The Fixer (1968)

In Czarist Russia, around 1911, a Russian-Jewish handyman, Yakov Bog, is wrongly imprisoned for a most unlikely crime.

Director:

John Frankenheimer

Writers:

Bernard Malamud (novel), Dalton Trumbo (screenplay)

Stars:

Alan Bates, Dirk Bogarde, Georgia Brown

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alan Bates	...	Yakov Bok
Dirk Bogarde	...	Bibikov
Georgia Brown	...	Marfa Golov
Hugh Griffith	...	Lebedev
Elizabeth Hartman	...	Zinaida
Ian Holm	...	Grubeshov
David Opatoshu	...	Latke
David Warner	...	Count Odoevsky
Carol White	...	Raisl
George Murcell	...	Deputy Warden
Murray Melvin	...	Priest
Peter Jeffrey	...	Berezhinsky
Michael Goodliffe	...	Ostrovsky
Thomas Heathcote	...	Proshko
Mike Pratt	...	Father Anastasy

Storyline

Set in tsarist Russia around the turn of the century and based on a true story of a Russian Jewish peasant Yakov Bog who was wrongly imprisoned for a most unlikely crime - the "ritual murder" of a Gentile child in Kiev. We witness the unrelenting detail of the peasant-handyman's life in prison and see him gain in dignity as the efforts to humiliate him and make him confess fail.

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Plot Keywords:

russia | wrongful conviction | reference to spinoza | consciousness | defense lawyer | 

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Taglines:

They accused him... They beat him... They condemned him... and after all that, they were more afraid of him than ever.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

M

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 December 1968 (USA)

Also Known As:

El hombre de Kiev

Filming Locations:

Hungary

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer British Studios, Edward Lewis Productions, John Frankenheimer Productions Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

132 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Last Film of Danny Green.

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Quotes

Bibikov: The law will protect you unless you're guilty.
[closes the door]
Yakov Bok: [shouting] Guilty of what?

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Connections

Featured in Hollywoodism: Jews, Movies and the American Dream (1998)

User Reviews

In these times of arrest without trial or evidence, this film strikes a chord.

I came home from work after working a 24 hour shift and turned on the TV to find something mindless to numb my brain (ready to do the same thing tomorrow), and turned on this film, I had to watch it to the end. The story is simple enough, its the tale of someone who is wrongly accused of a crime in order to satisfy someones higher political manifesto but there's an ageless quality to it. I'm not particularly clued up on films or politics, and certainly not a critic but I have to say that in these times of arrest without trial or evidence, this film strikes a chord. This film highlights some of the best and worst aspects inherent to human nature, a truly remarkable work.