AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER [1957 / 2011] [Deluxe Limited Edition DigiBook] [Blu-ray]
In Italy! On The Mediterranean! Across An Ocean! And All Over New York!
In this poignant and humorous love story nominated for four Academy Awards® where Nickie [Cary Grant] and Terry [Deborah Kerr] meet on board an ocean liner and fall deeply in love. Although each is engaged to someone else, they agree to rendezvous six months later at the top of the Empire State Building if they still feel the same way about each other. But tragedy strikes . . . and prevents their rendezvous, but their future takes an emotional and uncertain turn.
FILM FACT No.1: Awards and Nominations: 1957 Boxoffice Magazine Awards: Win: Best Picture of the Month for the Whole Family (August) for Leo McCarey. 1958 Academy Awards®: Nomination: Best Cinematography for Milton R. Krasner. Nomination: Best Costume Design for Charles Le Maire. Nomination: Best Music for an Original Song for Harry Warren (music), Harold Adamson (lyrics) and Leo McCarey (lyrics) for the song "An Affair to Remember." Nomination: Best Music Score for Hugo Friedhofer. 1958 Directors Guild of America: Nomination: Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures for Leo McCarey. 1958 Laurel Awards: Nomination: Golden Laurel Award for Top Music Composer for Hugo Friedhofer. 1958 Photoplay Awards: Win: Gold Medal.
FILM FACT No.2: The film was a remake of Leo McCarey's 1939 film ‘Love Affair,’ starring Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer. ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ was almost identical to Love Affair on a scene-to-scene basis. Leo McCarey used the same screenplay as the original film, which was penned by Delmer Daves and Donald Ogden Stewart. Also, the character name "Terry McKay" appears in both films. The theme song, "An Affair to Remember (Our Love Affair)" and composed by Harry Warren and with lyrics by Leo McCarey and Harold Adamson, was sung by Vic Damone over opening credits and by Deborah Kerr during the film.
Cast: Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Richard Denning, Neva Patterson, Cathleen Nesbitt, Robert Q. Lewis (Announcer), Charles Watts, Fortunio Bonanova, Dorothy Adams (uncredited), Richard Allen (uncredited), Geneviève Aumont (uncredited), Al Bain (uncredited), Alex Ball (uncredited), Dino Bolognese (uncredited), Paul Bradley (uncredited), George Calliga (uncredited), Mary Carroll (uncredited), Steve Carruthers (uncredited), Norman Champion III (uncredited), Kathleen Charney (uncredited), Brian Corcoran (uncredited), Anthony De Mario (uncredited), Minta Durfee (uncredited), Michka Egan (uncredited), Suzanne Ellers (uncredited), Juney Ellis (uncredited), Theresa Emerson (uncredited), Franklyn Farnum (uncredited), Jesslyn Fax (uncredited), Priscilla Garcia (uncredited), Rudy Germane (uncredited), Kenneth Gibson (uncredited), Stuart Hall (uncredited), Sam Harris (uncredited), Lars Hensen (uncredited), Rachel Holmen (uncredited), Ken Kane (uncredited), Terry Kelman (uncredited), Walter Woolf King (uncredited), Jeanne Lafayette (uncredited), Mike Lally (uncredited), Richard LaMarr (uncredited), Caryl Lincoln (uncredited), Jack Lomas (uncredited), Leota Lorraine (uncredited), Robert Lynn (uncredited), Wilbur Mack (uncredited), Max Mannes (uncredited), Leo Marcus (uncredited), Nora Marlowe (uncredited), Nita Mathews Helen Mayon (uncredited), Anthony Mazzola (uncredited), Louis Mercier (uncredited), Harold Miller (uncredited), Hans Moebus (uncredited), Matt Moore (uncredited), Alberto Morin (uncredited), Scotty Morrow (uncredited), Charles Morton (uncredited), Sol Murgi (uncredited), Alena Murray (uncredited), Marni Nixon (Terry McKay singing voice) (uncredited), Tom Nolan (uncredited), Monty O'Grady (uncredited), Don Pietro (uncredited), Murray Pollack (uncredited), Patricia Powell (uncredited), Jack Raine (uncredited), Jean Ransome (uncredited), Fred Rapport (uncredited), Leoda Richards (uncredited), Jeffrey Sayre (uncredited), Sarah Selby (uncredited), Eddie Lou Simms (uncredited), Carl Sklover (uncredited), Marc Snegoff (uncredited), Marc Snow (uncredited), Bert Stevens (uncredited), Tina Thompson (uncredited), Roger Til (uncredited), Geraldine Wall (uncredited) and Tom Wyner (uncredited)
