America, America Page #4

Synopsis: Elia Kazan, ethnic Greek but Turkish by birth, tells the story of the struggles of his uncle - in this account named Stavros Topouzoglou - in emigrating to America. In the 1890's, the young, kind-hearted but naive Stavros lived in Anatolia, where the Greek and Armenian minorities were repressed by the majority Turks, this repression which often led to violence. Even Stavros being friends with an Armenian was frowned upon. As such, Stavros dreamed of a better life - specifically in America - where, as a result, he could make his parents proud by his grand accomplishments. Instead, his parents, with most of their money, sent Stavros to Constantinople to help fund the carpet shop owned by his first cousin once removed. What Stavros encountered on his journey, made on foot with a small donkey, made him question life in Anatolia even further. Once in Constantinople, his resolve to earn the 110 Turkish pound third class fare to the United States became stronger than ever. But try after try,
Genre: Drama
Director(s): Elia Kazan
Production: Warner Home Video
  Won 1 Oscar. Another 6 wins & 11 nominations.
 
IMDB:
7.8
Rotten Tomatoes:
71%
NOT RATED
Year:
1963
174 min
395 Views


Drink?

You're really such a coward.

I've killed men like you before,

it's like killing a sheep.

One clean cut almost anywhere

and the life flows out.

A twitch or two,

and it's over.

A drink?

No, of course, you don't drink.

You don't fight.

You have no use for women.

What kind of a man are you?

I can't waste any more time

on you.

I'll have to take those coins.

Unfortunately, I have no weapon.

I'll have to borrow your knife.

Yes?

No?

What? Why don't you say something?

Are you afraid to talk?

Do you value your life?

Say.

I don't know what you people are.

Are you like sheep? They won't

fight for their lives either.

Well...

it's the hour of prayer.

I'll give you a few minutes.

Allah!

Great by name,

great is thy greatness.

There is no deity, but thee.

I seek refuge near you, Allah.

Suchut! Suchut!

Suchut!

Constantinople train!

Constantinople train!

Constantinople.

That's all I have.

Constantinople train!

Let's go!

Let's go!

Let's go!

Let's go!

America, hey America!

Hey, America!

Is she an American lady?

No, really, thank you.

You won't find a piece like this...

Where is this street?

What do you want?

Can't you see I have customers?

-How's business?

-No business.

Is this the establishment

of Topouzoglou?

Yes. What do you want?

We want nothing.

I'm his cousin.

When will he wake up?

When business comes.

You brought dirt in,

I'll have to sweep again.

I just swept it, just now,

five minutes ago.

Topouzoglou, this man says

he's your cousin.

Welcome, welcome.

What happened to you?

I had a bad dream.

My treasure.

Eat, eat, that's it.

You eat the head?

Good for the brain!

So you see, I have many customers.

What I need is more stock.

The rugs I sell...

What is it?

Forgive me.

I was merely going to say that...

You don't...

seem to be selling

what you have.

You are very sharp.

I do not have the proper goods

for the market as it is today.

What I will do,

after you know the business...

is take the money you've brought

and go to Persia...

and buy the kind of goods...

What's the matter?

Why did you eat my lunch?

I was hungry.

Go, out of my sight!

No, don't go, please, sit down.

For God's sake, give me a chance

to swallow this.

Here, ruination, sweep.

Come in, come in.

Well, I will write to your father.

He's a good man, if in time...

No! No! Listen, no.

He must never know what happened.

Promise. Not a word.

I only meant to say that in time...

It would kill him.

He put everything in me.

Everything?

Everything.

It will kill him.

I'm going to make it up to him.

I have big plans.

They're going to be proud of me.

But now, now nothing.

Not a word, promise?

Not a word.

All right, I promise.

Go on, sweep.

I have big plans.

My ruination.

Look how the rich come to work off

their lunch in their cars, while...

Stavros, listen.

There goes Aleko Sinnikoglou,

a man with lots of money...

and four daughters,

each plainer than the other.

So much, every day

he more and more loses the hope...

of becoming a grandfather,

do you understand?

God solves all problems.

You must not forget that you

are a young man, handsome...

and if properly dressed...

Do you understand me now?

Never mind, sweep.

Tomorrow, I'll arrange the meeting,

you'll see.

I'll dress you in a nice

blue suit and...

What? What are you doing?

You barbarian!

-What about the tariff for carriage?

-No, we'll ignore that.

I see. Well, this was...

What do I need to go to America?

Money.

First class accommodation.

How much?

Third class, 110 Turkish pounds.

I'll do it right away.

Is he American?

From Berkeley.

Do you give these men something?

No, we do it the right way.

I'll be back.

What did he say?

"At any rate, he didn't bring

a single penny, says he was robbed.

I tried to talk to him,

as is my place and duty...

but suddenly he threw

down a broom...

and ran out of the store,

his eyes on fire."

Now, listen.

"Beloved father, I went, as you

asked, directly to our cousin...

but I couldn't trust him.

No one ever comes into his store.

He sleeps all day on a pile of rugs

so I told him I was robbed.

I left.

Now I have a new plan.

Keep it up!

Hang on.

Wind the rope tight.

Wind the rope further.

Go on, hamal!

-Doesn't your friend eat?

