As a comedy film of sexual manners, "An Affair to Remember" is very frothy, sentimental and somewhat sugary. It is not perfect either, the film has a tendency to be rather slow moving and it does loses its way in the last half. But I still really liked it, thanks to the sophistication of the direction and the rapier delivery of the dialogue. The atmosphere is endorsed with rhinestone-encrusted dresses, impeccable dinner suits and raised champagne classes, making it lovely to watch visually, courtesy to some beautiful cinematography. The music score in general is gorgeous, the incidental music certainly is that and the title song(sung with unusual sensitivity by the talented Marnie Nixon) "An Affair to Remember" really is a pearl in an oyster. However, I didn't care for the children's songs, I didn't hate them, I found them forgettable and I wasn't taken with the way they were sung either(too shouty). The performances from the two leads are what drives this film. Cary Grant is wonderfully arch and urbane, not to mention charming, while Doborah Kerr is enchanting, self-contained and sassy. With these qualities, the two wonderful actors share a what I consider believable chemistry that does bubble on screen in the best scenes. All in all, this is not a perfect film, but a pleasant one with a tearjerker of an ending. Better than its reputation I think, not for everyone, there are those who understandably find it too sugary sweet, but I think it is a handsomely mounted and a in general well performed film. 7.5/10 Bethany Cox
226 Reviews
"Darling, don't look at me like that."
Nazi_Fighter_David27 July 2008
Grant's charming philanderer Nicky Ferrante, a renowned bachelor, and Kerr's American nightclub singer Terry McKay meet aboard a transatlantic luxury liner steaming back to New York via Naples and surrenderin the midst of good humorto their undeniable chemistry
Unfortunately, both are hampered with others lovers At the end of the voyage, they make a promise In six months, if both are free they will reunite at the top of the Empire State Building, "the nearest thing they have to heaven in New York."
In the day of the meeting, the reformed Grant put his paintbrushes away and luckily paces the skyscraper's roof, but Kerr, looking up to heaven to see him, is involved in a serious accident
What fallows is almost unbelievable as Grant yields to pompous cynicism, unaware Kerr is too proud to let him know the truth
With four Oscar nominations, and with attractive settings as the French Riviera, and two appealing beautiful people sharing pink champagne, Leo McCarey's pretty good romantic film gives off flashes of gaiety and sways with longing hearts to be filled with love and life
Unfortunately, both are hampered with others lovers At the end of the voyage, they make a promise In six months, if both are free they will reunite at the top of the Empire State Building, "the nearest thing they have to heaven in New York."
In the day of the meeting, the reformed Grant put his paintbrushes away and luckily paces the skyscraper's roof, but Kerr, looking up to heaven to see him, is involved in a serious accident
What fallows is almost unbelievable as Grant yields to pompous cynicism, unaware Kerr is too proud to let him know the truth
With four Oscar nominations, and with attractive settings as the French Riviera, and two appealing beautiful people sharing pink champagne, Leo McCarey's pretty good romantic film gives off flashes of gaiety and sways with longing hearts to be filled with love and life
The first half promised a masterpiece that the second half couldn't deliver
zetes22 October 2007
I've had this DVD in my collection for several years now, having picked it up cheap at a Black Friday sale. Deborah Kerr's unfortunate passing finally got me to pull it out. Should have went with my first choice, Black Narcissus, instead. An Affair to Remember starts off fine, with Cary Grant and Kerr, both engaged to be married, meeting on a voyage across the Atlantic. The first half of the film follows them as they try to avoid each other, but end up falling in love anyway. As they are about to part ways, they agree to meet each other in six months at the top of the Empire State building. So far, it's lovely. Unfortunately, there's an hour left, and, where the first half was a lovely romantic comedy, the second half is all dull melodrama. When Cary and Kerr are apart, the sizzle between them burns out pretty much instantly. And then the film inserts a bunch of precocious children, whom Kerr teaches to sing. There were a couple of fine child actors in classic Hollywood, but the vast majority of them seem like they are being fed lines two seconds before the camera comes on, and then they just repeat it out of rote. If there's a Hell, I'll be surrounded by kids who appeared in classic movies.
A pearl in Pink Champagne
JSanicki12 February 2003
This film has to be probably the best romantic film I've ever seen, even above Gone With The Wind, but on the same level as The English Patient (my favorite film of all time). I got intrigued by this film back in high school when my sister dragged me to see Sleepless in Seattle. I caught the references to this film that Meg Ryan made throughout that film and thought that I'd like to rent this film (Affair to Remember) to see what the commotion was about. Needless to say, with the whole "shipboard romance" aspect of it, and the promise to meet again in six months atop the Empire State Building of all places, I quickly became hooked. The scene on the French Riviera with Nickie's grandmother playing the piano, oh God is it beautiful! Cary Grant is so debonair and suave and Deborah Kerr is so ravishing and stunningly beautiful, that it always demands repeated viewing from me (at least three times a year). Seeing this film always makes me wonder if something like the kind of relationship that Nickie had with Terry in the film would really be possible. Would and could someone actually leave the person they were engaged to to marry a complete and total stranger that they just met days ago? I'd like to think that it could, but then I am nothing but a hopeless romantic. The final scene always tears my heart out, no matter how many times I've seen it, I'm always sobbing. Watching this film around Valentine's Day (even if you are single) is always a treat. It allows our fantasies to take flight so that we may think that we are actually the one meeting our beloved atop the Empire State Building in a thunderstorm. Watch with a box of Kleenex nearby. My rating: 4 stars
Truly a film (and affair!) to remember!
Sweet Charity17 May 2001
This is an absolutely beautiful flim, with two beautiful, shining stars. Deborah Kerr, always the epitome of British lady-like reserve... that dainty face and that curled red hair... always bringing a grace to the roles she plays (except for Karen Holmes in "From Here To Eternity"... but that's another story). She's breathtakingly grand as Terry McKay, the class-act who falls in love with a playboy (Grant), though she is engaged to another. And Cary ... the most gorgeous person to EVER grace this earth! He's absolutely marvelous as playboy Nickie Ferrante, who finds himself falling quickly in love with someone other than his fiancee. I have never seen chemistry on screen like this! Although the movie may be classified as "sap" or "a love story"... it's got it's funny moments ("Do you think it will ever take the place of night baseball?", "Top of the mornin' to ya!"--"And the rest of the day to you!"). But there are some scenes that just absolutely take your breath away... like when they are visiting Nickie's grandmother (in my opinion, the point that they realize their deep love for each other). Also, when they meet their fiancees in New York and while Terry's hugging Ken, Nickie gently kisses his fingertips and places them on her glove, and then she holds her glove to her cheek. Truly divine. However, the defining moment of this film (believe me, you better have some hankies handy!) is at the end... the look on Grant's face whenever he sees the portrait is PRICELESS. And of course, Kerr's voice trembling at the words "Darling, don't look at me like that." I give this movie a definite 10.
As Deep and Rich as It Is Stylish and Romantic
Danusha_Goska13 July 2007
"An Affair to Remember" is an almost perfect film. It is as deep and rich as it is stylish and romantic.
And if someone tells you it is just a soap opera -- that person would be very, very wrong.
Yes, the film has style to burn. Deborah Kerr was never more beautiful. Her skin looks like cream; her pert, pinched nose like a blossom. She's never been more appealing than she is here. The scene where she smiles from a boat at her fiancé on shore alone is worth the price of admission.
