A Loja da Esquina

Splendid romantic comedy and referenced as an over the top classic . It is set in a small Budapest shop called "Matuschek's" (proprietor Frank Morgan) , it is the known and gossip-ridden gift shop around the corner. Among the clerks are Alfred Kralik (James Stewart) , Klara (Margaret Sullavan) , and others (Joseph Schildkraut , Sara Haden , Felix Bressart , Inez Courtney) , all of them form the shop staff at logger-heads in Matuschek's emporium . Alfred is a sympathetic young man who's in love with a woman he has never met and whose name he doesn't even know . When Klara comes to work as a clerk in the shop, the sparks begin to fly : she and Alfred don't get along. Of course, what neither knows is that Klara is the woman Alfred has been romancing via a lonely hearts club . Alfred slowly realises that he has been carrying on an anonymous romance by letter .

Unforgettable characters, enjoyable dialogue , lots of laughs, one of the best films of the cinema history and of one the best Lubitsch, a real cinema classy . A charming and attractive portrayal of ordinary people in ordinary situations . Adapted from the Nikolaus Laszlo's play : Parfumerie , later made into a musical show titled ¨In the Good Old Summertime¨ , and , on Broadway ¨She loves me¨. James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan give top-notch interpretations as a young duo who are feuding clerks and unknownly fall in love through the mail . Teaming Stewart , Sullavan and Frank Morgan just as in ¨Frank Borzage's The mortal storm¨ shot the same year , this also concerns a troublesome love story in Central Europe , though here the threat is not Nazism but the intereference of others and pride . It is a wonderfully delicate comedy , finally very stirring and exciting ; including the twisted as well as troubled intrigues among the staff also carrying narrative weight and especially dealing with a peculiar "romance" that has been conducted through a post office box . Phenomenal secondary cast , such as : Joseph Schildkraut , Sara Haden , Felix Bressart , William Tracy and the honest , agreeable proprietor , Frank Morgan , being especially affecting and moving .

This low-key motion picture was stunningly directed by Ernest Lubitsch , and all scenes were reportedly shot in sequence ; being throughly different from his classic movie ¨To Be or not to Be¨, but just as entertaining and exhilarating . It is one of the few movies truly justifying Lubitsch's reputation for his famous ¨Touch¨. It was later turned into a musical comedy as In the Good Old Summertime . Lubitsch's breakthrough film came in 1918 with "The Eyes of the Mummy", a tragedy starring future Hollywood star Pola Negri. Also that year he made Carmen (1918), again with Negri, a film that was commercially successful on the international level. His work already showed his genius for catching the eye as well as the ear in not only comedy but historical drama. The year 1919 found Lubitsch directing seven films, the two standouts being his lavish Madame DuBarry (1919) with two of his favorite actors--Negri (yet again) and Emil Jannings. His other standout was the witty parody of the American upper crust, "The Oyster Princess" 1919 . This film was a perfect example of what became known as the Lubitsch style, or the "Lubitsch Touch", as it became known--sophisticated humor combined with inspired staging that economically presented a visual synopsis of storyline, scenes and characters. Lubitsch directed a lot of comedies and vintage movies , such as : ¨Heaven can wait¨, ¨That uncertain feeling¨, ¨Ninotchka¨, ¨Bluebeard's eight wife¨, ¨Angel¨, ¨The merry widow¨, ¨The Student Prince¨, ¨So this is Paris¨, ¨Lady Windermere's fan¨, ¨The marriage circle¨, ¨One Arabian night¨, ¨Passion¨, ¨Gypsy blood¨, among others . Rating : 8/10 . Better than average .

With a very good cast, a nice blend of wit and sentiment, and many other pluses, this classic remains as enjoyable and charming as ever. The fluffy but pleasant story benefits greatly from the Lubitsch touch, since he had the knack of giving significance to little things without taking them or himself too seriously. Presenting his characters honestly yet sympathetically, he makes the somewhat contrived situation seem believable and worth caring about. Its appeal comes across as almost effortless, but you only have to compare it with the less effective 90's remake to see how important the right touch is with this kind of story.

