A Jewish pawnbroker, victim of Nazi persecution, loses all faith in his fellow man until he realizes too late the tragedy of his actions.A Jewish pawnbroker, victim of Nazi persecution, loses all faith in his fellow man until he realizes too late the tragedy of his actions.A Jewish pawnbroker, victim of Nazi persecution, loses all faith in his fellow man until he realizes too late the tragedy of his actions.
- Director
- Writers
- Morton S. Fine(screenplay)
- David Friedkin(screenplay)
- Edward Lewis Wallant(novel)
- Stars
- Director
- Writers
- Morton S. Fine(screenplay)
- David Friedkin(screenplay)
- Edward Lewis Wallant(novel)
- Stars
- Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 6 wins & 9 nominations total
- Jesus Ortiz
- (as Jaime Sanchez)
- Director
- Writers
- Morton S. Fine(screenplay)
- David Friedkin(screenplay)
- Edward Lewis Wallant(novel)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAfter the filmmakers appealed to the MPAA's appeals board to oppose censoring the film, it became the first US film to show a nude woman from the waist up and be granted a Production Code Seal. It was the first of a series of confrontations between filmmakers and the MPAA in the 1960s that would lead to the abandonment of the Code within five years, in favor of a ratings system.
- GoofsAs Jesus runs down the street, his shirt changes from a V-neck to a turtle neck, and then back again.
- Quotes
Jesus Ortiz: Say, how come you people come to business so naturally?
Sol Nazerman: You people? Oh, let's see. Yeah. I see. I see, you... you want to learn the secret of our success, is that right? Alright I'll teach you. First of all you start off with a period of several thousand years, during which you have nothing to sustain you but a great bearded legend. Oh my friend you have no land to call your own, to grow food on or to hunt. You have nothing. You're never in one place long enough to have a geography or an army or a land myth. All you have is a little brain. A little brain and a great bearded legend to sustain you and convince you that you are special, even in poverty. But this little brain, that's the real key you see. With this little brain you go out and you buy a piece of cloth and you cut that cloth in two and you go and sell it for a penny more than you paid for it. Then you run right out and buy another piece of cloth, cut it into three pieces and sell it for three pennies profit. But, my friend, during that time you must never succumb to buying an extra piece of bread for the table or a toy for a child, no. You must immediately run out and get yourself a still larger piece cloth and so you repeat this process over and over and suddenly you discover something. You have no longer any desire, any temptation to dig into the Earth to grow food or to gaze at a limitless land and call it your own, no, no. You just go on and on and on repeating this process over the centuries over and over and suddenly you make a grand discovery. You have a mercantile heritage! You are a merchant. You are known as a usurer, a man with secret resources, a witch, a pawnbroker, a sheenie, a makie and a kike!
Jesus Ortiz: [long pause] You really some teacher, Mr. Nazerman. You really, really 's the greatest.
Sol's assistant is the ambitious Latin Jesus Ortiz (Jaime Sanchez), a former urchin that has regenerated and now wants to learn with Sol how to run a business of his own. When Sol realizes that the obscure laundry business he has with the powerful gangster Rodriguez (Brock Peters) comes also from brothels, Sol recalls the fate of his beloved wife in the concentration camp and has a nervous breakdown. His attitude leads Jesus Ortiz to a tragedy and Sol finds a way to cry.
"The Pawnbroker" is a powerful and realistic story of bitterness, loneliness and disbelief in mankind of a man victim of the Holocaust. Rod Steiger has certainly the best performance of his career in the complex role of a skeptical and bitter Jewish. His assistant is an ambiguous character that contrasts with the pawnbroker with his optimistic and happy behavior. In the end, the pawnbroker feels the need to cry and impales his hand with a spike, also in a reference of Jesus Christ. My vote is eight.
Title (Brazil): "O Homem do Prego" ("The Man of the Spike" – literally; however, it is a pun that also means "The Pawnbroker")
- claudio_carvalho
- Dec 19, 2011
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $930,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 56 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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