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Movies / Upcoming / The Shop Around the Corner
The Shop Around the Corner

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The Shop Around the Corner (1940)

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Reviews Counted:20

Fresh:20

Rotten:0

Average Rating:8.4/10

Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins

Genre: Comedies

US Box Office: $0

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

[See More Credits]

Reviews for The Shop Around the Corner

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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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.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
12/14/09
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

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.

Full Review Source: TIME Magazine | comment Comment
12/05/08
TIME Magazine

This charming and well-scripted comedy exploits the ingenious set-up with delightful results.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
11/27/07
Channel 4 Film

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

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
11/27/07
Variety Staff
Variety Staff
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This 1940 film is one of Ernst Lubitsch's finest and most enduring works, a romantic comedy of dazzling range.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
11/27/07
Dave Kehr
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader

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.

comment Comment
06/14/07
Douglas Pratt
Douglas Pratt
DVDLaser

This might be Lubitsch's gentlest work: sweetness mixed with a genuine sadness.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
05/26/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

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.'

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out

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?

Full Review Source: Decent Films Guide | comment Comment
10/13/04
Steven D. Greydanus
Steven D. Greydanus
Decent Films Guide

No review available.

comment Comment
03/25/04
Christopher Smith
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)

No review available.

comment Comment
01/23/04
Carol Cling
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal

...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.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/20/03
Frank S. Nugent
Frank S. Nugent
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This smart and stylish Lubitsch comedy was recently remade as You've Got Mail.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
03/10/03
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle

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.

comment Comment
02/23/03
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena

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.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
02/01/03
Derek Smith
Derek Smith
Apollo Guide

Not Lubitsch at the top of his form, but good.

comment Comment
12/29/02
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Not much better than the 'You've got Mail' remake

comment Comment
09/26/02
Michael Szymanski
Michael Szymanski
Zap2it.com

No review available.

comment Comment
09/19/02
Jeffrey Westhoff
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

Delectable Hungarian pastry, served up by masters all around. This may be the best romantic comedy ever made.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Funny and timeless. Jimmy Stewart is fantastic.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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