"The Corner Shop" is also one of my favorite comedies. Different from Liu Bieqian's other works, this film follows the mainstream Hollywood comedy model. The content advocates mainstream social values and promotes an optimistic and positive attitude towards life. The characters in the story have more characters and more distinctive personality. At the same time, Liu Bieqian's use of the classic "touch" in the past is relatively reduced. But this did not affect the overall quality of the film. Because Liu Bieqian, as a great director, can still control the actors' performance and the rhythm of the story to ensure that the work always develops in the direction he requires.
There is a grocery and gift shop that has been in business for many years on the bustling street corner. The boss is Metutchek (Frank Morgan). There are several male and female clerks. Among them, Krerik (James Stewart) is the oldest but not too old chief clerk. Novak (Margaret Sullivan) is a newly added clerk. But Novak, who was full of fantasy, looked down on her superior, Krerik, in his bones. The two quarreled and quarreled. The Prince Charming in her mind is a pen pal who has never met! But in fact, this pen pal is Krerik. Soon, the situation in the store suddenly changed. Krerik was dismissed by the boss as an excuse for finding a job because he was suspected of having an affair with the boss’s wife. But at this moment he just happened to pay the pen pal appointment. But guilty of losing his job, Krerik didn't reveal his identity. On the other hand, the boss soon discovered that there was someone else who really gave him the green hat. Ashamed and annoyed, he tried to shoot himself. Fortunately, Pippi was stopped by the trot. During admission, the boss entrusted the store to Krerik to take care of it. Christmas Eve is approaching, with the efforts of Krerik and others, the small shop's single-day income hit a record high! At this time, all members of the shop, including the owner who just recovered and discharged from the hospital, are in a good mood to welcome the new year. As for our male protagonist, he seems to be ready to confess his love to the pen-friend who has always been kept in the dark...
Krerik, the actor of the film. Smart, emotional, hardworking and diligent, and dare to speak up to the boss. And "unfortunately" he was correct every time. But frankly speaking, Stewart played the small shop clerk, which is somewhat of a stubborn talent. What's more, with his tall, upright and handsome, not only was it difficult to win the favor of the heroine at one time, he was even categorized into the ordinary sub-category with disdain! Is this a bit of a flaw in this perfect movie? However, Stewart is still very good in performance. The complex and delicate changes in his eyes, expressions, and speech that he showed before and after discovering that Novak was his female pen pal fully demonstrated his acting superstar's demeanor. Margaret Sullivan, the actor of Novak, has only appeared in 16 movies in her life. Among them, only this film is considered a classic. North American audiences are also very unfamiliar with her. When many people are mentioned by this name, they often think of Mia Fallo's mother. Even so, the film critics still generally believed that no other actress was more suitable for Novak than her. According to them, "Catherine Hepburn is too hard, and Kim Arthur is too soft." That's right, Sullivan participated in Liu Bieqian's movie, not as a star but as a girl next door with innocent fantasies and lovely personality. Visually, her simplicity coincides with the image of a migrant worker in a small shop. At the same time, her unique voice is more conducive to comedy effects in the processing of lines. It can even be said that without Sullivan, there would be no such excellent comedy classic!
Although the personal characters and the relationship between the two protagonists affect the development of the whole story, they do not have such a prominent position in the proportion of the film's success. Because several other supporting roles performed equally well.