Director: Leo McCarey
Producers: Jerry Wald and Leo McCarey
Screenplay: Delmer Daves (screenplay), Donald Ogden Stewart (screenplay) (originally uncredited), Leo McCarey (screenplay/story) and Mildred Cram (story)
Composer: Hugo Friedhofer
Cinematography: Milton R. Krasner, A.S.C. (Director of Photography)
Image Resolution: 1080p (Color By DeLuxe)
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 (CinemaScope)
Audio: English: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Spanish: 1.0 LPCM Mono Audio
French: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Subtitles: English SDH and Spanish
Running Time: 115 minutes
Region: All Regions
Number of discs: 1
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ is one of the most popular love stories ever made in Hollywood. Many fans would hail it as the most romantic film ever made. With its mix of sophistication and sentimentality, the film offers one of the most complete expressions of Leo McCarey's personality as a writer-director. In particular, auteur critics have hailed his ability to make the transition from comedy in the early scenes to the more deeply romantic mood of the film's ending, a characteristic of such other Leo McCarey films as ‘Going My Way’ [1944] and ‘The Bells of St. Mary's’ [1945].
“Winter must be cold for those with no warm memories. . . We’ve already missed the spring,” laments Deborah Kerr’s Terry McKay of the 1957 classic ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ and an unforgettable romance that has managed to melt frost-bitten hearts everywhere for more than half a century. Though it is well-known for being the romantic film to end all romantic films, ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ is more than a mere cultural touchstone and it’s a great film in and of itself.
Nickie [Cary Grant] a notorious playboy and Terry [Deborah Kerr], an heiress, meet on the SS Constitution ocean liner. Bonded by their shared love of the finer things in life (including but not limited to pink champagne and sailing around the Mediterranean), the two instantly hit it off. Exchanging witty banter and stolen glances, their chemistry is apparent. There’s only one problem, both parties are engaged to other people. Upon docking in New York City, the pair, unable to deny their mutual attraction, agrees to meet in six months’ time at the top of the Empire State Building. However, when an unfortunate accident hinders Terry from attending their reunion, it looks as though their seemingly-fated love affair is no longer on the cards. But, of course, the heart wants what the heart wants and as chance or indeed, Hollywood would have it, Terry and Nickie cross paths again in the most unexpected way.
This is a film about the slow-burn of attraction, delighting in the small moments that form the prelude to a kiss and one of the most memorable on-screen first kisses of all-time, at that. Sparks fly as the couple tease one another with a barrage of whip-smart quips, the on-screen sexual tension between stars Deborah Kerr and Cary Grant is smouldering, who brings the film alive, managing to capture the inexplicable magic of falling in love.
In fact, it’s almost impossible not to feel one’s own knees buckle as the dizzying intensity with which the couple fall in love unfolds. In one particularly beautiful scene, they visit Nickie’s doting Grandma Janou [Cathleen Nesbitt] in her home on the French Riviera. Nickie’s relationship with the tender-hearted Grandma Janou is a window that allows Terry a rare glimpse into the charismatic bachelor’s childhood. Cary Grant balances Nickie’s artistic sensibilities with cheeky cocksure confidence, showing us and indeed, seducing us with Nickie’s vulnerable side. And yet, despite their debonair appearances, it is the unsaid feelings and heart-pounding what-ifs that have us rooting for Nickie and Terry and reaching for the tissues right until the very end. Beautifully shot in vivid Color By DeLuxe, and accompanied by Harry Warren’s rich, romantic score, this bittersweet romance is a nostalgic cinematic experience that has truly stood the test of time.
