It's good to see The Pawnbroker finally getting the blu-ray treatment, and I think Olive has done a great job in the transfers I've seen. I actually wrote an analysis of this film back in college. If anyone's interested in being bored to tears, I'll include it below. Warning, spoilers.
[Show spoiler]The Pawnbroker
Sidney Lumet’s portrait of a Holocaust survivor who runs a Harlem pawn shop is a stylistic exercise in film editing. As engrossing as the subject of the film is, the content is frequently upstaged by overly artistic jump and flash cutting as well as a hip Quincy Jones-produced jazz score. The film’s narrative does not match well with its Resnais-esque French new wave production style. The substance that is here is powerful and could stand on its own, but alas, it is upstaged.
Rod Steiger, in a staggering performance, stars as Auschwitz survivor Sol Lazerman. He is a man so emotionally crippled that he is incapable of feeling. He regards all humans as scum and is close to no one. He claims that the only things he believes in are money and the absolutism of the speed of light. He operates a small pawn shop in the heart of Harlem which is actually a front for the money laundering of an illegal prostitution ring run by Rodriguez (played by Brock Peters in a sinister yet controlled performance). Sol, however, prefers to remain in the dark regarding this detail, that way he can maintain his moral superiority over the “scum.”
Sol lost his wife and children during the Holocaust. He now has a relationship with Tessie (Marketa Kimbrell) who is the widow of one of Sol’s fellow prisoners in Auschwitz. Sol spends most of his evenings at Tessie’s house and we learn that he is financially responsible for her and her dying father Mendel (Baruch Lumet). Sol and Tessie have very mechanical sexual relations periodically. There is not any passion in it. It seems to be their routine. Once their act has commenced, they play a game of cards. This is an outline of a typical evening. Meanwhile, Mendel, who is on his deathbed, is deeply disturbed by the fact that their relationship even exists. He despises Sol and tells him that he is dead inside. There is a lot of truth to Mendel’s opinions, but Sol is indifferent to them.
Sol maintains a separate residence in a very suburban area of Long Island with his sister-in-law Bertha (Nancy Pollock) and her family. There are two children who are nearly adults. Joan (Marianne Kanter) is the daughter and she is a typical teenage girl, very hip and boy crazy. Both Bertha and Joan seem to be typical suburbanites, obsessed with material possessions. Both Bertha and Joan solicit funds from “Uncle Sol,” Bertha for a European vacation and Joan for new designer furniture. The teenage son is Morton (Jack Ader) who seems to be somewhat of an outsider. Morton is into art and carries himself in a shy and introverted manner. These scenes at the suburban home provide us with some background perspective on Sol but are far too brief. It is implied that Sol is supporting the entire family, so clearly he is receiving his money from ill-gotten gains as the salary of a pawnbroker could not produce the kind of money necessary to support two households and medical care for a dying old man.
Sol employs a young Puerto Rican man named Jesus Ortiz (played adequately by Jaime Sanchez) for help in the shop. Jesus has a simple mind, but he is ambitious and looks up to Sol as a mentor/father figure. Jesus has an opposing outlook on life in comparison to Sol. The people whom Sol refers to as “scum” are considered “God’s children” by Jesus. Jesus lives with his mother in an efficiency apartment across the street from the shop. His living conditions are poor (the bath tub is in the kitchen) and it is clear that if it were not for his employment in the pawn shop, he might very likely be running with the local gang out of necessity. Jesus has an interesting relationship with his girlfriend Mabel (Thelma Oliver). She works as a prostitute for Rodriguez, but she is otherwise loyal to Jesus and they seem to share a loving bond. She is very supportive and wants him to succeed. Their sexual relationship is compared to that of Sol and Tessie in a cross-cutting sequence. While Jesus and Mabel kiss and laugh in the throes of passion, Sol and Tessie do not even look at one another. Tessie looks off solemnly while Sol mechanically does his business.
The pawn shop scenes in the first section of the film establish Sol as a miserly old hermit who interacts as little as possible with his customers. The patrons are paraded in one by one, each more eccentric than the last, yet we get the same reaction of quiet, professional disposition from Sol. Some of the patrons are clearly crooked. We meet a gang of thugs who are pawning a brand new lawnmower. The members of this local gang provide an ominous presence throughout the film. Although they are not very influential, they are menacing and play a prominent role in the film’s climax.
The real star of these early scenes, however, is Mr. Smith, played tenderly by Juano Hernandez. Mr. Smith comes into the pawn shop each day to pawn and buy the same old lamp. He appears to just want conversation from Sol whom he reveres as an educated man. We assume that Mr. Smith goes home each day and reads an obscure passage from an old book by Baudelaire or Galileo so that he can impress Sol and maybe get some sort of response from him. Mr. Smith’s scenes are touching. Hernandez plays him so sympathetically that our hearts go out to him. We wish that Sol would at least humor him, but each time, Mr. Smith leaves disappointed. When Sol finally grows frustrated with him and lashes out towards him verbally, we can see the absolute heartbreak in Mr. Smith’s face and it is hard to watch.
