The Shop on Main Street Movie Review 1965

During WWII, a Slovak takes a job as an "Aryan comptroller" for a Jewish-owned button shop. The owner is an old deaf woman; they slowly build a friendship. Tragedy ensues when all of the town's Jews are to be deported. Sensitive and subtle. Surely among the most gutwrenching portrayals of human tragedy ever on screen. Exquisite plotting and direction. In Czechoslovakian with English subtitles.

Distribution

Home Vision Cinema, c/o Image Entertainment, 20525 Nordhoff St., Ste. 200, Chatsworth, CA 91311, URL: http://www.homevision.com

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 111 minutes.
Originally from Czech.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Judaism, World War II, The Holocaust, 4 Bones

Screenplay

Jan Kadar, Elmar Klos

Cast

Ida Kaminska, Josef Kroner, Hana Slivkoua, Frantisek Holly, Martin Gregor

Cinematography

Vladimir Novotny

Director

Jan Kadar, Elmar Klos

Music

Zdenek Liska

Producer

Barrandov Film Studios

Awards

Oscars 1965: Foreign Film; N.Y. Film Critics 1966: Foreign Film.