The result was that the film ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ is one of the most popular love stories ever made in Hollywood. Many fans would hail it as the most romantic film ever made. With its mix of sophistication and sentimentality, the film offers one of the most complete expressions of Leo McCarey's personality as a writer-director. In particular, auteur critics have hailed his ability to make the transition from comedy in the early scenes to the more deeply romantic mood of the film's ending, a characteristic of such other Leo McCarey films as ‘Going My Way’ [1944] and ‘The Bells of St. Mary's’ [1945]. The film was also Leo McCarey's last great success, capping a career that stretched back to the silent comedies he wrote and directed for Hal Roach.
‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ was one of three 1957 films that brought Cary Grant out of retirement after his performance in ‘To Catch a Thief’ two years earlier. With the critical and box-office failure of his other two 1957 films, ‘The Pride and the Passion’ and ‘Kiss Them For Me’ and it provided the success Cary Grant needed to keep him making films until his ultimate retirement in 1966. It remains one of his most popular films. The film also remains Deborah Kerr's most popular. Throughout her later years, she was always pleased when she met fans and they told her they had most recently seen her in ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ and was the most successful of the three films Cary Grant made with Deborah Kerr. Although the two seemed perfectly matched, their other vehicles, ‘Dream Wife’ [1953] and ‘The Grass Is Greener’ [1960], did not capture their chemistry as effectively. The film was producer Jerry Wald's first under contract to 20th Century Fox, where he would finish his career with such acclaimed features as ‘Peyton Place’ [1957], ‘The Long, Hot Summer’ [1958] and ‘Sons and Lovers’ [1960].
AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER MUSIC TRACK LIST
AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER (Our Love Affair) (Music by Harry Warren) (Lyrics by Harold Adamson and Leo McCarey) [Sung by Vic Damone over opening credits] [reprised in French by Marni Nixon dubbing for Deborah Kerr] [reprised in English by Marni Nixon for dubbing for Deborah Kerr]
CONTINUÉ (Music by Harry Warren) (Lyrics by Harold Adamson and Leo McCarey) [also sung by Marni Nixon (dubbing for Deborah Kerr) in an out-take] [Heard as instrumental near beginning of movie]
THE TINY SCOUT (He Knows You Inside Out) (Music by Harry Warren) (Lyrics by Harold Adamson and Leo McCarey) [Sung by children's chorus and Marni Nixon dubbing for Deborah Kerr]
TOMORROW LAND (Music by Harry Warren) (Lyrics by Harold Adamson and Leo McCarey) [Sung by Marni Nixon (dubbing for Deborah Kerr) and reprised by children's chorus]
YOU MAKE IT EASY TO BE TRUE (Music by Harry Warren) (Lyrics by Harold Adamson and Leo McCarey) [Sung by male chorus, Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr]
Blu-ray Image Quality – The film’s stunning Cinemascope aspect ratio of 2.35:1 is replicated to perfection, especially in conjunction with the beautiful 1080p image transfer. Colour is nicely saturated without being overblown (though stock photography and rear screen projection looks much less impressive). Flesh tones, from the nut brown tan that Cary Grant sports to the peaches ‘n cream complexion of Deborah Kerr, are spot on. Black levels aren’t very deep and are the weakest aspect of the transfer. It’s very clean, however, with no visible scratches or blemishes, and sharpness is nicely achieved.
Blu-ray Audio Quality – The Blu-ray offers both 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo. The 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo soundtrack is somewhat loud and it is a bit harsher sounding than the with the 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix, which is much more refined and smoother. There’s a tiny bit of hiss in some of the earlier quieter scenes of the film, but it’s never intrusive to the listening experience. Apart from the music score, there isn’t much surround activity here. Dialogue is always easily discernible in the centre channel though it is clear there was quite a bit of work with the film soundtrack.
Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:
Audio Commentary by Singer Marnie Nixon and Film Historian Joseph McBride: The audio commentary is provided by American film historian Joseph McBride and singer Marni Nixon who talk lovingly about the Leo McArey remake of his original black-and-white ‘Love Affair.’ Marni Nixon wished she had sung the film song title, but heaps great praise on Vic Damone’s interpretation of the film’s title song. We get to hear Joseph McBride has great affection to this film and the director, as he has so many interesting facts about the process of making ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER.’ Another interesting information we hear is the fact that Marni Nixon had worked before with Deborah Kerr in dubbing her voice in the film ‘The King and I,’ but because Marni Nixon had a year’s contract with NBC, she wondered how she could work on this particular film, but Deborah Kerr assured Marni Nixon that she knew how to dub her singing voice for this film. But to show how professional Marni Nixon was, because the film was released in different in different languages; well Marni Nixon assured the studio executives that she could sing in all the different languages. But overall I can really recommend you give this brilliant Audio Commentary a good try out, as Joseph McBride is a real joy to listen to and it is one of the best audio commentaries I have heard in a very long time.
Special Feature: Affairs to Remember: Deborah Kerr [2007] [1080p] [1.78:1] [5:34] Peter Viertel [Husband to Deborah Kerr] talks about how he met Deborah Kerr, who was already married to Tony Bartley, who was extremely jealous of Ms. Deborah Kerr success and eventually they both got divorced. Sadly in her later years, Deborah Kerr suffered from a serious illness of Parkinson and eventually passed away in England on 16th October, 2007 at the age of 86.
Special Feature: Affairs to Remember: Cary Grant [2007] [1080p] [1.78:1] [9:48] Barbara Grant James [Cary Grant’s Widow] talks very affectionately about how she met Cary Grant in the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London. Barbara Grant admitted that she has never hardly seen any of Cary Grant’s films and tells of how charming he was off screen. Despite Barbara Grant James and Cary Grant were both in a relationship at the time, but eventually grew closer together and finally both got divorced, and were finally able to live together until Cary Grant passed away on the 29th November, 1986 in Davenport, Iowa.
Special Feature: Directed by Leo McCarey [2007] [1080p] [16:9] [22:33] Scott McIsaac [Film Historian]; Paul Harrill [Author/Film Professor]; Peter Bogdanovich [Author/Film Maker]; and Rick Jewel [USC Professor Cinema-Television] talk glowingly about this giant among directors of his luminary work of his classic films. You hear about how Leo McCarey tried different career choices. First he tried to become a prize fighter, a miner, a sports writer for the LA Times. Then he went to the USC to study law and eventually became a lawyer, but this did not last long due to an unsuccessful court case that went badly wrong, and eventually got a job in Hollywood as a script girl for the director Todd Browning. When he finally got to direct films, he famously worked with Laurel & Hardy, Harold Lloyd, Mae West, The Marx Brothers, Charles Laughton, Cary Grant, Irene Dunne and many more famous actors. He directed the ‘Love Affair’ film and then went onto to do the remake ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER.’ He also made other classic films, which included his last film he made was ‘Satan never Sleeps’ which he hated directing, plus he hated all the actors and eventually sadly passed away suffering from emphysema in 1969.
Special Feature: A Producer to Remember: Jerry Wald [2007] [1080p] [1.78:1] [16:06] Malvin Wald [Brother to Screenwriter]; Robby Wald [Son]; Richard Baer [Writer]; Andrew Wald [Son] and Constance Wald [Widow of Jerry Wald] talk glowingly and affectionate about the life and times of this special Producer jerry Wald, who worked in different film companies from 1944 to 1962, who was also passionate about his work in films. The passion sort of started when Jerry Wald worked with his father, who to get any business, would tell them very elaborate stories, to the point he persuaded to get orders for the Company Jerry Wald’s father worked for. So this how Jerry Wald got into the film industry, as he could also weave a good story to the film executives to get certain stars into a particular film. But his greatest gift was working with top authors and turning their books into a working film script, and also appreciating the importance of the audience who went to see the films he worked on. Jerry Wald was totally motivated by the whole film industry and a total workaholic and sadly this was his undoing and eventually passed away at the age of 50 after three heart attacks. Despite this sad fact, his volume of work for the film industry, speaks for itself.