The atmosphere of life in the Budapest shop is set up efficiently and convincingly, and the cast all settle into their roles seamlessly. As the leads, Jimmy Stewart works perfectly, of course, and Margaret Sullavan conveys the right balance of spunkiness and vulnerability. Felix Bressart is invaluable, giving perhaps the finest performance among his many character roles. In some of his scenes, he barely has to say a word to make you smile. Frank Morgan is surprisingly good in a role rather different than usual for him, Joseph Schildkraut is effectively oily as the deceitful Vadas, and the others all help out, too. Lubitsch gives all of the characters a chance to come to life without pretense, just by using simple details effectively.

It all fits together very well, moves at just the right pace, and makes you a part of the characters' world. It makes for a very enjoyable movie that holds up very well even after several viewings.

The Stewart /Sullavan relationship and the warmth which flows on the screen are only one bend in a most extraordinary river.Although "extraordinary" is not the right word,because everything here is ordinary,no hero,no spectacular events and however,something happens.

The shop is a life microcosm,with its little quiet joys and its bitter disappointments,but,Lubitsch,here very close to Capra ,proves that virtuous gents like Stewart character can triumph in the end;and the final scene of the lovers is one of the wittier in the whole cinema.We seem to know all the clerks in the shop as if we've known them for years,and their everyday life is depicted with love and affection.The yuletide spirit is captured with a lot of emotion-check the scene between the boss and his new delivery boy Rudi and predates "it's a wonderful life" by five years.

The main topic is the fear of solitude.The shop is the place where everyone can feel he is part of a family,a family sometimes truer than the real one (see the boss's wife).And the director wants to make sure that ,when they leave their work on Xmas night,everyone is not on his own.A masterful conclusion.

The remake "you've got mail" featuring Ryan and Hanks is politically correct to a fault.All Lubitsch's movie charm and poetry seem to have been swallowed by the computers.

In Budapest, Hungary, the Matuschek and Company store is owned by Mr. Hugo Matuschek (Frank Morgan) and the bachelor Alfred Kralik (James Stewart) is his best and most experienced salesman. When Klara Novak (Margaret Sullavan) seeks a job position of saleswoman in the store, Matuschek hires her but Kralik and she do not tolerate each other. Meanwhile the lonely and dedicated Kralik has an unknown pen pal that he intends to propose very soon; however, he is fired without explanation by Matuschek in the night that he is going to meet his secret love. He goes to the bar where they have scheduled their meeting with his colleague Pirovitch (Felix Bressart) and he surprisingly finds that Klara is his correspondent; however, ashamed with the unemployment, he does not disclose his identity to her. When Matuschek discovers that he had misjudged Kralik and committed a mistake, he hires him again for the position of manager. But Klara is still fascinated with her future fiancé and does not pay much attention to Kralik.

"The Shop around the Corner" is a delightfully naive romance, and this is the type of film that deserves to be watched many times. It is charming and innocent, and James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan show a wonderful chemistry even in their arguments. I love this period of classic romantic comedies when society was satisfied with a screenplay that does not need to use sex scenes and other diversion but great dialogs supported by outstanding direction and acting. In 1998, Nora Ephron updated this film with the remake "You've Got Mail" without any reference to the work of Ernest Lubitsch. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "A Loja da Esquina" ("The Shop around the Corner")

Sweet romantic drama/comedy about Stewart and Sullavan writing love letters to each other without either one knowing who the other is. Naturally, they work together and can't stand each other. You can guess the rest. It's beautifully acted by the entire cast (especially Sullavan, Stewart and Frank Morgan), has a witty, intelligent script and looks absolutely stunning. It takes place in Budapest and was shot in Hollywood, but I found myself believing I was seeing Budapest! Everything looks so perfect and dream-like. A one of a kind film. Don't miss it!