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Released by: Olive Films
Released on: April 22nd, 2014.
Director: Sidney Lumet
Cast: Rod Steiger, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Brock Peters, Raymond St. Jacques, Jamie Sanchez
Year: 1964
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The Movie:
Directed by Sidney Lumet in 1964, The Pawnbroker tells the story of Sol Nazerman (Rod Steiger), a World War II Holocaust survivor who spent time in Auschwitz. When we meet him, the war has been over for a while and he lives in New York City where he runs a pawnshop. As Sol lost pretty much everyone he ever cared about in the war, he has very little to live for and the only thing that really keeps him going is money. He's not completely without a heart, however, as he often sends money to Tessie (Marketa Kimbrell), the widow who survived her husband, a fellow Auschwitz prisoner who was interned with Sol. For the most part, however, Sol is miserly and broken, frequently overwhelmed with guilt over his having survived what so many others could not. He also suffers from regular flashbacks, the kind that leave a lasting impression and that make it impossible for him to forget what he went through and who he lost.
Sol employs a South American immigrant named Jesus Ortiz (Jamie Sanchez) how is bound and determined to make a life for himself. He's hardworking and ambitious and he looks to Sol for guidance. Sol is also friendly with a local woman named Marilyn Birchfield (Geraldine Fitzgerald), though he keeps her at a distance. Sol's also got some dealings with a shady mobster named Rodriguez (Brock Peters) that prove to have consequences. When he learns the truth about where Rodriguez's money is coming from and Jesus winds up in trouble, Sol has a breakdown.
This is a pretty bleak film but it's incredibly well made. Steiger, who received an Oscar nomination for his work here but did not win, does a fantastic job playing the world weary Sol. He has the right downtrodden look to make this work and is also able to really keep up that distance needed to separate Sol from those around him. Though he warms up a bit to Marilyn and to a different extent Jesus, he really has successfully alienated himself in many ways and we see in this character a man who does not seem to have what it takes to heal. The supporting cast is also very strong here, with Sanchez doing fine work as the young upstart keen to learn the ways of running a successful business. His youth and his naiveté will inevitably catch up with him, they have to in a way, but his acting is solid. Fitzgerald and Peters are strong as well with the latter really getting intense once he starts pressuring Steiger's character over what Sol's guilty conscience is pushing him towards doing.
Also worth mentioning is the score by Quincy Jones. Though it's one of his earlier efforts the music really suits the tone of the movie and the Harlem locations very effectively. Those locations, impoverished and 'ghetto' as they are, also do an interesting job of metaphorically representing the Sol's concentration camp experiences. He really can't escape his past, even if he moves to a different continent to try to do so. Lumet paces the film well and the story is told briskly but never at the expense of nuanced character development. The stark black and white photography suits the tone of the story in ways that color probably wouldn't have. In many ways The Pawnbroker is a hard film to enjoy, but at the same time it's a film that's impossible not to admire and appreciate.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The Pawnbroker arrives on Blu-ray from Olive Films framed at 1.85.1 widescreen and presented in AVC encoded 1080p high definition. This is a sharp and crisp looking image that shows very good detail and nice black levels but no obvious signs of digital manipulation such as noise reduction or edge enhancement. Contrast and texture are both very strong from start to finish and outside of a few specks here and there, the image is free of any major print damage, though a natural amount of film grain is present throughout the movie that fits in nicely alongside the gritty New York City locations used in the film. There are no problems with compression artifacts, edge enhancement or noise reduction and this is an excellent film-like presentation.
The only audio option for the feature is an English language DTS-HD 1.0 track which comes with optional closed captioning provided in English only. Though the source material is limited in range, clarity is good here. Dialogue is perfectly easy to understand, the score has nice balance and presence and there are no issues of note with hiss or distortion.
There are no extras outside of a basic menu and chapter selection.
The Final Word:
The Pawnbroker is a smart, challenging picture full of fantastic performances and effectively gritty visuals that compliment and advance the story in interesting ways. Rich with character development and some fantastic location work, it's a film well worth revisiting and while Olive's Blu-ray debut is barebones, it does offer up the picture with fine audio and a gorgeous black and white transfer.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