Cary Grant seems to sleep in tuxedos. He is a walking model of male perfection.
Less observant viewers come away from this movie thinking that nothing happened, that nothing was ever at stake, that nothing was risked or gained. How wrong they are.
Kerr's amazing dresses -- how about the one with the pumpkin colored ribbons woven through the front? -- Grant's suavity, and the south of France settings are not just there to pose for the camera.
All of the beauty of this film is there to do very hard work -- to tell a less than beautiful story.
And, no, this is not a movie where nothing happens. Something is happening in every scene -- you just have to be paying attention, and you just have to be mature enough, or have your antenna up high enough, to catch the subtle messages the film is sending, and to feel in your own solar plexus, the resonances of loves, dreams, and selves risked and gained, or lost.
Nicki and Terry are both gambling much here. They are wounded people in a world of high glamor; they speak in arch codes, even as their hearts are bleeding, or their breath is caught against the cage of dreams.
Grant's character, Nicki Ferrante, is a lazy gigolo. "Gigolo" is a pretty word for an ugly situation. Ferrante is a talented artist, but he knows that he can market something else he does -- seduce women -- far more easily, and for a higher price, than he can get for his paintings.
Kerr's character, Terry McKay, as she says, had to grow up very fast, and fight off a boss who -- well -- she faced some bad stuff in her life. When a steady, but less than thrilling, man offered to set her up, she, no fool, took the offer.
These are two beautiful people swanning through life over some very ugly circumstances. They have both sold their best selves for easy money.
And, then, completely by chance, on shipboard, they meet their soul mates. This meeting doesn't just present them with an opportunity for a one night stand. It demands that they face their own fears, and become their best selves.
I'm one of those cynical people who doesn't believe in love, never mind soul mates, but this movie carries it all off so well, it makes me believe.
Grant and Kerr begin with the lightest, and subtlest, of exchanges. they say things to each other -- example: "I'd be surprised if you were surprised" -- that, if you are not paying attention and that if you don't know a lot about life -- would just go over your head.
Slowly but surely their effervescent, and yet irresistible, attraction becomes truly heavy. The scene with Grandmere Janou (Cathleen Nesbit) is amazing for all it says, without actually saying anything.
I could see a naive film-goer taking in that scene and then asking, "What was the point of that scene?" You really have to have your eyes on the screen, and have a sensitivity to human interactions. Who is looking at whom; whose face is suddenly hidden and why; who is saying what without actually saying it; and why does the sound of that boat whistle bring tears -- you have to be willing to pay attention, and to have a sense of life and human relationships, and, yes, an openness to the possibility of there being a God to understand that scene.
Here you have a man and a woman who have, basically, sold themselves to the highest bidder, and who, at that point, are perilously close to cheating. What happens? Their love is blessed by the Virgin Mary. Heavy stuff.
"We changed our course today." Truer words were never spoken.
I've got to hand it to Leo McCarey, who wrote and directed this film as well as the Academy Award winning "Going My Way." He so wonderfully brings the best, and most complex, aspects of Catholicism to the screen here. Catholicism is associated with the romance languages -- French, Italian -- and it also is friendly to this kind of romance -- a romance where fallen beauties are blindsided by the kind of tortuous, redemptive, overwhelming, fated love that demands, and gets, everything, after which, you are never the same.
If you haven't seen the movie, or "Sleepless in Seattle," I won't reveal the ending to you. I'll just say that merely thinking about the ending can make me cry such tears as, really, very few films I've ever seen can make me cry. These tears are their own species.
And if someone tells you it is just a soap opera -- that person would be very, very wrong.
Yes, the film has style to burn. Deborah Kerr was never more beautiful. Her skin looks like cream; her pert, pinched nose like a blossom. She's never been more appealing than she is here. The scene where she smiles from a boat at her fiancé on shore alone is worth the price of admission.
Cary Grant seems to sleep in tuxedos. He is a walking model of male perfection.
Less observant viewers come away from this movie thinking that nothing happened, that nothing was ever at stake, that nothing was risked or gained. How wrong they are.
Kerr's amazing dresses -- how about the one with the pumpkin colored ribbons woven through the front? -- Grant's suavity, and the south of France settings are not just there to pose for the camera.
All of the beauty of this film is there to do very hard work -- to tell a less than beautiful story.
And, no, this is not a movie where nothing happens. Something is happening in every scene -- you just have to be paying attention, and you just have to be mature enough, or have your antenna up high enough, to catch the subtle messages the film is sending, and to feel in your own solar plexus, the resonances of loves, dreams, and selves risked and gained, or lost.
Nicki and Terry are both gambling much here. They are wounded people in a world of high glamor; they speak in arch codes, even as their hearts are bleeding, or their breath is caught against the cage of dreams.
Grant's character, Nicki Ferrante, is a lazy gigolo. "Gigolo" is a pretty word for an ugly situation. Ferrante is a talented artist, but he knows that he can market something else he does -- seduce women -- far more easily, and for a higher price, than he can get for his paintings.
Kerr's character, Terry McKay, as she says, had to grow up very fast, and fight off a boss who -- well -- she faced some bad stuff in her life. When a steady, but less than thrilling, man offered to set her up, she, no fool, took the offer.
These are two beautiful people swanning through life over some very ugly circumstances. They have both sold their best selves for easy money.
And, then, completely by chance, on shipboard, they meet their soul mates. This meeting doesn't just present them with an opportunity for a one night stand. It demands that they face their own fears, and become their best selves.
I'm one of those cynical people who doesn't believe in love, never mind soul mates, but this movie carries it all off so well, it makes me believe.
Grant and Kerr begin with the lightest, and subtlest, of exchanges. they say things to each other -- example: "I'd be surprised if you were surprised" -- that, if you are not paying attention and that if you don't know a lot about life -- would just go over your head.
Slowly but surely their effervescent, and yet irresistible, attraction becomes truly heavy. The scene with Grandmere Janou (Cathleen Nesbit) is amazing for all it says, without actually saying anything.
I could see a naive film-goer taking in that scene and then asking, "What was the point of that scene?" You really have to have your eyes on the screen, and have a sensitivity to human interactions. Who is looking at whom; whose face is suddenly hidden and why; who is saying what without actually saying it; and why does the sound of that boat whistle bring tears -- you have to be willing to pay attention, and to have a sense of life and human relationships, and, yes, an openness to the possibility of there being a God to understand that scene.
Here you have a man and a woman who have, basically, sold themselves to the highest bidder, and who, at that point, are perilously close to cheating. What happens? Their love is blessed by the Virgin Mary. Heavy stuff.
"We changed our course today." Truer words were never spoken.
I've got to hand it to Leo McCarey, who wrote and directed this film as well as the Academy Award winning "Going My Way." He so wonderfully brings the best, and most complex, aspects of Catholicism to the screen here. Catholicism is associated with the romance languages -- French, Italian -- and it also is friendly to this kind of romance -- a romance where fallen beauties are blindsided by the kind of tortuous, redemptive, overwhelming, fated love that demands, and gets, everything, after which, you are never the same.
If you haven't seen the movie, or "Sleepless in Seattle," I won't reveal the ending to you. I'll just say that merely thinking about the ending can make me cry such tears as, really, very few films I've ever seen can make me cry. These tears are their own species.
Men simply do not talk this way!....
