>

Rod Steiger plays a Holocaust survivor operating a pawn shop in Harlem with his eager Latino assistant Jesus. Steiger is beaten down as Sol Nazerman, a man crushingly haunted by his past. Brock Peters is despicable as the local underworld kingpin, Rodriguez, who Sol must begrudgingly bow down before. This is one depressing, racially charged movie folks. Steiger was nominated for an Oscar for his performance, and deservingly so. Rarely have I ever seen such a burdened and sad performance. Lumet’s direction is wonderful in lush black and white, giving us lots of strange angles and perspectives to keep things interesting. Watch and enjoy, and be psychologically beatdown.