Special Feature: The Look of ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ [2007] [1080p] [1.78:1] [9:01] With any film, it has to have a look, and also how the director and the production designer wants the film image looks in the frame and to guide us through this homage to ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ we have contributions from John Cork [Film Historian]; Peter Bogdanovich [Author/Film Maker]; Wes Gehring [Author/Film Professor] and Rick Jewell [USC Professor Cinema-Television]. With all these contributors they give great praise on the director Leo McArey and his use of the CinemaScope aspect ratio, to make you fall in love with this particular film. One great surprise you hear is how Cary Grant insisted he wanted to shoot the film an actual liner, but Leo McArey insisted that he would only film most of the film on the backlot of the studio and that is why the director made ‘An Affair to Remember’ such a magical joyous classic romantic film, that has stood the test of time.
Special Feature: AMC Backstory®: ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ [2001] [480i] [1.37:1] [24:27] This made for TV documentary, tells in great detail about the backstage story about the main stars Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr, which reflected their screen personalities, and their secret private lives. People contributing to this documentary are Peter Bogdanovich [Author/Film Maker]; A.E. Holchner [Sophia Loren’s Biographer]; Roy Mosley [Cary Grant’s Biographer]; Curtis Harrington [Former Assistant to jerry Wald]; Deborah Kerr [Actress]; Francesca Shrapnel [Deborah Kerr’s Daughter]; Rudy Behlmer [Film Historian]; Nancy Nelson [Cary Grant’s Biographer] and Anne Hutton [Deborah Kerr’s Manager/Friend]. We hear about when Cary Grant worked on the film ‘The Pride and The Passion’ where he fell madly in love with the leading female star Sophia Loren, who was seriously romantically involved with producer Carlo Ponti. We also get to see a short clip from a very rare promotional film the 20th Century Fox presents A Special CinemaScope Picture entitled “The Big Show” to promote the film ‘An Affair to Remember.’ Leo McCarey found two main stars got on very well together, that he allowed them to sometimes to improvise occasionally from the script. We also get lots of clips from the film, as well as certain outtakes. Although critics slated the film, but of course it was a massive big box office hit with audiences and also it deservedly the Academy Awards. Narrated by Rino Romano.
Special Feature: Fox Movietone News: ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ Shipboard Premiere Attracts Celebrities [1957] [1080p] [1.37:1] [00:56] This short Fox Movietone News film packs in a lot and you see most of the stars that attended, as well as the director and producer involved with the film. As a bonus you also get to see other celebrities attending the film premiere, which includes Celeste Holm, Shelley Winters, Arlene Dahl, Fernando Lamas and Deborah Paget.
Theatrical Trailer [1957] [480i] [4:3] [2:53] Here we get to see the actual 20th Century Fox present a Special CinemaScope Picture ‘The Big Show.’
BONUS: Beautiful 24 pages Collectable DigiBook Packaging: That features text about the story, the stars and the director, and also stills in gorgeous Colour and some mostly in Black-and-White photographs.
Finally, keep the Kleenex nearby for this 10 hanky tearjerker; it’s a classic of romantic cinema that has influenced the genre for decades of other romantic films. Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr make it look easy to believe everything about this love story. Cary Grant is a certain kind of effortless charming charisma that can never be duplicated. Cary Grant is the kind of actor that makes you fall in love with him no matter what year it is. The transition from playboy to love fool is so effortless for Cary Grant. His sincerity and expression in certain scenes makes you feel the way he does, as if another love like this will never come again. Deborah Kerr is a timeless beauty, who plays the part of the woman with strength well. Bottom line is, for those true romantics out there; this is one you shouldn’t pass up. This is what a romantic film should be all about. A love like this goes hand and hand with class, something that many stars today can’t even get close to. ‘AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER’ will always be one to remember. They don’t make them like this anymore, and so this is one to purchase for certain. It makes an excellent, stay-at-home romantic date night film especially, as well for the whole family. Highly Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