AlsExGal31 December 2014
...especially if that man is being played by Cary Grant! I'm not going to spoil it for you by repeating WHAT Grant's character says that sounds ridiculous, I'll let you watch and find out. I'd just like to know what kind of bucks the studio held out to Grant to get him to speak some of these lines, which are mainly the lines every woman wants to hear from a man who looks and moves like Cary Grant.
The idea behind this film is that two people on the threshold of middle age - at least in the 1950's - meet on a long cruise and fall in love. So far, so good. But there are complications, or else there would be no movie. Both are involved with wealthy members of the opposite sex and have no money or real skills of their own. They agree to try to make a go of it independently, having no contact with the other, and to meet at the top of the Empire State Building six months from the day of landing in New York if all works out. Complications ensue.
You are obviously setting yourself up for disaster or at least miscommunication and bitterness if you say things like "if one of us doesn't show up, no questions". No grudge maybe, but no questions, no bothering to find out what went wrong? Wouldn't it just eat at you not knowing during the six months if the other person just forgot all about this plan in the first place and you are eking out a living for nothing? I shall now prepare to be pelted by eggs, tomatoes, and tear stained handkerchiefs.
The idea behind this film is that two people on the threshold of middle age - at least in the 1950's - meet on a long cruise and fall in love. So far, so good. But there are complications, or else there would be no movie. Both are involved with wealthy members of the opposite sex and have no money or real skills of their own. They agree to try to make a go of it independently, having no contact with the other, and to meet at the top of the Empire State Building six months from the day of landing in New York if all works out. Complications ensue.
You are obviously setting yourself up for disaster or at least miscommunication and bitterness if you say things like "if one of us doesn't show up, no questions". No grudge maybe, but no questions, no bothering to find out what went wrong? Wouldn't it just eat at you not knowing during the six months if the other person just forgot all about this plan in the first place and you are eking out a living for nothing? I shall now prepare to be pelted by eggs, tomatoes, and tear stained handkerchiefs.
Lovely, Lilting Romance
twanurit25 March 2001
What one has to consider about the Deborah Kerr/Cary Grant characters is that they are both "kept" individuals: Kerr by a wealthy Texan named Ken (-doll, played by Richard Denning), Grant a gigolo engaged to an heiress (Neva Patterson). They meet on an ocean cruise, with this some cute and also silly comedy thrown in. Kerr & Grant are British and speak the accents yet their characters are from the U.S.; a not too distracting error, however. An unusually touching scene is when they de-bark in Italy and visit Grant's 82-year-old grandmother (Cathleen Nesbitt). It's a beautiful setting with wonderful music and pathos. Back in the states the couple agree to meet atop the Empire State Building in 6 months. One wonders why Kerr won't marry the handsome Denning, athletic, wealthy and kind (in real-life the actor was married to the British-raised actress Evelyn Ankers, a beauty in the Kerr-mold). Much of the second half is infused with un-necessary scenes of singing children but this all leads up the the final, long scene, beautifully acted and directed (by Leo McCarey). A mystery is very slowly unraveled in layers until the peak of the scene, scored by the emotional title theme song. This scene "gets" one every time, that's how effective it is. Beautiful costumes, scenery, clever photography (note the scene where the open patio door reveals the Empire State Building in its reflection), great cast make this an enduring, never-forgotten golden classic.
A charming memory
gaityr10 March 2002
Warning: Spoilers
It's not difficult to see why AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER has endured for so many decades as a romantic drama, consistently rated as one of the most romantic films of all time.
The first half of the film was rather slow, as it introduced us to characters and established their backgrounds and links. It wasn't so much the script as the interaction between Nicky (Cary Grant) and Terry (Deborah Kerr) that was intriguing--the little stolen moments, the careful words, and even that tiny, indirect farewell kiss Nicky bestows on Terry's hand as they part company when coming off the steamer. It all builds up to a terrific denouement, and I have to admit to being thrilled when Nicky turns up at Terry's door, and increasingly horrified as he baits her about missing their meeting atop the Empire State building.
Cary Grant is charming as always, and, at age 53, still able to get a girl's heart to stop dead in its tracks. Who *wouldn't* have been too busy thinking about him to get into a devastating car accident? Deborah Kerr is lovely as well, and the direction of the film is excellent. We don't get soundtracks like this anymore, either--soft, romantically lush, with children serenading the audience as much as they do Terry.
If this movie had been made today, I would probably be cynical and think of it as emotionally exploitative. But, with its impeccable cast playing each line sincerely and truthfully, it works. The set-up is simple; the heart of it is unforgettable: this is true of both Nicky and Terry's relationship, as well as the film as a whole.
The first half of the film was rather slow, as it introduced us to characters and established their backgrounds and links. It wasn't so much the script as the interaction between Nicky (Cary Grant) and Terry (Deborah Kerr) that was intriguing--the little stolen moments, the careful words, and even that tiny, indirect farewell kiss Nicky bestows on Terry's hand as they part company when coming off the steamer. It all builds up to a terrific denouement, and I have to admit to being thrilled when Nicky turns up at Terry's door, and increasingly horrified as he baits her about missing their meeting atop the Empire State building.
Cary Grant is charming as always, and, at age 53, still able to get a girl's heart to stop dead in its tracks. Who *wouldn't* have been too busy thinking about him to get into a devastating car accident? Deborah Kerr is lovely as well, and the direction of the film is excellent. We don't get soundtracks like this anymore, either--soft, romantically lush, with children serenading the audience as much as they do Terry.
If this movie had been made today, I would probably be cynical and think of it as emotionally exploitative. But, with its impeccable cast playing each line sincerely and truthfully, it works. The set-up is simple; the heart of it is unforgettable: this is true of both Nicky and Terry's relationship, as well as the film as a whole.
A Real Treasure!
moviegal4268926 August 2004
There is a reason why "An Affair to Remember" has remained a classic over the years. It contains all the elements the audience is looking for in an entertaining film. It has two marvelous stars, a timeless plot, and it transports the audience to a different world.
I think it is almost impossible for a movie with Cary Grant in it to be anything other than first rate entertainment. Not only is he handsome, charming, and sophisticated, but he also knows how to grab the viewers' attention and manage to keep. Each time we see his movies,connects with us in a way that fascinates us, and yet it is comforting and familiar. Deborah Kerr is a lady who knows how to capture the audience's heart. She can always manage to get us rooting for her.
I love "An Affair to Remember" because it showcases the incomparable talents of my two favorite stars at their best. I know some people say that this movie is too sentimental and corny, but part of its allure is that it is not too realistic. It gives us an escape into the ideal world where everyone is good looking and charming. Nowadays, movies like to play on the realism of life. This movie is for all the romantics out there who are looking for a film to fall in love with!
I think it is almost impossible for a movie with Cary Grant in it to be anything other than first rate entertainment. Not only is he handsome, charming, and sophisticated, but he also knows how to grab the viewers' attention and manage to keep. Each time we see his movies,connects with us in a way that fascinates us, and yet it is comforting and familiar. Deborah Kerr is a lady who knows how to capture the audience's heart. She can always manage to get us rooting for her.
I love "An Affair to Remember" because it showcases the incomparable talents of my two favorite stars at their best. I know some people say that this movie is too sentimental and corny, but part of its allure is that it is not too realistic. It gives us an escape into the ideal world where everyone is good looking and charming. Nowadays, movies like to play on the realism of life. This movie is for all the romantics out there who are looking for a film to fall in love with!
