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The Shop Around the Corner, 1940
Alfred Kralik (James Stewart) has worked at a gift shop for almost a decade under the mercurial ownership of Mr. Matuschek (Frank Morgan). Things get shaken up when an outspoken new shop worker, Klara (Margaret Sullavan) is hired. The two clash frequently, and Kralik finds himself totally stunned when he learns that a woman he's corresponded with to the point of almost proposing is none other than Klara. Unsure of what to do with this new information, right as his relationship with Mr. Matuschek becomes inexplicably strained, Kralik must sort out his professional life and his love life.
I watched this film on an airplane (thanks, Delta!), so not the most ideal circumstance. At the same time, however, its gentle humor was absolutely the thing that I needed to soothe some flight nerves.
At this point, the whole hate-becomes-love dynamic in romantic comedy is a very, very familiar trope. And my response to it is always a bit tepid. In this case, though, there is enough interesting stuff happening around the central couple's sparring that I enjoyed it on the whole.
For example, despite the focus of the film obviously being the inevitable romance between Alfred and Klara, a lot of time and attention is given to the dynamics between the different store employees. The cast playing the co-workers are great, and their interactions give the central story a real-feeling context and backdrop against which to play out.
Stewart and Sullavan are really well matched in this film. Usually in "enemies become lovers" stories, I find myself really irritated by one half of the central couple. It's hard to get the balance quite right----you want the central couple to fight, but you don't want one or both of them to be nasty or hateful or bigoted, or anything else that would make you not root for them. By adding in some external pressures for Alfred and Klara, the film gives them both an excuse to be a bit on edge.
One part of the film that slid a little too far away from charming for me was the last stretch of Alfred knowing that he's Klara's lover, but not the other way around. It gives him an unreciprocated access to Klara's thoughts and emotions. For a while, this is an understandable move on his part. One of the things that I like about the film is the vulnerability it shows for both characters. We see how nervous Klara is to meet her beau, but we also see how concerned Alfred is that he won't live up to her image of him. But very late in the film, Alfred's actions start to feel more manipulative, and in one sequence he's just straight up messing with her. To me it fell into the territory of being not cute.
Overall this was a very sweet, very funny little rom-com. And many aspects of it are just straight up heartwarming.
The Shop Around the Corner, 1940
Alfred Kralik (James Stewart) has worked at a gift shop for almost a decade under the mercurial ownership of Mr. Matuschek (Frank Morgan). Things get shaken up when an outspoken new shop worker, Klara (Margaret Sullavan) is hired. The two clash frequently, and Kralik finds himself totally stunned when he learns that a woman he's corresponded with to the point of almost proposing is none other than Klara. Unsure of what to do with this new information, right as his relationship with Mr. Matuschek becomes inexplicably strained, Kralik must sort out his professional life and his love life.
I watched this film on an airplane (thanks, Delta!), so not the most ideal circumstance. At the same time, however, its gentle humor was absolutely the thing that I needed to soothe some flight nerves.
At this point, the whole hate-becomes-love dynamic in romantic comedy is a very, very familiar trope. And my response to it is always a bit tepid. In this case, though, there is enough interesting stuff happening around the central couple's sparring that I enjoyed it on the whole.
For example, despite the focus of the film obviously being the inevitable romance between Alfred and Klara, a lot of time and attention is given to the dynamics between the different store employees. The cast playing the co-workers are great, and their interactions give the central story a real-feeling context and backdrop against which to play out.
Stewart and Sullavan are really well matched in this film. Usually in "enemies become lovers" stories, I find myself really irritated by one half of the central couple. It's hard to get the balance quite right----you want the central couple to fight, but you don't want one or both of them to be nasty or hateful or bigoted, or anything else that would make you not root for them. By adding in some external pressures for Alfred and Klara, the film gives them both an excuse to be a bit on edge.
One part of the film that slid a little too far away from charming for me was the last stretch of Alfred knowing that he's Klara's lover, but not the other way around. It gives him an unreciprocated access to Klara's thoughts and emotions. For a while, this is an understandable move on his part. One of the things that I like about the film is the vulnerability it shows for both characters. We see how nervous Klara is to meet her beau, but we also see how concerned Alfred is that he won't live up to her image of him. But very late in the film, Alfred's actions start to feel more manipulative, and in one sequence he's just straight up messing with her. To me it fell into the territory of being not cute.
Overall this was a very sweet, very funny little rom-com. And many aspects of it are just straight up heartwarming.