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The Shop Around the Corner (1940) ft. Peterson W. Hill

Writer's picture: Thomas DuncanThomas Duncan


Guest:



Cast:

  • Ernst Lubitsch, Director

  • Samson Raphaelson and Ben Hecht, Writers

  • Werner R. Heymann, Music

  • Margaret Sullavan as Klara Novak

  • James Stewart as Alfred Kralik

  • Frank Morgan as Hugo Matuschek

  • Joseph Schildkraut as Ferencz Vadas

  • Sara Haden as Flora Kaczek

  • Felix Bressart as Pirovitch

  • William Tracy as Pepi Katona

  • Inez Courtney as Ilona Novotny


*Recognition:

  • The Shop Around the Corner was released on January 12, 1940.

  • Based on the 1937 Hungarian play Parfumerie by Miklós László, the film is said to have had near universal praise at the time of its release.

  • In subsequent years, The Shop Around the Corner has ranked number 28 on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Passions, and is listed in Time's All-Time 100 Movies.

  • In 1999, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

  • The Shop Around the Corner ranked 202nd in the British Film Institute's 2012 Sight & Sound critics' poll of the greatest films ever made, having garnered eight critics' votes.

  • The film was also 58th in BBC's 2015 poll of the best American films.

  • The film has also had several remakes including a musical, In the Good Old Summertime (1949), starring Judy Garland and Van Johnson; the 1963 Broadway musical She Loves Me; and the 1998 film You've Got Mail with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan by Nora Ephron.

  • The Shop Around the Corner holds a 99% score among critics on RT, a 96 score on Metacritic, and a 4.2/5 on Letterboxd.


Plot Summary: "The Shop Around the Corner" is a charming romantic comedy set in a Budapest gift shop. The story revolves around the antagonistic relationship between the store’s manager, Alfred Kralik (James Stewart), and his co-worker, Klara Novak (Margaret Sullavan).


Unbeknownst to each other, they are anonymous pen pals who have fallen in love through their letter exchanges. When they finally meet in person, their identities come to light, leading to a delightful resolution filled with warmth and humor. It's a delightful tale of mistaken identities, charming misunderstandings, and the magic of love letters.


Did You Know:

  • In the Book "Ernst Lubitsch: Laughter in Paradise", Ernst Lubitsch called this film "the best picture I ever made in my life." Additionally, 'The Shop Around the Corner' is the most meaningful tribute possible to the owner and employees of the long vanished Berlin clothing firm of S. Lubitsch.

  • James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan had known each other a long time before making this film. Both were in a summer stock company called the University Players. It was there that Stewart realized his potential as an actor, so he followed Sullavan and fellow player Henry Fonda to New York to begin an acting career in earnest.

  • Even though Margaret Sullavan was infamous for her quick temper and disdainful attitude towards Hollywood, James Stewart counted working with her as one of the great joys of his professional career. And because he knew her personally, he was more equipped than most of the cast and crew members to deal with her frequent and volatile emotional outbursts.

  • Originally, Janet Gaynor was the likely candidate for the role of Klara, as she was under contract to MGM at the time. Then, European actress Dolly Haas was pencilled in for the female lead, but Ernst Lubitsch had second thoughts about casting an unknown actress for American audiences.

  • This movie starred two Oscar winners: James Stewart (The Philadelphia Story - Best Actor 1940) and Joseph Schildkraut (Best Supporting 1937 - The Life of Emile Zola), and two Oscar nominees: Margaret Sullavan (3 Comrades - 1938) and Frank Morgan (Best Actor - The Affairs of Cellini (1934), Best Supporting - Tortilla Flat (1942)).


Best Performance: Ernst Lubitsch (Director)/James Stewart (Kralik)/Frank Morgan (Matuschek)

Best Secondary Performance: Samson Raphaelson and Ben Hecht (Writers)/James Stewart (Kralik)

Most Charismatic Award: Felix Bressart (Pirovitch)/Samson Raphaelson and Ben Hecht (Writers)/Margaret Sullavan (Klara)

Best Scene:

  • Novak's Job Hunt

  • Matuschek Dismisses Kralik

  • Red Carnations

  • Vadas Dismissed

  • Matuschek Comes Back to Work

  • Kralik Comes Out

Favorite Scene: Red Carnations/Kralik Comes Out/Matuschek Comes Back to Work

Most Indelible Moment: Red Carnations


In Memorium:

  • Dame Joan Plowright, 95, English actress (Enchanted April, I Love You to Death, Stalin, Avalon)

  • Garth Hudson, 87, Canadian Hall of Fame musician (group: The Band) and keyboardist ("Chest Fever")

  • Joyce Piven, 94, American theatre teacher, actress and director.

  • Toby Myers, 75, American musician (bassist for Roadmaster, John Cougar Mellencamp)

  • Francisco San Martin, 39, American actor (Days of Our Lives, The Bold and the Beautiful, Jane the Virgin)

  • Melba Montgomery, 86, American country singer ("No Charge", "Don't Let the Good Times Fool You", "Angel of the Morning") and songwriter

  • David W. Duclon, 74, American television writer and producer (creator of Punky Brewster, producer for Silver Spoons, Family Matters)

  • David Lynch, 78, American filmmaker (Twin Peaks, Blue Velvet, Mulholland Drive)

  • Bob Uecker, 90, American athlete, actor, and broadcaster (Major League, Mr. Belvedere, Voice of the Milwaukee Brewers since 1971, "Mr. Baseball")


Best Lines/Funniest Lines:

Hugo Matuschek: Well, what do you say now?

Alfred Kralik: I think people who like to smoke candy and listen to cigarettes will love it.


Alfred Kralik: But I have troubles of my own without your blouse coming between Mr. Matuschek and me.


Alfred Kralik: There might be a lot we don't know about each other. You know, people seldom go to the trouble of scratching the surface of things to find the inner truth.

Klara Novak: Well I really wouldn't care to scratch your surface, Mr. Kralik, because I know exactly what I'd find. Instead of a heart, a hand-bag. Instead of a soul, a suitcase. And instead of an intellect, a cigarette lighter... which doesn't work.

Alfred Kralik: Well, that's very nicely put. Yes, comparing my intellect with a cigarette lighter that doesn't work. That's a very interesting mixture of... poetry and meanness.


Alfred Kralik: Now if I were a girl and had to choose between a young good-for-nothing with plenty of hair and a good, solid, mature citizen, I'd pick Mathias Popkin every time.


Alfred Kralik: Pirovitch, did you ever get a bonus?

Pirovitch: Yes, once.

Alfred Kralik: Yeah. The boss hands you the envelope. You wonder how much is in it, and you don't want to open it. As long as the envelope's closed, you're a millionaire.


Alfred Kralik: Well, after a while we got on the subject of love. Naturally on a very cultural level.

Pirovitch: Well, what else can you do in a letter?


Hugo Matuschek: Don't let me influence you. I want your opinion, your honest opinion.


The Stanley Rubric:

Legacy: 6.67

Impact/Significance: 5.17

Novelty: 7.5

Classic-ness: 7

Rewatchability: 7.83

Audience Score: 9.0 (89% Google, 91% RT)

Total: 43.17


Remaining Questions:

  • Do the Matuscheks get divorced?

  • Does Mr. Matuschek ever step back from work?

  • Does Klara ever know it's Kralik before the ending?

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