-What's the matter, you sick?

You, hamal,

don't you get hungry?

Learn to spend the coins.

What are you saving it for?

"Beloved father"...

Mama, mama.

"I know Mother is worried."

We have a letter,

close the shutters.

"But, there's no cause to be.

My health is good...

and my appetite is very good,

very good."

This isn't garbage,

it's from the Sultan's table...

what he doesn't eat.

"One way or another,

I get what I need to eat.

So don't worry, one day,

you'll be proud of your son.

Remember, I have big plans.

Big plans.

That day will come, I promise you.

You'll be proud of me."

I'm cold, I need a woman tonight.

You want to come?

I'll pay for it. You need it.

I need nothing.

Did you ever have one?

Don't you want one?

My father wouldn't approve.

Father? Approve!

Where are you going?

I have another job.

Now? Another job?

Tonight?

Kill yourself with this,

it's easier.

Take it easy.

Hold it, hold it!

It's time, they're out

there working!

How much for a ticket?

What?

How much for a ticket?

And you've saved by now?

What do you care?

How much?

Four pounds.

Four pounds? Now, tell me,

how long do you expect to live?

Longer than you!

That load is for an animal!

Get an animal!

Hey, hamal...

you.

America, America, you!

Don't take it, don't take it.

Come on!

What time is it?

You've got time.

I can't stay awake,

I keep falling asleep.

Don't worry, you'll be dead soon.

What's the baby weigh now?

How much?

Seven pounds.

Small money.

There's two kinds of money,

small and big money.

Small money is a whore,

you look at her coins...

she's been in everyone's hands

you wake in the morning, she's gone.

Then there's big money,

like you need.

You're going to America.

What you need is big money.

You like that?

Behold, you're human!

That's all there is, women.

Now then, big money.

Big money is fertile, it procreates.

How, I don't know.

But it reproduces, every time

you look, there's more.

But there's only two ways

men like us can get big money.

Steal it,

or if you're young...

marry it.

You can't get it by work.

Study me.

I worked like an animal...

from the first day I could

walk and carry. So?

Behold, the lowest form of life.

Now, if I were you...

there are very many very ugly girls

with rich fathers.

Let's get ourselves a couple

of those little mousetraps.

Come on, boy, you need it.

I need nothing.

You need it.

Afterwards, you come to my place,

I have one there for you.

Something nice.

I have...

I have never been with...

I don't know exactly

what to do.

They show you all that.

America, America!

America, America!

Hey, Abdul...

Come on, come on.

What happened?

My money! Where's the girl?

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Elia Kazan

Elia Kazan (; born Elias Kazantzoglou; September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003) was a Greek-American director, producer, writer and actor, described by The New York Times as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood history".He was born in Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey), to Cappadocian Greek parents. After attending Williams College and then the Yale School of Drama, he acted professionally for eight years, later joining the Group Theatre in 1932, and co-founded the Actors Studio in 1947. With Robert Lewis and Cheryl Crawford, his actors' studio introduced "Method Acting" under the direction of Lee Strasberg. Kazan acted in a few films, including City for Conquest (1940).Noted for drawing out the best dramatic performances from his actors, he directed 21 actors to Oscar nominations, resulting in nine wins. He directed a string of successful films, including A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), On the Waterfront (1954), and East of Eden (1955). During his career, he won two Oscars as Best Director, three Tony Awards, and four Golden Globes. He also received an Honorary Oscar. His films were concerned with personal or social issues of special concern to him. Kazan writes, "I don't move unless I have some empathy with the basic theme." His first such "issue" film was Gentleman's Agreement (1947), with Gregory Peck, which dealt with anti-Semitism in America. It received 8 Oscar nominations and 3 wins, including Kazan's first for Best Director. It was followed by Pinky, one of the first films in mainstream Hollywood to address racial prejudice against black people. In 1954, he directed On the Waterfront, a film about union corruption on the New York harbor waterfront. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), an adaptation of the stage play which he had also directed, received 12 Oscar nominations, winning 4, and was Marlon Brando's breakthrough role. In 1955, he directed John Steinbeck's East of Eden, which introduced James Dean to movie audiences. A turning point in Kazan's career came with his testimony as a witness before the House Committee on Un-American Activities in 1952 at the time of the Hollywood blacklist, which brought him strong negative reactions from many liberal friends and colleagues. His testimony helped end the careers of former acting colleagues Morris Carnovsky and Art Smith, along with ending the work of playwright Clifford Odets. Kazan later justified his act by saying he took "only the more tolerable of two alternatives that were either way painful and wrong." Nearly a half-century later, his anti-Communist testimony continued to cause controversy. When Kazan was awarded an honorary Oscar in 1999, dozens of actors chose not to applaud as 250 demonstrators picketed the event.Kazan influenced the films of the 1950s and '60s with his provocative, issue-driven subjects. Director Stanley Kubrick called him, "without question, the best director we have in America, [and] capable of performing miracles with the actors he uses." Film author Ian Freer concludes that even "if his achievements are tainted by political controversy, the debt Hollywood—and actors everywhere—owes him is enormous." In 2010, Martin Scorsese co-directed the documentary film A Letter to Elia as a personal tribute to Kazan. more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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