The Fixer (1968)

In Czarist Russia, around 1911, a Russian-Jewish handyman, Yakov Bok, 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 5 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 Czarist Russia around the turn of the century, and based on a true story of a Russian-Jewish peasant Yakov Bok, 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 | torture | secularism | anger | justice | 

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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:

October 1969 (UK)

Also Known As:

El hombre de Kiev

Filming Locations:

Budapest, 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

The cast includes one Oscar winner: Hugh Griffith; and three Oscar nominees: Sir Alan Bates, Elizabeth Hartman, and Sir Ian Holm.

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Quotes

Bibikov: What is your own personal philosophy?
Yakov Bok: That life could be better than it is.

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Connections

Referenced in Lionpower from MGM (1967)

User Reviews

a good look at an unfortunately forgotten part of history

When people think of anti-Semitism, they usually think of Hitler's Third Reich. But equally as bad was czarist Russia. In "The Fixer", Yakov Bok (Alan Bates) is a Jewish man who leaves the Pale (the area in Eastern Europe to which Jews were relegated) to work for someone. When they discover that he is a Jew, they imprison him on a trumped-up charge. Specifically, government bureaucrat Grubeshov (Ian Holm) believes that Jews are downright untrustworthy.

The movie also shows how Yakov has to hide his background once he leaves the ghetto. In one scene, he is about to have sex with aristocrat Zinaida (Elizabeth Hartman), but he realizes that she will see that he is circumcised, and so he leaves.

We can clearly see how anti-Semitic feelings were alive and well long before Hitler came to power. It's always important to remember these kinds of things.