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An Affair to Remember (1957) More at IMDbPro »

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130 comments in total

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37 out of 56 people found the following comment useful :-
A Real Treasure!, 26 August 2004

Author: moviegal42689 from San Ramon, California

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!

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21 out of 27 people found the following comment useful :-
"Darling, don't look at me like that.", 27 July 2008

Author: ironside (robertfrangie@hotmail.com) from Mexico

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 surrender—in the midst of good humor—to 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…

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32 out of 50 people found the following comment useful :-
Truly a film (and affair!) to remember!, 17 May 2001

Author: Ashley (classicfilmbroad@aol.com) from North Carolina

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.

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15 out of 21 people found the following comment useful :-
Lovely, Lilting Romance, 25 March 2001

Author: ronnie from United States

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.

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24 out of 39 people found the following comment useful :-
A wonderful movie, 10 September 2001

Author: cwdfwtx from texas

Why do people hate this movie so much? It is a wonderful film , Cary Grant is so handsome and sexy,in my opinion -the sexiest man to ever have walked this earth.. and Deborah Carr is terrific as the love interest. The shipboard fun and the kiss on the stairs , i know if Cary had kissed me i would have gone crazy. The beautiful scenes in France and the shipboard romance were terrific. I do admit that the musical numbers involving the children were very unnecessary and somewhat annoying adding too much extra time to the film but they needed to show her life after the accident I guess. A shame that Deborah Kerr did not sing ,her voice was dubbed in this movie as well as in the King and I by Marnie Nixon but she was the leading lady and they needed a singing voice for her . That last scene where Cary sees the painting and the truth hits him , he is so overwhelmed with emotion that he wants to almost cry. I love that scene , I could watch it over and over again . go watch with your favorite sweetheart and a good cuddly sofa. 4 out of 4

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26 out of 43 people found the following comment useful :-
When nostalgic for old-fashioned movies, this is it, 9 February 2002

Author: overseer-3 from Florida

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).

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23 out of 38 people found the following comment useful :-
Amazing movie, not at all annoying, 27 March 2005

Author: eden-hunt from United States

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.

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23 out of 38 people found the following comment useful :-
Rusalka's eighteenth film review: A pearl in Pink Champagne, 6 May 2003
Author: Jason John Sanicki from Chicago, Illinois

This film has to be the best romantic film that I've ever seen, even above Gone With the Wind, and Casablanca, but on the same level as The English Patient (my favorite film of all time). After I saw Sleepless in Seattle when I was in high school and caught the many references to this film, I decided to check it out for myself. 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 that takes place 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 viewings from me (at least twice a year).

Seeing this film always makes me wonder if something like the kind of relationship describes within this film would actually BE possible in real life. Would and could someone actually leave the person they were engaged to in order to marry a complete and total stranger they just met days ago? I'd like to think that it could, but then again 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 the fourteenth day of February (even if you are single) is always a treat. It allows our fantasies to take wing so that we may think we are actually the one meeting our beloved atop the Empire State Building in a thunderstorm.

Watch this film with a box of industrial-strength kleenex nearby.

My rating: 4 stars

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12 out of 17 people found the following comment useful :-
A pearl in Pink Champagne, 12 February 2003
Author: JSanicki from Chicago, Illinois

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

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13 out of 19 people found the following comment useful :-
A charming memory, 10 March 2002

Author: gaityr from United Kingdom

*** This comment may contain 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.

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