Elia Kazan's America America tells the story of his uncle Stavros Topouzoglou, an ethnic Greek struggling to flee Anatolia (Turkey). Faced with increasing persecution from the ruling Turks, Topouzoglou is entrusted by his family to flee to Constantinople for a better life. Carrying almost all his family's wealth on his shoulders, Topouzoglou's mission backfires when he is robbed and left penniless by the Turks. His only hope of survival is to flee to America.