My favorite Christmas film, this deliciously delicate, multi-nuanced romantic comedy is one of Lubitsch's very best films, flawlessly acted by Jimmy Stewart at his peak, the sublime Margaret Sullavan, and the rest of the large ensemble.
The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
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Reviews Counted:20
Fresh:20
Rotten:0
Average Rating:8.4/10
Synopsis: Lubitsch's charming and gentle romance, set in Budapest. Klara Novak and Alfred Kralik have fallen in love -- but if they were to pass each other on the street, they wouldn't know: they've met... Lubitsch's charming and gentle romance, set in Budapest. Klara Novak and Alfred Kralik have fallen in love -- but if they were to pass each other on the street, they wouldn't know: they've met only as pen-pals, and haven't even signed the letters with their real names. So when Klara applies for a job in the shop where Alfred works as head clerk, he turns her down cold... until his boss overrules the decision and takes Klara on. As the two continue their loving correspondence, they embark on a combative personal relationship. Will the hostilities cease when the truth comes to light? Or will their hopes for romance be destroyed forever? [More]
Starring: James Stewart, Margaret Sullavan, Frank Morgan, Sara Haden
Starring: James Stewart, Margaret Sullavan, Frank Morgan, Sara Haden, Joseph Schildkraut, Felix Bressart, William Tracy, Inez Courtney, Charles Halton, Charles Smith
Director: Ernst Lubitsch
Director: Ernst Lubitsch
Producer: Ernst Lubitsch
Screenwriter: Samson Raphaelson
Composer: Werner Richard Heymann
Reviews for The Shop Around the Corner
As the plot has as many complications as characters, much of the fun comes in watching Scripter Samson Raphaelson neatly tangle and untangle them without tying himself in a hard knot.
This charming and well-scripted comedy exploits the ingenious set-up with delightful results.
Although picture carries the indelible stamp of Ernst Lubitsch at his best in generating humor and human interest from what might appear to be unimportant situations, it carries further to impress via the outstanding characterizations by Margaret Sullavan
This 1940 film is one of Ernst Lubitsch's finest and most enduring works, a romantic comedy of dazzling range.
One of the all-time great romantic films stars Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullavan as two slightly antagonistic clerks working in the same store who do not realize they have been corresponding with one another and are in love.
This might be Lubitsch's gentlest work: sweetness mixed with a genuine sadness.
Thoroughly different from To Be or Not To Be but just as exhilarating, it's one of the few films truly justifying Lubitsch's reputation for a 'touch.'
Who but Lubitsch could have pulled off such a winning romantic comedy that dares to include, but is not marred by, such tragic undercurrents adultery, attempted suicide?
...a pretty kettle of bubbling brew it makes under Mr. Lubitsch's deft and tender management and with a genial company to play it gently, well this side of farce and well that side of utter seriousness.
This smart and stylish Lubitsch comedy was recently remade as You've Got Mail.
Esta charmosa comédia romântica traz um James Stewart mais irônico do que costume, mas igualmente nobre - e sua interação com Margaret Sullavan cria ótimos momentos de ácido romantismo.
The Shop Around the Corner is a blueprint for great romantic comedy, perfectly balancing its sentiment with cleverness and humour, and giving us a set of delightful characters in a plot that is as unpredictable as it is original.
Delectable Hungarian pastry, served up by masters all around. This may be the best romantic comedy ever made.
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