Sol is approached by a middle-aged woman named Marilyn Birchfield (Geraldine Fitzgerald) who is soliciting donations for a local children’s charity. She is received coldly by Sol so she leaves in a huff. During this sequence, a man comes in to pawn a radio. He is very jumpy and impatient, apparently in need of a drug fix. When Sol offers him only two dollars for the radio, the man directs several anti-Semitic slurs at him, but reluctantly takes the money. Sol’s expression never changes throughout the sequence.
When Sol is leaving work one evening, he walks by a basketball court where a gang of thugs are beating up a young boy. In the distance a dog is barking which triggers Sol’s memory. As the young boy climbs the fence in a futile attempt to save himself, we see flash cuts of a man climbing the fence of a prison yard trying to escape the clutches of a vicious German Sheppard. Sol had apparently suppressed this memory for many years, but it, along with many others, has been triggered by external forces.
The next day at the pawn shop, young pregnant girl comes in to pawn her diamond engagement ring. Her face looks weary and her speech is slow, we can see that she is in dire straits. Sol glances at it and informs her that it is not a diamond, but glass. She lowers her head and mutters something before slowly leaving the shop. Her presence and her ring triggers Sol’s memory which is once again portrayed by a series of flash cuts back to the prison camp which gradually get longer. The camera pans across a series of hands which have rings pulled off by a Nazi guard. Sol becomes withdrawn and lowers his head in contemplation. At this moment Marilyn reappears and apologizes for the way she stormed out his shop the previous day. Sol barely acknowledges her, but she asks him out to lunch and he accepts unwittingly due to his state of mind.
Later in the evening, Jesus asks Sol why the Jews are such good businessmen. This question evokes a tirade from Sol in which explains that the only thing that is of any importance at all in the world is money. He claims that the Jews have been persecuted throughout history and have not been able to own their own land. They have been forced into constant migration. He dismisses the Jewish faith and any notions that they are special people. They used their brains to become merchants and based a heritage on bartering he says. They don’t buy toys for their children, they horde their money. They are usurers, sheenies, and kikes he exclaims. Jesus responds to this tirade by nodding and praising Sol as a great teacher.
The following day Marilyn finds Sol in the park and tries to befriend him. She knows he is a Holocaust survivor and tells him how lonely she is. She has lost her husband to a heart attack and seeks companionship. Sol angrily blows her off and leaves the scene. When he gets back to the shop, a man pulls several days off of the calendar to reveal October third. Sol is furious and we learn that it is his wedding anniversary. This is apparently a driving force behind the triggering of his suppressed memories.
Jesus and his girlfriend Mabel are trying to get money together to better their lives. Neither wants to do anything foolish, but it is always in the back of Jesus’ mind that he could join the local gang of thugs to earn some extra cash. Mabel decides that she should do something herself. She visits Sol at the pawn shop to sell a necklace which she claims is worth 100 dollars. Sol offers her twenty. Mabel offers herself to Sol to sweeten the deal. As she undresses there are flash cuts to the prison camp. Sol is being forced to watch as Nazi guards undress and rape his wife. He gives Mabel the money she wants and orders her out of the shop.
The next day Sol has a meeting with Rodriguez in which he claims he does not want his money as long as it is coming from prostitution. Rodriguez becomes infuriated and humiliates Sol. Sol realizes that he is no better morally than Rodriguez and is shamed by it. This triggers a long walk and attempt at soul searching. While riding the subway home he has flashbacks to the train cars on their way to Auschwitz. We learn that his son was trampled to death on one of the cars. Sol leaves the subway train and stumbles through the neon-lit streets of New York City all night. Finally he ends up at Marilyn’s home. He explains to her that everything had been taken away from him and he was powerless to stop it. Marilyn reaches out to him, but it is a futile gesture and they both know it.
The next day at the shop, Sol gives the poor people outrageous amounts of money for worthless junk while giving practically nothing to the crooked thugs with valuable items. Jesus confronts Sol about what is going on and Sol erupts. He calls Jesus “scum, just like the rest of them.” He tells Jesus that he means nothing to him. At closing time, Jesus returns with the gang of thugs to rob Sol’s safe. Sol refuses to give them the money, so one of the thugs points a gun at Sol. Jesus jumps in front of the gunman to protect Sol and is shot dead.
Jesus’ shooting provokes a flood of emotions from Sol. In the context of the flash cuts, Sol seems to be thinking of Jesus as a conduit to his dead son. Sol lets out a silent scream which is punctuated by the horn section in Quincy Jones’ score. The scene is a triumph for Steiger as we see the absolute anguish in his face. A shower of tears pours from his eyes as he looks in horror at the dead body of Jesus. We realize that this is the first time in over twenty years that Sol has cried. Sol slowly walks back into his shop and in a fit of rage slams his hand onto a paper spindle. It is as if he externalizing his inner torment. It is almost symbolic of the stigmata. Sol stumbles down the street a broken man as the film fades to black. In spite of the circumstances, however, this is not necessarily a downer ending. Sol is finally dealing with his inner demons. He is “bearing the cross” so to speak. Perhaps after some time, he will be able to function as an actual human being.
