Friday, November 29, 2019

The Shop Around the Corner (1940): James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan


     Based on Miklos Laszlo's 1937 Hungarian play "Parfumerie", The Shop Around the Corner (1940) was directed by Ernst Lubitsch, as has been proven to have a lasting influence... including numerous Musical-version remakes, Broadway treatments and television shows inspired by the characters. The Shop Around the Corner also provided the plot-inspiration for You've Got Mail (1998), starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. A great example of an unwitting love story, The Shop Around the Corner is an undeniable Classic. The cast is superb and unforgettable, including James Stewart, Margaret Sullavan, Frank Morgan, Joseph Schildkraut, Felix Bressart and William Tracy. 
     Alfred Kralik (James Stewart) and Klara Novak (Margaret Sullavan) both work at a store in Budapest, Hungary owned by Hugo Matuschek (Frank Morgan)... 

The Shop Around the Corner. 1940: James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan

     Alfred and Klara don't get along... 

The Shop Around the Corner. 1940: James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan

     and sometimes, they find themselves feuding... 

The Shop Around the Corner. 1940: James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan

     Which is all the more ironic, because each has been unknowingly corresponding with the other via love letters, arranged through a personal ad in the newspaper... 

The Shop Around the Corner. 1940: James Stewart

     They are falling in love with one another through the correspondence, without knowing that each is the other person behind the letters... 

The Shop Around the Corner. 1940: James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan

     which makes it all the more awkward and surprising... 

The Shop Around the Corner. 1940: James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan

     when they arrange a first date on Christmas Eve...

The Shop Around the Corner. 1940: James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan