In 1942, in a small town in Czechoslovakia, the poor carpenter Tony Brtko (Jozef Króner) is assigned "Aryanizator" of a small shop on the main street by his fascist brother-in-law Mark Kolkotsky (Frantisek Zvarík). His greedy wife Evelyn (Hana Slivková) is seduced with the promise of fortune, but Tony finds that the store owned by the deaf and senile seventy year-old widow Rozalie Lautmann (Ida Kaminska) is bankrupted and the old lady is financially supported by the Jewish community that promises a salary to him to help her. Tony befriends Ms, Lautmann and helps her in the store and repairs her furniture, and lures his wife with his salary. When the Jews are expelled from the town by the fascist, Tony decides to help the old lady.
"Obchod na Korze" is one of those movies that make you laugh and cry. The tragic-comic and heartbreaking story of a flawed Aryan man and a senile Jewish widow is very well developed and the viewer is able to understand the despair of the lead character absolutely powerless against the powers that be, in a village where everybody knows each other. His state of mind in the end with the whole situation associated to the booze drives him to his ultimate decision. My vote is eight.
Title (Brazil): "A Pequena Loja da Rua Principal" ("The Little Shop of the Main Street")
