THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER

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This 1940 romantic comedy is an adaptation of a play by one Miklos Laszlo.  Hats off to him for coming up with a brilliant concept that has gone on to be used in several films and musicals.

Anyone who has seen 'You've Got Mail' will know the basic idea: two people falling in love with each other through correspondence, all the while not realising that the object of their affection is someone they know and think they dislike.

In the case of the play and this film, the setting is turn-of-the-century Budapest.  It takes a little while to get used to the idea of James Stewart as an Hungarian shop assistant but once I was over that small hurdle this confection was a delight from start to finish. And who better to serve it up than Ernst Lubitsch, a master of this type of light sophisticated material?

Stewart is Mr Kralik, who works in a leather goods shop owned by Mr Matuschek.  Besides the romance plot there is a secondary storyline in which Mr Matuschek suspects Kralik (who has been like a son to him) of having an affair with his wife, causing him eventually to fire Kralik. This storyline isn't comedic as such, indeed Matuschek attempts suicide at one point.  

There is some genuine pathos in that Matuschek's wife is indeed having an affair with one of the shop assistants (smarmy Mr Vadas) and at the end of the film it is Christmas Eve and Matuschek is struggling to find someone for company.  Matuschek is beautifully played by Frank Morgan, better known for his portrayal as the Wizard of Oz.

One of the strengths of the film is that we get to care about Matuschek and the other minor characters.

But back to the romance.  The woman with whom Kralik has been corresponding is none other than Klara, a relatively new assistant in the shop who has been rubbing up Kralik the wrong way from day one.

Klara is played by Margaret Sullavan who does what she needs to in the role. Kralik has the upper hand in their relationship in that he is the one who first discovers who his correspondent really is, so a feistier actress such as Jean Arthur would have been wasted playing Klara.

Naturally James Stewart plays the part of Kralik to perfection, bringing out the gentle humour of the situation, and making us care about him enough so that we end the film sharing his happiness when he and Klara realise they do in fact love each other

RATING: ✓✓ Good Times

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