Lumet has shot this film in a style which is reminiscent of Robert Rossen’s The Hustler. So much of the film elicits a feeling of desolation from society even though it takes place among many people in a big city. The films are very different from one another, but they both evoke the same numbness from the viewer due to the moods which are set. However, one can see how influential certain elements of Lumet’s style have affected the directors of later generations throughout the film.
The scenes in which Sol is staggering down the streets amidst the neon lights and marquees are nearly duplicated ten years later in Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver. In fact, one could draw a myriad of comparisons between Sol Nazerman and Travis Bickle. There is a scene in The Pawnbroker in which Jesus Ortiz is running through restaurants and bars searching for the members of the local street gang. Lumet shoots much of the scene with a hand-held camera. This technique brings the audience into the picture. We feel the franticness that Jesus feels. Lumet does not overdo it, he does just enough to induce the emotions from us that he wants. Not to keep picking on Scorsese, but he uses the hand-held camera throughout Mean Streets because he wants us to feel the sense of chaos that his characters do, but he over uses the technique to the point that the audience starts to feel sick. That was Scorsese’s first feature film, though. Seeing as Lumet and Scorsese are both the sons of immigrants who grew up in New York City and Lumet is a bit older than Scorsese, we can see the similarity in their work. However, time has proven Scorsese to be the more talented of the two directors.
There are elements of The Pawnbroker which are absolutely brilliant. The cold mood that is established by the film is perfect for the content and Rod Steiger is absolutely brilliant as Sol Nazeman. However, the incessant flash cutting makes the film difficult to watch at times. In the early 1960’s flash cutting was used with some regularity in European cinema, most notably in Antonioni’s L’avventura and to a lesser extent in his stark, emotionally cold film Red Desert. Alain Resnais used a similar technique in his brilliant Hiroshima mon amour. Lumet was the first American director to use this editing device and it is evident that he is experimenting with it. Throughout the film, the cuts seem to raise more questions than they answer. Lumet uses them to show us glimpses of Sol’s memories, but they are so quick and so frequent that it takes multiple viewings to fully comprehend everything that we are seeing. Antonioni and Resnais used the cuts far less frequently. They used the cuts to evoke a sense of suspense from the audience, not to explain important background information.
In the Auschwitz scenes, Sol is a strapping, muscular young man. With his shaved head he looks like the strong man Maciste from Cabiria. We wonder why he does not over power the Nazi guards as they rape his wife. After all, he is a hulking presence compared to the relatively small guards. The logical conclusion to draw from this discrepancy is that Rod Steiger was a well built man, incapable of slimming down for the role. Plus, by shooting all of the Auschwitz scenes with quick cuts, we do not fully digest his appearance. Perhaps director Carlo Lizzani saw Steiger in this film before he cast him as Benito Mussolini in The Last Days of Mussolini. After all, they bear a striking resemblance. Let it be known that Rod Steiger is the healthiest Jew in the Holocaust.
Quincy Jones’ jazz score is exquisite. However, it is in the wrong film. One can assume that Lumet included the score to emphasize Sol’s detachment from society. The score often seems to accentuate this very idea. It does not wholly fit with the images on the screen, though. It succeeds during the night walk scene through the streets and during the hectic scene in which Jesus is frantically searching for the street gang. Otherwise, it feels completely out of place. It really dates the film as well. It is like watching an episode of the Brady Bunch and noticing the clothing and hair styles. At least the music fits in with the setting in those shows, though.
For all of its flaws, however, The Pawnbroker is still a riveting film. There is so much substance to the film that editing and sound cannot ruin it. Not only does Steiger deliver an absolute tour-de-force performance, but the supporting cast is strong as well, especially Juano Hernandez. Sol’s transformation from zombie to emotional cripple is a fascinating journey. The Pawnbroker is not an example of Lumet’s best work, but it is a strong film.
Bibliography
Bowles, Stephen E. Sidney Lumet: A Guide to References and Resources. Boston: G.K. Hall
& Co., 1979.
Boyer, Jay. Sidney Lumet. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1993.
Cunningham, Frank R. Sidney Lumet: Film and Literary Vision (2nd Ed.). University of
Kentucky Press, 2001.
Quart, Leonard. “A Second Look: The Pawnbroker.” Cineaste 2 (Mar. 2000): 48-50.
Wallant, Edward Lewis. The Pawnbroker. New York: Manor Books Inc., 1961.
All countries
Argentina
Austria
Belgium
Brazil
Bulgaria
Chile
China
Colombia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Estonia
Denmark
Finland
Greece
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
Indonesia
Ireland
Israel
India
Latvia
Lithuania
Malaysia
New Zealand
Norway
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Russia
Singapore
South Africa
South Korea
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Thailand
Turkey
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
The Pawnbroker (1964, Sidney Lumet) Blu-ray from Olive
.
Linear Mode
