The Shop Around the Corner (1940)

Christmas trade makes a small Budapest shop a place of anxious employment, frayed manners and private romantic hopes. James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan's quarrelling colleagues write tender letters without recognising their correspondent across the counter. Lubitsch gives the seasonal rush an emotional purpose: being kind is difficult when you are tired, worried and certain you understand somebody. A lovely choice for intimate comedy rather than a house full of festive spectacle.