"There is nothing wrong with Nicolo that a good woman couldn't make right."
classicsoncall9 December 2006
Warning: Spoilers
"An Affair To Remember" might be a good name for the story, but as a movie, it's one I'll likely soon forget. With no disrespect to the principals, it's nothing I was expecting with Cary Grant in the cast. No stranger to romantic comedies, Grant was a blast in "The Philadelphia Story" (1940) and "His Girl Friday" from the same year; he even managed great comedic timing in the adventure story, "Gunga Din" (1939). So I'll have to assume that director Leo McCarey consciously stayed away from a more lively and spirited presentation. The result came off (for me at least) as a humorless relationship in which Nick Ferrante (Grant) and Terry McKay (Deborah Kerr) didn't seem to be having any fun at all. In fact, neither seemed to be having any fun in the romances they swap for their new one; and what was with that golf ball size knot on Grant's forehead at the beginning of the story?
I say all this in retrospect, as I had some hope for the film as Nickie and Terry debarked from their cruise in Italy to visit with Grandmother Janou (Cathleen Nesbit). The locale of the Mediterranean home was nothing short of gorgeous, and Janou's response to Terry on wishing she could live there was deeply introspective - Terry was too young and would have to live long enough to create her own memories. That was probably my best takeaway from the film.
The accident disrupting the Empire State Building rendezvous was indeed tragic, but I felt the aftermath played out in less than a realistic manner. Would a real person hide from their lover because of a tragedy like that, or would one seek them out to explain and hopefully continue a relationship? Terry couldn't locate Nick, (the most famous eligible bachelor it seemed in the world at the time), but didn't have any trouble sending a letter half way around the world to Grandmother. When Nick unexpectedly shows up at Terry's apartment, wouldn't one's impulse be to gesture upwards even if they couldn't walk? Instead, Kerr's character remains as lifeless as she had for the earlier part of the film. I don't know, maybe I'm being too critical, but the reactions of these two people didn't seem to be based in real life.
So, "An Affair To Remember"? Sorry hopeless romantics, I think not.
I say all this in retrospect, as I had some hope for the film as Nickie and Terry debarked from their cruise in Italy to visit with Grandmother Janou (Cathleen Nesbit). The locale of the Mediterranean home was nothing short of gorgeous, and Janou's response to Terry on wishing she could live there was deeply introspective - Terry was too young and would have to live long enough to create her own memories. That was probably my best takeaway from the film.
The accident disrupting the Empire State Building rendezvous was indeed tragic, but I felt the aftermath played out in less than a realistic manner. Would a real person hide from their lover because of a tragedy like that, or would one seek them out to explain and hopefully continue a relationship? Terry couldn't locate Nick, (the most famous eligible bachelor it seemed in the world at the time), but didn't have any trouble sending a letter half way around the world to Grandmother. When Nick unexpectedly shows up at Terry's apartment, wouldn't one's impulse be to gesture upwards even if they couldn't walk? Instead, Kerr's character remains as lifeless as she had for the earlier part of the film. I don't know, maybe I'm being too critical, but the reactions of these two people didn't seem to be based in real life.
So, "An Affair To Remember"? Sorry hopeless romantics, I think not.
Amazing movie, not at all annoying
eden-hunt27 March 2005
This is one of those movies that you can watch again and again due to its sweet nature and its refreshing look at how the world used to be. It is quaint yet still touching to those of us viewing it 50 years later. It is still relevant and it is still wonderful to watch the chemistry between the charismatic Cary Grant and the beautiful Deborah Kerr. The movie is a reminder of how simple things could make you laugh back in days when comedy was not sarcasm or needing negativity to be funny. "An Affair to Remember" is a wonderfully beautiful movie that creates a wonderful sense of how romance should be. It's lasting quality can be seen in other movies that have followed by deriving inspiration from the use of the Empire State Building as an iconic tower representing romance and this is a testament to the importance and relevance of this movie decades later. Plus, Cary Grant is still a cinematic icon 50 years later. This is a beautiful movie than spans time and still touches hearts this many years later. And it will continue to touch hearts for many years to come.
Romantic Comedy?
gavin694217 August 2015
A couple falls in love and agrees to meet in six months at the Empire State Building - but will it happen? This is a remake of "Love Affair" (1939) and a strong inspiration for "Sleepless in Seattle". Interestingly, both this film and "Love Affair" were directed by Leo McCarey and both were strong Oscar films. Apparently a director can make a film twice and be honored both times! Cary Grant makes a decent lead, and certainly had the charm and charisma to be the romantic actor type. But it is not a role I prefer for him. Indeed, he is so much stronger in madcap comedies, when strange things happen. Here there is just no soul... it may as well be a modern romantic comedy, which is not a compliment.
Very Slight
SwollenThumb2 May 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Old Hollywood. Nowadays the story is totally unconvincing even for a romantic comedy. Why would a serious person want Nickie if he is the playboy everyone thinks he is? And the visit to the sweet little old grandma and praying together there is unconvincing reason to suddenly want to marry someone! They have hardly left her then they are incredibly speaking of marriage and ending their current relationships. As for Nickie not even worrying about if something had happened to Terry....Why? I saw this in the '60s and loved it but the intervening years have not been kind to it. It's very slight I'm afraid.
The Film That Got Away
TJBNYC7 August 2001
Warning: Spoilers
The dawn of such technical advances as heightened Technicolor usage, widescreen effects and stereophonic sound prompted many studios in the 1950's to re-hash their most successful stories and "pump up" the glamour in a bid to compete with television.
So, "The Women" (1939) became "The Opposite Sex" (1956); "The Philadelphia Story" (1940) became "High Society" (1956); "My Man Godfrey" (1936) was disastrously remade under the same title in 1957; and, in one of the more successful attempts, "Love Story" (1939) morphed into "An Affair to Remember" (1957).
The classic original film starred Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer as the ill-fated lovers; the update didn't skimp on star power, and reeled in heavyweights Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr.
Grant, of course, was already a legend, and if a few missteps in the early 1950's put him in a mild slump, he scored a tremendous success in 1955 with Hitchcock's "To catch a Thief." Kerr, on the other hand, was enjoying huge acclaim as a result of her performance in "The King and I" (which itself was a super-deluxe, musical retelling of "Anna and the King of Siam," 1948, also starring Dunne).
All the elements seemed to be in "An Affair to Remember"'s favor: popular, charismatic stars; lavish production values; and even the same director as the 1939 original, Leo McCary. Unfortunately, some of the sparkle seems to have gotten smothered beneath the Technicolor trappings, hackeneyed melodrama cliches, and the swelling, swooning theme song.
Everything starts out perfectly fine: Grant, a notorious international playboy, meets Kerr, a sensible nightclub singer, while onboard a luxurious cruise ship. Although both are spoken for (Grant's engagement is humorously reported upon at the film's start), there is an immediate spark, and the banter is quite charming and witty. The film is handled with a light, comic touch, and it seems as if, for once, a 1950's remake is going to at least be on a par with its predecessor, if not exactly surpassing it.
Unfortunately, things begin to fall apart as soon as the star-crossed pair hit dry land. Except for a surprisingly touching (if calculated) scene where Kerr and Grant visit his frail Italian grandmother (the always-wonderful Cathleen Nesbitt), the remainder of the picture veers sharply into pure 1950's soap. **(SPOILERS TO FOLLOW)** Grant and Kerr promise each other to dump their respective fiance(e)s, and meet atop the Empire State Building to reaffirm their love and get married. On her way to the meeting, Kerr gets near-killed crossing a street (no doubt Vic Damone belting that damn song distracted her) and Grant, not knowing of the accident, believes that she's had a change of heart.
