Forget the pen pal romance, this movie seems much more interested in the shop, in working, in the way the different people interact with each other. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this dynamics so realistically painted on film. The scene where Stewart is let go is great. Again, like Emmet Otter (has anyone ever compared these two?) there seems to be something about class issues that seem integral in the christmas experience. I don’t need Marxist creeds from frosty, but I need some acknowledgment of it to really get at part of the melancholy of the season. This movie is amazing and I can’t believe people don’t talk about it more.
