Leo McCarey's An Affair to Remember is a surprisingly affecting and powerful tale of true love and bad timing. Nickie Ferrante (Grant) is a notorious playboy Lothario, who is finally settling down and marrying the heiress of a fortune (Patterson). Terry McKay (Kerr) is a professional night club singer, and also currently engaged (Denning). They meet on a transatlantic ocean liner and, of course, fall in love. Once they realize this, unfortunately, the boat is about to dock, and they promise each other that they will meet again in 6 months at the Empire State Building and marry each other then. But things do not quite work out as planned.
The first half of the movie was, I'll be honest, forgettably straightforward. Nothing really stood out, except one scene where they visit Nickie's grandmother (Nesbitt), and I almost stopped watching the movie halfway through. I'm glad I did not give up, however, as the second half is uniquely fascinating and tragically beautiful. The scenes where they break off their respective engagements is ferociously brutal, heart-rending, and touching. What perfect filmmaking, where Kerr walks out onto the balcony and you see the bay door reflecting an image of the Empire State Building by her side. And the final scene brings you to the breaking point--you cannot help but feel with all your heart when you watch it. It is overflowing with regret, with mercy, with pride, and with so much human imperfection as to make your whole body tingle with emotion. Despite any issues I have with the first half of the movie (and all the cheesy singing), I can't help but remember all the good things it delivers on. For any romantic out there, you need to watch this film.
IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050105/