Kerr is now confined to a wheelchair; Grant follows his life's dream to become a painter; Kerr buys one of his paintings; Grant tracks her down; Grant learns of her accident by opening her bedroom door and finding a wheelchair in the darkened room, hit by a spotlight. (Groan.) Together at last, Kerr and Grant dissolve into happy tears, with Kerr uttering perhaps the most cringe-worthy line in big budget soap opera history: "If you can paint, I can walk!"
In trying to combine the screwball romantic comedy elements of the 1930's with a tackier, 1950's-era "Love is a Many Splendored Thing"-type mentality creates a very schizophrenic film. The first half is very enjoyable, fast-paced, and charming. The second half is mawkish and shrill; still entertaining, but a disappointment after the relative excellence of the first half. (There's even a horrid musical sequence with Kerr and a disadvantaged children's chorus--a crude and obvious nod to her previous "King and I" success.)
You could do a lot worse than "An Affair to Remember" when it comes to lowbrow melodrama gussied up in deluxe trappings; after all, nothing with Cary Grant is completely without merit. But it's also a sad reminder of the film it could have been.
So, "The Women" (1939) became "The Opposite Sex" (1956); "The Philadelphia Story" (1940) became "High Society" (1956); "My Man Godfrey" (1936) was disastrously remade under the same title in 1957; and, in one of the more successful attempts, "Love Story" (1939) morphed into "An Affair to Remember" (1957).
The classic original film starred Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer as the ill-fated lovers; the update didn't skimp on star power, and reeled in heavyweights Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr.
Grant, of course, was already a legend, and if a few missteps in the early 1950's put him in a mild slump, he scored a tremendous success in 1955 with Hitchcock's "To catch a Thief." Kerr, on the other hand, was enjoying huge acclaim as a result of her performance in "The King and I" (which itself was a super-deluxe, musical retelling of "Anna and the King of Siam," 1948, also starring Dunne).
All the elements seemed to be in "An Affair to Remember"'s favor: popular, charismatic stars; lavish production values; and even the same director as the 1939 original, Leo McCary. Unfortunately, some of the sparkle seems to have gotten smothered beneath the Technicolor trappings, hackeneyed melodrama cliches, and the swelling, swooning theme song.
Everything starts out perfectly fine: Grant, a notorious international playboy, meets Kerr, a sensible nightclub singer, while onboard a luxurious cruise ship. Although both are spoken for (Grant's engagement is humorously reported upon at the film's start), there is an immediate spark, and the banter is quite charming and witty. The film is handled with a light, comic touch, and it seems as if, for once, a 1950's remake is going to at least be on a par with its predecessor, if not exactly surpassing it.
Unfortunately, things begin to fall apart as soon as the star-crossed pair hit dry land. Except for a surprisingly touching (if calculated) scene where Kerr and Grant visit his frail Italian grandmother (the always-wonderful Cathleen Nesbitt), the remainder of the picture veers sharply into pure 1950's soap. **(SPOILERS TO FOLLOW)** Grant and Kerr promise each other to dump their respective fiance(e)s, and meet atop the Empire State Building to reaffirm their love and get married. On her way to the meeting, Kerr gets near-killed crossing a street (no doubt Vic Damone belting that damn song distracted her) and Grant, not knowing of the accident, believes that she's had a change of heart.
Kerr is now confined to a wheelchair; Grant follows his life's dream to become a painter; Kerr buys one of his paintings; Grant tracks her down; Grant learns of her accident by opening her bedroom door and finding a wheelchair in the darkened room, hit by a spotlight. (Groan.) Together at last, Kerr and Grant dissolve into happy tears, with Kerr uttering perhaps the most cringe-worthy line in big budget soap opera history: "If you can paint, I can walk!"
In trying to combine the screwball romantic comedy elements of the 1930's with a tackier, 1950's-era "Love is a Many Splendored Thing"-type mentality creates a very schizophrenic film. The first half is very enjoyable, fast-paced, and charming. The second half is mawkish and shrill; still entertaining, but a disappointment after the relative excellence of the first half. (There's even a horrid musical sequence with Kerr and a disadvantaged children's chorus--a crude and obvious nod to her previous "King and I" success.)
You could do a lot worse than "An Affair to Remember" when it comes to lowbrow melodrama gussied up in deluxe trappings; after all, nothing with Cary Grant is completely without merit. But it's also a sad reminder of the film it could have been.
"A Flame To Burn Through Eternity"
bkoganbing12 May 2007
I do love this film so and one thing it has that the original Love Affair did not have was that great title song, sung over the credits by Vic Damone. It was composed by Harry Warren and Harold Adamson and it's one of the great movie themes of all time. Guaranteed to put you in the mood for romance and tears.
This version with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr sticks pretty close to the original with Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne. Two people, each engaged to others, meet on shipboard and fall in love. It's one of those chemical things that no one can help.
Grant's a playboy who candidly admits he's never worked a day in his life and Kerr wants a bit more security than that. They agree to meet at the top of the Empire State Building in exactly six months to see if the sparks are still there. But something is always interrupting the course of history and romance.
Can't say much more than that, but as Kerr reminds Grant if they don't meet it will be for a darn good reason and if you see the film you'll agree she had one.
This was the second of three films that Grant and Kerr made together and this is easily the best of them. I don't think Cary Grant was ever more romantic on the screen and that is saying something.
Cathleen Nesbitt though old enough to be his mother, plays Cary's grandmother in grand old world style. Her part had previously been played by Maria Ouspenskaya and later on in the Warren Beatty-Annette Bening remake was done by Katharine Hepburn.
If your taste run to screen romances, this is THE film you do not dare miss.
This version with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr sticks pretty close to the original with Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne. Two people, each engaged to others, meet on shipboard and fall in love. It's one of those chemical things that no one can help.
Grant's a playboy who candidly admits he's never worked a day in his life and Kerr wants a bit more security than that. They agree to meet at the top of the Empire State Building in exactly six months to see if the sparks are still there. But something is always interrupting the course of history and romance.
Can't say much more than that, but as Kerr reminds Grant if they don't meet it will be for a darn good reason and if you see the film you'll agree she had one.
This was the second of three films that Grant and Kerr made together and this is easily the best of them. I don't think Cary Grant was ever more romantic on the screen and that is saying something.
Cathleen Nesbitt though old enough to be his mother, plays Cary's grandmother in grand old world style. Her part had previously been played by Maria Ouspenskaya and later on in the Warren Beatty-Annette Bening remake was done by Katharine Hepburn.
If your taste run to screen romances, this is THE film you do not dare miss.
When nostalgic for old-fashioned movies, this is it
overseer-39 February 2002
If you think you cannot stand another headline about people trying to blow up airplanes with shoe bombs, when you are on the verge of depression because the world is so hard and immoral and unkind, when you want to return to the Good Old Days of the 1950's, then plop this video into your player and watch two film STARS give lovely sweet performances in a GROWN UP, sensitive film called "An Affair To Remember". Ok, ok, so the Catholic touches go a bit overboard (Kerr in the chapel praying to the Virgin like a good Catholic, while she is a kept woman and playing around on her fiance with Grant, the little kids singing about hell and the devil, etc.) but other than that this film is romantic and enjoyable, nostalgic and fun. The two main characters grow emotionally and spiritually during the course of the film. That does not happen too often in modern films. And you don't forget this film once you have seen it. It stays with you, it haunts your consciousness and your memories. How many modern films can you say that about? I forget their plots 10 minutes after I am out of the theater. Not this film. You don't want this film to end: you want to see the couple get married, have children, see them successful in their careers, grow old together (and you know they do).
AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER (Leo McCarey, 1957) ***
Bunuel197630 January 2014
Romantic tearjerkers were never a preferred subgenre of mine (even when they were laced with sophisticated comedy touches, as here) – which is why I had never watched this popular title until now, despite being aware of its reputation, its having repeatedly turned up on TV (including a local channel) and the fact that it starred my favorite Hollywood star, Cary Grant; I relented now in view of the latter's recent 110th birthday and its inclusion in a couple of all-time best films polls. That said, I did catch the even more renowned LOVE AFFAIR (1939) – of which this is a remake (by the same director, no less!)
but, then, I have no interest in checking out the 1994 version (despite the presence of Warren Beatty and Katharine Hepburn). Incidentally, this marks yet another example in a curious trend prevalent around this time among veteran Hollywood directors (like Frank Capra, John Ford, Howard Hawks and Alfred Hitchcock) – that of 'upgrading' their own earlier successes!
Anyway, this is a glossy Fox effort in color and Cinemascope, given added commercial appeal by its title tune (sung by Vic Damone): the central casting, however, is really what makes it work – Grant, Deborah Kerr and Cathleen Nesbitt standing in for Charles Boyer, Irene Dunne and Maria Ouspenskaya. As always, Grant is basically playing himself here, that is to say, the epitome of a ladies' man; indeed, his impending marriage to a prominent society woman is seen making the news the world over in the very opening scene! He meets and falls for Kerr (who has promised to tie the knot with her own boyfriend) during an ocean voyage. Despite their attempts to keep a low-profile on board ship, the couple cannot fool the nosy crew and passengers. They decide to pull their hair down on the last day of the trip, knowing they must part soon after. To this end, they opt to have a go at the life awaiting them in New York but, if it fails, they are to meet in six months' time atop the Empire State Building. So far, the film maintains a light mood, albeit punctuated by nostalgia (their visit to Grant's French grandmother, who takes an instant liking to Kerr) and melancholy.
The second half does go overboard with contrivances: the heroine meets with an accident on the day she is to be reunited with Grant; oblivious to this, he believes he has been stood up and grows bitter. Eventually, he attends a theatrical performance with his former intended, only to run into Kerr and her own ex-flame (now devoted to taking care of the crippled woman). In the meantime, the narrative grows even more saccharine with Kerr's taking charge of a children's choir (for the record, we are treated to numerous songs throughout the film since the leading lady also unconvincingly takes up work temporarily as a chanteuse, the actress' voice dubbed – as had been the case with THE KING AND I {1956} – by Marni Nixon)! Anyway, Grant (who has similarly reprised his once-promising painting career to support himself) finally decides to confront her on Christmas Day: it takes him a long time to realize the state she is in, however, though the moment is movingly depicted – when he tells Kerr that his picture of her (wearing the shawl his grandmother had wished the woman to have) was purchased by a disabled lady, only to find it in his beloved's bedroom!
The copy of the film I own is culled from the SE DVD issued as part of Fox's esteemed "Studio Classics" line (subsequent releases, featured even more supplements!) – though I chose not to listen to the Audio Commentary at this juncture (being especially wary of its considerable 115-minute length), the stills gallery did not work on my player, while the 24-minute "Making Of" documentary will be dealt with separately.
Anyway, this is a glossy Fox effort in color and Cinemascope, given added commercial appeal by its title tune (sung by Vic Damone): the central casting, however, is really what makes it work – Grant, Deborah Kerr and Cathleen Nesbitt standing in for Charles Boyer, Irene Dunne and Maria Ouspenskaya. As always, Grant is basically playing himself here, that is to say, the epitome of a ladies' man; indeed, his impending marriage to a prominent society woman is seen making the news the world over in the very opening scene! He meets and falls for Kerr (who has promised to tie the knot with her own boyfriend) during an ocean voyage. Despite their attempts to keep a low-profile on board ship, the couple cannot fool the nosy crew and passengers. They decide to pull their hair down on the last day of the trip, knowing they must part soon after. To this end, they opt to have a go at the life awaiting them in New York but, if it fails, they are to meet in six months' time atop the Empire State Building. So far, the film maintains a light mood, albeit punctuated by nostalgia (their visit to Grant's French grandmother, who takes an instant liking to Kerr) and melancholy.
The second half does go overboard with contrivances: the heroine meets with an accident on the day she is to be reunited with Grant; oblivious to this, he believes he has been stood up and grows bitter. Eventually, he attends a theatrical performance with his former intended, only to run into Kerr and her own ex-flame (now devoted to taking care of the crippled woman). In the meantime, the narrative grows even more saccharine with Kerr's taking charge of a children's choir (for the record, we are treated to numerous songs throughout the film since the leading lady also unconvincingly takes up work temporarily as a chanteuse, the actress' voice dubbed – as had been the case with THE KING AND I {1956} – by Marni Nixon)! Anyway, Grant (who has similarly reprised his once-promising painting career to support himself) finally decides to confront her on Christmas Day: it takes him a long time to realize the state she is in, however, though the moment is movingly depicted – when he tells Kerr that his picture of her (wearing the shawl his grandmother had wished the woman to have) was purchased by a disabled lady, only to find it in his beloved's bedroom!
The copy of the film I own is culled from the SE DVD issued as part of Fox's esteemed "Studio Classics" line (subsequent releases, featured even more supplements!) – though I chose not to listen to the Audio Commentary at this juncture (being especially wary of its considerable 115-minute length), the stills gallery did not work on my player, while the 24-minute "Making Of" documentary will be dealt with separately.
Certainly One of the Most Beautiful Love Stories of the Cinema History
claudio_carvalho19 October 2005
While in a cruise from Europe to New York, the disputed playboy Nicky Ferrante (Cary Grant) meets the gorgeous former night-club singer Terry McKay (Deborah Kerr) and they have a romance. Nicky is traveling to meet his fiancée, the inheritor of one of the greatest fortunes in USA, and Terry is returning to the arms of her supportive boy-friend. They schedule a meeting on the 102nd floor of the Empire State Building six months later to decide whether they should marry each other, but Terry has an accident and she is not able to reunite with him.
"An Affair to Remember" is one of my favorite romances ever, certainly one of the most beautiful love stories of the cinema industry. Beginning with the amazing chemistry between Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr, the nostalgic and unforgettable story has romance, drama, funny situations, being witty and very delightful. The music score and the cinematography and costumes are also very beautiful and Oscar winners. Yesterday I have probably watched this movie for the fourth or fifth time, and I still become very touched with such lovely romance. My vote is ten.
Title (Brazil): "Tarde Demais Para Esquecer" ("Too Late to Forget")
"An Affair to Remember" is one of my favorite romances ever, certainly one of the most beautiful love stories of the cinema industry. Beginning with the amazing chemistry between Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr, the nostalgic and unforgettable story has romance, drama, funny situations, being witty and very delightful. The music score and the cinematography and costumes are also very beautiful and Oscar winners. Yesterday I have probably watched this movie for the fourth or fifth time, and I still become very touched with such lovely romance. My vote is ten.
