Review of The Pawnbroker (1965) by Jordan Y — 10 Mar 2008

A very good film by Sidney Lumet. The main reason to watch "The Pawnbroker" is the performance of Rod Steiger, for he gives one of the best performances I've ever seen in terms of externalizing internal emotions. Or maybe that should read "...the lack of internal emotions." Steiger plays Sol Nazerman, a Jewish pawnbroker in Harlem and a Holocaust survivor. It is the 25th anniversary of the deaths of his family in the concentration camps - he was the only survivor.

That's all I'm going to reveal about the plot. There is a story here, but it takes second place to the examination of Nazerman's character. The main image inside the pawnshop is that of cages - even though he's no longer a prisoner, Nazerman's very workplace suggests otherwise. His tormentors are no longer Nazi prison guards, but people of all backgrounds coming into his shop and tormenting him with their useless trinkets. Nazerman has developed the ability to show no feeling or compassion towards the many people who come in to the pawn shop - some of them are drug addicts, some criminals, but some are simply lonely and looking for nothing more than good conversation. Unfortunately for these people, Nazerman has shut himself off from the world entirely, for he believes the world to be just as evil as the concentration camps which kept him in a cage.

Survivor's guilt is also a major theme here, and it's clear that Nazerman is still haunted. Loneliness dominates his life, even affecting his ability to have a normal relationship with those who are close to him. His only belief now is in money - everything he once valued has been lost. The film's ending reveals how low Nazerman has sunk, and how miserable he really is.

This film isn't for everyone. The slow-motion opening scene is the only (and I do mean only) light-hearted moment in the film. It's very downbeat and gritty. The crime drama elements of the film are responsible for its grittiness, while the Holocaust themes add to its depressive side. Steiger is extremely good in a very difficult role, however the loneliness and general miserable feeling the film is about may put off a lot of viewers. Still, "The Pawnbroker" is highly recommended for Steiger's great work in what is essentially a character study in loneliness, guilt, and lack of emotion.