14 Feb The Shop on Main Street
The Shop on Main Street
(1965) A small Slovak town is being Aryanized in preparation for deportation of the Jews. One of the townspeople, an Aryan out-of-work carpenter who is married to a constant nag and probably can’t wait to get out of the house, is assigned to manage the button shop of an elderly Jewish woman. She can hardly see, can’t hear much, walks with a cane and has no idea what is happening to her little village.
Most of this Czechoslovakian movie is about these two people, Tono and Mrs. Lautmann. He is so frustrated with her. She is clueless as to the danger she is in and just goes on with her life, cooking and caring for her new co-worker. In return, he keeps her shelves organized and repairs her furniture.
The language is Slovak and Yiddish. I recently watched Grand Illusion (in French — one of Orson Welles’ favorite films ) and Ashes and Diamonds (in Polish — one of Martin Scorsese’s 10 favorite films.) Of the three, this was my favorite. Polish-Jewish actress Ida Kamińska played Mrs. Lautmann. She was nominated for the 1966 Academy Award for best actress in a leading role. The movie won for Best Foreign Language Film.
In spite of the grim reality of what was happening, there was a lilt to the story. The music and the dream-like sequences were very effective.
My favorite World War II reviewer, Bosley Crowther of the New York Times, called it “one of the most arresting and devastating pictures I’ve seen from Europe or anywhere else in several years.” Watch the trailer for a hint of what he meant.
Now I’ve given away the ending.
The Shop On Main Street (The Criterion Collection) at amazon.com
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