Title (Brazil): "Tarde Demais Para Esquecer" ("Too Late to Forget")
Just OK
mchl8820 June 2023
I'm not a big rom com fan but the reviews on this were too good to resist. Plus I'd just seen a Cary Grant movie that I loved (Charade) so I figured what the heck.
This one was just ok IMO.
My biggest thing was I just didn't feel the spark between Grant and Kerr when they were supposedly falling in love on the cruise ship. Maybe because the dialogue was so snarky but I never felt this amazing chemistry that would make them both leave their other partners. Also, I hate breakups in movies. They're often way too civil. In really life ending a relationship (especially an engagement) is traumatic and emotional. But in movies the person being dumped too quickly goes to "I understand and wish the best for you" mode.
Anyway, didn't hate it. Didn't love it.
This one was just ok IMO.
My biggest thing was I just didn't feel the spark between Grant and Kerr when they were supposedly falling in love on the cruise ship. Maybe because the dialogue was so snarky but I never felt this amazing chemistry that would make them both leave their other partners. Also, I hate breakups in movies. They're often way too civil. In really life ending a relationship (especially an engagement) is traumatic and emotional. But in movies the person being dumped too quickly goes to "I understand and wish the best for you" mode.
Anyway, didn't hate it. Didn't love it.
A Genuine Romance; a Thoughtful and Very Moving Two-Person Story
silverscreen88822 June 2005
Forget the film's notoriety as a love story, please. Forget that Leo McCarey the author was the creator of "Going My Way", a beautifully-thought-out but pro-religious film. Forget that Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr are a wonderfully-right pair of casting decisions with delightfully just-off synergy as a troubled romantic duo. When one thinks about the very popular romance "An Affair to Remember", the story needs to be viewed as a feature film idea, and as a completed entity in its own right. And on these terms, it is as refreshing, I suggest, as a Mediterranean breeze in the springtime. McCarey's direction is as straightforward and competent as is his script. There could have been more characters; but the fundamental situation, involving famous playboy Grant with amused and interested singer Kerr in a shipboard romance that simply succeeds in spite of all the fishbowl-paparazzi-interfering passenger setbacks is unfolded for the viewer like a rose warming to a springtime sun's rays. Every aspect of the film, technical and artistic, works to increase its honest emotional impact. The famous the song, music by Hugo Friedhofer, songs by Harold Adamson and McCarey, settings and art direction, costumes and lighting, cinematography by veteran Milton Krasner--all contribute to the final glowing effect...The acting in this picture, by Richard Denning, Grant, Cathleen Nesbit as Grant's grandmother, emcee Robert Q. Lewis as himself and skilled character veteran Fortunio Bonanova and the choir children and shipboard guests is always above-average; also, Deborah Kerr (singing dubbed by Marn Nixon) is at her best in her multi-layered role, which is very good indeed; frankly, her charisma and skill had to help Grant's underwritten part if the film were to succeed. How well she did her work is attested by the film's wide acceptance with critics and audience alike. The term "romance" I suggest needs to refer to:" a personal and potential partnership between two persons capable of 'mature' or lasting admiration-based-love and worthiness of being watched as they work within the context of their ethical values to create the terms, emotional readiness and acceptable conditions for their 'union' of exclusivity together (and against the world's people and agents of frustrations or tyrannies if need be)". The attractive (for once) over thirty-five importance of both characters, and the difficulties they face in earning the right to become such a romantic union--in the objectivist sense of romance just defined--are aided in the plot and retarded in personal terms by the problems they face: the difficulty of Grant's becoming a working artist in whatever marketplace exists, Kerr's conflicting schedule, the death of his grandmother, a lengthy enforced absence and her later accident all work against them. But the climax of the film is an honest triumph of romantic comedy writing, and Grant's best scene in the film. This is a very rewarding, positive and worldly film, despite bows toward religious trappings. It is McCarey's masterpiece; and a deservedly popular film for lovers everywhere, secular or otherwise. A bit lengthy, but a rare adult Hollywood comedic near-masterpiece.
If this film were driving ahead of me in traffic...
Hinda7 July 1999
I'd shout, "Pick a lane and go with it!" While I really enjoyed the first half of this movie, the second half made me wonder whether it had been written by a different person. Grant and Kerr are wonderful with what they were given. Could THAT be otherwise?
A practically perfect affair; Definitely worth remembering.
mark.waltz26 November 2019
Warning: Spoilers
For nearly three quarters of this film, the viewer is transformed into a world of shear heaven, a gorgeous romantic mixture of comedy and pathos, starting off with Vic Damone's beautiful rendition of the Academy Award nominated title song. It focuses on the revelation of aging playboy Cary Grant's engagement to a rather cold socialite (Neva Patterson), and his sudden accidental introduction to concert singer Deborah Kerr (once again dubbed by Marni Nixon, a perfect match of actress and songstress), bumping into each other at the oddest times and getting everybody's attention around them because of the obvious love at first sight that they refuse to admit. While quite the lady, Ms. Kerr doesn't want to be just a last shipboard fling for Grant and keeps reminding them that they have to stop meeting like this, whether it is their mutual desire for a pink champagne cocktail or their sitting back to back alone at dinner as everybody stares and laughs. Is this a romantic screwball comedy a la William Powell and Myrna Loy? Or is it a romantic tearjerker where only the last minute of the film can bring the two star-crossed lovers together?
This definitely mixes both themes, especially the first half of the film, noticeable especially when the ship's photographer takes their photo together without their permission and Grant distracts him while Kerr removes the film. But the photographer sneaks a few more photos without their knowledge, and it is sure to make gossip columns around the world with his reputation and her supposed fame. Their love affair truly takes flight when Grant convinces Kerr to visit his beloved grandmother (a truly lovable Cathleen Nesbitt) on the French Riviera, and that sequence alone can get you through a box of handkerchiefs. Nesbitt, who had just scored a smashing success on Broadway as Mrs. Higgins in "My Fair Lady", will win your heart the moment she comes out of her own chapel, an elderly lady of such dignity and loveliness that you know she was once as beautiful as Kerr. In fact, along with the movie Mrs. Higgins (Gladys Cooper, whom she appeared with in "Separate Tables"), Nesbitt was indeed considered one of England's great stage beauties. The urge to hug her without hurting her obvious fragile body takes over the viewer's emotions, especially when she hears the second boat whistle which means that it is time for Grant and Kerr to leave, a sign for her that this is the last time she'll ever see him.
The rest of the shipboard sequence is filled with romance as they truly come to admit that they have fallen deeply, irrevocably in love, and their plan to meet in six months as soon as they take care of their personal issues standing in their way of being together. Kerr must barge through Grant and fiancee Patterson ("Excuse me", she says brusquely, "I must get to an appointment"), blocking her way. We see Grant return to his high society world, Kerr return to the stage, and how they graciously end their commitments before moving on to meet at the Empire State Building. But fate intervenes leaving Kerr injured, only able to teach music rather than sing on stage, and for a short period, the film loses its steam as Kerr hides her condition out of self pity. A maudlin musical number featuring her students becomes the film's sappiest scene and the urge to fast-forward takes over for the only time in the film.
But there is a good hearted structure to this film that will leave the viewer completely satisfied with a well written, directed and acted confrontation. Leo McCarey proves that remaking your own movie (like both DeMille with "The Ten Commandments" and Hitchcock with "The Man Who Knew Too Much") will keep the integrity of the original, and the 18 years between the first ("Love Affair") and this version shows that the material hasn't aged. The two films are also tied by the fact that Grant had appeared with the original female star Irene Dunne in several films and Kerr had starred with Charles Boyer in "Thunder in the East". In addition to this, Kerr also played another one of Irene Dunne's famous roles just the previous year as Anna Leonowens in "The King & I", the musical version of "Anna & the King of Siam".
