritty realism on location in black and white (absolutely correct for this piece), it is a very adult, mature, and somber work. It was controversial in its time for nudity and because the gangster that uses Nazerman's pawnshop to launder money is black. That, and an unflinching look at the Spanish Harlem of junkies, prostitutes and so on. Today, all of this seems completely appropriate.
The supporting cast led by Jaime Sanchez as the assistant, Geraldine Fitzgerald as the kind and lonely social worker & Brock Peters as the malevolent entrepeneur, the ruthless gangster with a taste for refinement,are excellent. There are nice bits by Jauno Hernandez, Rene Santoni, and others as the Pawnbroker's customers.
Sidney Lumet provides his customary skill and precision in direction, not to mention bringing out Steiger's tremendous performance. The editing by Ralph Rosenblum intercuts Nazerman's terrible memories in flashback with his present surroundings brilliantly. Quincy Jones's score works nicely.
But the show is Steiger. His lesson to Sanchez on the "mercantile heritage" of the Jew is a classic scene. And the careful buildup to the shattering climax of the piece, as Nazerman becomes increasingly overwhelmed with the images of his lost family and the wreckage of his past that culminates in his crashing breakthrough into the present and the onslaught of his emotions will not be forgotten by anyone loving great acting and filmmaking.
This is not an easy film. It does not sell out its story cheaply to any kind of audience-friendly ending. This is modern tragedy, done with care and guts, and well worthwhile for those who treasure that.
Footnote: And they gave the Oscar to Lee Marvin for Cat Ballou. Nuff said.
Description of The Pawnbroker
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