Owner Metutchek, his heart is not bad, and it is not bad to treat his employees. And diligent, more than 20 years like a day in the business. However, his ability is limited, and he is slightly hypocritical and overjoyed. These minor faults are vividly reflected in the director’s carefully designed and arranged section to promote the eight-tone cigarette case. And his "matching wits and courage" with Pippi is also one of the highlights of this film: in the hospitalization room, the boss expressed his routine gratitude to Pippi. I thought that a few polite remarks would be able to pass the other party. Unexpectedly, Pippi actually asked for a regularization. At this time, the boss had no choice but to prevaricate: Wait until I get better. Pippi is not a fuel-efficient lamp. He has seen the boss thoroughly: you may change your mind when you get better. I don't know if you are lying... chattering endlessly. Reluctantly bored, the boss waved his hand: That's it, it's all right, you're right now, you're right now! At the end of the film, the boss thanked the shop assistants point by point for their efforts during his illness. Everyone mentioned it, except Pippi. Maybe not accidentally. Because the boss subconsciously doesn't like the cunning trot on his sick bed. As for Pippi, he was still not rude, with his back to the camera, he immediately coughed in protest. Therefore, the boss had to add two compliments in public. In these two scenes, Liu Bieqian accurately grasped the internal consistency of plot development and character creation, and at the same time portrayed them so vividly and vividly.
Playing Bilovic is Felix Bressart (Felix Bressart), one of the ace supporting roles in Liu Bieqian's movie. He is Jewish and was born in Germany in 1892. In his early years, he was a famous actor in the German Benny Theater. It is said that Hitler turned out to be his loyal fan. In this regard, Conrad Hayton also mentioned in his autobiography: Hitler once said, "It's a pity, Bressat is a Jew!". Back to this film. He played Bilovic. Cowardly by nature, I never want to get ahead. Although forced by the situation and need to express respect for the leader from time to time, but suffers from the limitation of aptitude, horses are often slapped on their hooves. For example, it was hard to open the car door diligently, but it was the colleague dressed as a playboy who came down. In addition, he is also a good friend of the protagonist Krerik. The two often communicated their work intentions and life insights in private. As a person who drags his family, this old man can always give his friends some wisdom and philosophical advice. In one of them, he talked to Krerik about the possibility of the latter’s future involvement in marriage:
K: For example, there must be a three-bedroom apartment. With dining room, bedroom and living room.
Bi: Why do you want a three-bedroom apartment? You can live in the bedroom!
K: Where can I eat?
Bi: The kitchen! A beautiful large kitchen is sufficient.
K: How about entertaining guests? Where to entertain the guests?
Bi: Who do you think you are, ambassador? What guests need you to entertain?
If they are really your friends, they should come back after dinner!
In Liu Bieqian's comedy movies, many life philosophies usually come from the dialogue between the secondary supporting role and the protagonist. Moreover, these dialogues, due to the huge contrast between the speaker's status, education level and their wise words, can often produce a strong comedic effect! This comedy model was also borrowed by Princeton Sturges, Liu Bieqian's loyal admirer. Believe it or not, think back to the butler in "Sullivan's Journey" who was talking about his interests before the host set off...
The same small person, the same comedic role, can also hit the nail on the head in analysis and understanding, but the role of running Pippi is in sharp contrast with the old Bilovic in the character's personality. He is young and a non-staff, but witty and well-behaved. Whether it is the trivial details of opening the door for the boss or the heroic feat of preventing the boss from committing suicide, he is just right. Seeing the opportunity at the critical moment, the boss invites credit for bargaining, and it is absolutely unambiguous. And what he liked most was that he had to deliberately pretend to be mature at a young age. There are many places in the film that vividly portray this. For example, after going to the hospital of the boss who had attempted suicide, Pipi in a suit and shoes thoughtfully asked the doctor in charge about the boss’s condition and treatment. After a few conversations, the doctor began to doubt Pippi's identity. So he asked: "What is the relationship between you and Mr. Metuchek?" Pippi pretended to be a gentleman at this time, and replied solemnly: "I am responsible for the connection between Metuchek and the customer...by riding a bicycle!" (This is a humor in English specific language grammar, on a bicycle. Only English can pause and express this way. It is translated into Chinese. In any case, it loses the original taste.) The doctor first nodded, and suddenly realized that he was displeased. "That is to say, you are a runaway in a store?" Pippi curled his mouth at this time and counterattacked: "Doctor! Can I call you a pill dealer directly?"...Yes, people have dignity! Even if he is a runaway. Pippi explained this truth in his unique comedy way!
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