Technically, this film is completely dazzling with every color superb and every set glorious, especially Nesbitt's home. I love both versions of this equally, but I find the sequence on the French Riviera here more touching because of the way Nesbitt plays the role compared to the less attractive Maria Ouspenskaya. Nesbitt utilizes an accent here unlike Ouspenskaya who actually spoke with one, and there is something in the way she delivers her lines that makes you feel as if you have known her in a past life. When Grant gives her a portrait of her late husband that he painted from memory, her eyes speak more than her words just as they do when she plays the title song on the piano, glancing hopefully at both Kerr and Grant hoping that they'll see the love that is obviously taking over their souls. This certainly could have been a lot sappier and thanks to McCarey's adapting his own script and directing it with great sensitivity, it ends up being a practically perfect film. The 1994 remake has its charms and is certainly a decent film, but you can't beat the magic that this and its 1939 predecessor contain.
This definitely mixes both themes, especially the first half of the film, noticeable especially when the ship's photographer takes their photo together without their permission and Grant distracts him while Kerr removes the film. But the photographer sneaks a few more photos without their knowledge, and it is sure to make gossip columns around the world with his reputation and her supposed fame. Their love affair truly takes flight when Grant convinces Kerr to visit his beloved grandmother (a truly lovable Cathleen Nesbitt) on the French Riviera, and that sequence alone can get you through a box of handkerchiefs. Nesbitt, who had just scored a smashing success on Broadway as Mrs. Higgins in "My Fair Lady", will win your heart the moment she comes out of her own chapel, an elderly lady of such dignity and loveliness that you know she was once as beautiful as Kerr. In fact, along with the movie Mrs. Higgins (Gladys Cooper, whom she appeared with in "Separate Tables"), Nesbitt was indeed considered one of England's great stage beauties. The urge to hug her without hurting her obvious fragile body takes over the viewer's emotions, especially when she hears the second boat whistle which means that it is time for Grant and Kerr to leave, a sign for her that this is the last time she'll ever see him.
The rest of the shipboard sequence is filled with romance as they truly come to admit that they have fallen deeply, irrevocably in love, and their plan to meet in six months as soon as they take care of their personal issues standing in their way of being together. Kerr must barge through Grant and fiancee Patterson ("Excuse me", she says brusquely, "I must get to an appointment"), blocking her way. We see Grant return to his high society world, Kerr return to the stage, and how they graciously end their commitments before moving on to meet at the Empire State Building. But fate intervenes leaving Kerr injured, only able to teach music rather than sing on stage, and for a short period, the film loses its steam as Kerr hides her condition out of self pity. A maudlin musical number featuring her students becomes the film's sappiest scene and the urge to fast-forward takes over for the only time in the film.
But there is a good hearted structure to this film that will leave the viewer completely satisfied with a well written, directed and acted confrontation. Leo McCarey proves that remaking your own movie (like both DeMille with "The Ten Commandments" and Hitchcock with "The Man Who Knew Too Much") will keep the integrity of the original, and the 18 years between the first ("Love Affair") and this version shows that the material hasn't aged. The two films are also tied by the fact that Grant had appeared with the original female star Irene Dunne in several films and Kerr had starred with Charles Boyer in "Thunder in the East". In addition to this, Kerr also played another one of Irene Dunne's famous roles just the previous year as Anna Leonowens in "The King & I", the musical version of "Anna & the King of Siam".
Technically, this film is completely dazzling with every color superb and every set glorious, especially Nesbitt's home. I love both versions of this equally, but I find the sequence on the French Riviera here more touching because of the way Nesbitt plays the role compared to the less attractive Maria Ouspenskaya. Nesbitt utilizes an accent here unlike Ouspenskaya who actually spoke with one, and there is something in the way she delivers her lines that makes you feel as if you have known her in a past life. When Grant gives her a portrait of her late husband that he painted from memory, her eyes speak more than her words just as they do when she plays the title song on the piano, glancing hopefully at both Kerr and Grant hoping that they'll see the love that is obviously taking over their souls. This certainly could have been a lot sappier and thanks to McCarey's adapting his own script and directing it with great sensitivity, it ends up being a practically perfect film. The 1994 remake has its charms and is certainly a decent film, but you can't beat the magic that this and its 1939 predecessor contain.
A classic, but a little boring
HotToastyRag22 March 2018
While there have been countless films about shipboard romances, An Affair to Remember is perhaps the most famous. Deborah Kerr and Cary Grant meet on a cruise ship, and even though Cary's a notorious playboy and Deborah's practically engaged to another man, they fall in love.
The scenes on the ship are the most adorable of the film. They try to hide their romance from prying eyes by eating at separate tables and walking in opposite directions when they're seen together, even when they have to stop talking mid-sentence!
While the ship scenes are very cute, the rest of the movie is a drama, so be prepared when you rent it for a light-hearted afternoon. This is the second of three version of the film, the first in 1939 with Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne, and the third in 1994 with Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, but I like this version the best. It's not my favorite classic romance, but it's a classic you'll probably want to watch if you a fan of Cary or Deborah. I like their third pairing in the comedy The Grass is Greener best, because I like seeing Deborah's hidden comic talents. This movie really is a must see, though, especially if you've ever sat through the 90s classic Sleepless in Seattle. This iconic, tearjerker ending has been included in many a romance montage.
Parts of the movie feel a little boring, namely when Cary takes Deborah to meet his grandmother, Cathleen Nesbitt. Since I don't really find his character particularly sympathetic, I'm not really moved when Cathleen talks about how sweet he really is underneath his cool, playboy persona. But, to each his own. Give it a watch, and even if you don't end up liking it, there's a good chance you'll, well, remember it.
The scenes on the ship are the most adorable of the film. They try to hide their romance from prying eyes by eating at separate tables and walking in opposite directions when they're seen together, even when they have to stop talking mid-sentence!
While the ship scenes are very cute, the rest of the movie is a drama, so be prepared when you rent it for a light-hearted afternoon. This is the second of three version of the film, the first in 1939 with Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne, and the third in 1994 with Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, but I like this version the best. It's not my favorite classic romance, but it's a classic you'll probably want to watch if you a fan of Cary or Deborah. I like their third pairing in the comedy The Grass is Greener best, because I like seeing Deborah's hidden comic talents. This movie really is a must see, though, especially if you've ever sat through the 90s classic Sleepless in Seattle. This iconic, tearjerker ending has been included in many a romance montage.
Parts of the movie feel a little boring, namely when Cary takes Deborah to meet his grandmother, Cathleen Nesbitt. Since I don't really find his character particularly sympathetic, I'm not really moved when Cathleen talks about how sweet he really is underneath his cool, playboy persona. But, to each his own. Give it a watch, and even if you don't end up liking it, there's a good chance you'll, well, remember it.
Paint drying springs to mind!
davyd-022379 July 2020
20 minutes (opener) before the 1st commercial break and Mr Grant is doing one of his lengthy "oh you must love me, just look at me, how suave, sophisticated I am" routines....has not aged well, especially in a lock down....perhaps if you are really desperate you may wish to continue to watch the rest of it, our home was quite bored!
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