Rendez-vous avec le destin

The 1932 "Love Affair" is one of the most beautiful, charming and brokenhearted love stories of the cinema industry. Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer have the perfect chemistry and it is impossible not fall in love for her.

The 1957 "An Affair to Remember" is a remake frame by frame of the original movie and also more famous. Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr also have perfect chemistry and had been my favorite romance after "Casablanca" until the day I saw the 1932 "Love Affair".

I was curious to see the 1994 version of "Love Affair" and I found it a weak remake maybe to satisfy the ego of Warren Beatty. The introduction is awful with annoying music score and edition. Mike Gambril is a detestable character and I do not see any reason for Terry falling in love with him. It is only good to see Ms. Katharine Hepburn in her last feature. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Segredos do Coração" ("Secrets of the Heart")

It was very difficult to decide how to rate this movie. I'd not seen the Cary Grant / Deborah Kerr version (except for the little snippets that appear in "Sleepless in Seattle"), so my opinion was not colored by the inevitable comparisons... It's just that the first half of the movie struck me as being incredibly *bad* : it was poorly written in particular. Once Katherine Hepburn appeared on the scene, the film began to improve quite noticeably, and the last half was considerably better, with superb performances, especially from the two principals. I've never been a big Warren Beatty fan, but Annette Bening is WONDERFUL! (I think I've fallen in love!!!) -- To sum up, the first half of the movie rates a 3 in my book, the second half an 8 -- hence my overall grade of 5.

I was totally taken aback by this movie. I had no idea it was a remake of An Affair To Remember. Somewhere through what I thought was a trite flick (which I suggested we stop watching on several occasions) I saw the 'parallel'.

Then the end came - the famous scene where the hero sees the heroine's painting... It knocked me out.

This is a remake that speaks to us. Us of today. I've since watched this movie several times a day for a week or more. Can I recommend it? Yes - if you don't know what's going to happen. It's astounding in its effect. Take this review or leave it!

Mike Gambril (Warren Beatty) is a playboy former NFL quarterback. His agent Kip DeMay (Garry Shandling) is overjoyed that he's engaged to talk show host Lynn Weaver worth $100 million. He's on a flight sitting next to singer Terry McKay (Annette Bening) to Sydney. The plane is forced to land on Cook Island in a storm. They take a cruise ship to Tahiti where they visit his elderly aunt Ginny (Katharine Hepburn). They agree to meet on top of Empire State Building upon returning. She breaks up with her fiancé Ken Allen (Pierce Brosnan) and he breaks up with Lynn but the meeting does not go off as planned.

This is a remake of the 1939 classic. There is something odd about a remake of a classic that is ringing so many of the same bells. It feels like a checklist. As for the romance, that too feels familiar. Bugsy was three years prior. None of this movie feels fresh. It's a faded copy of an icon.

Without her this movie would be maybe something to watch on a rainy Saturday afternoon when there's not much on cable. But K Hepburn takes this film from "ok" to "something worth spending spending time watching." Even at her age the strength of her character and acting ability brought the few sparks there were into this film. But I've always considered Warren & Annette a perfect match...bland...bland...and more bland. Do they have a personality?? I truly don't understand how they got to where they are today, but I could say the very same thing about some of our re-electeds. If you want to watch a much better version of the story with an entirely different sphere of acting check out the 1957 version "An Affair to Remember" with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr. Some scenes are a little outdated, but the acting and chemistry between these two make it timeless. They've made their characters seem so real, they almost jump out of the screen. Then it all comes to a head in this heartbreakingly emotional ending, a story of selfless love, I cry every time. Annette & Warren simply don't have the acting ability or charisma to give these characters that certain kind of trueness in which you would feel any great emotional investment. They strike me as very into themselves sort of selfish people anyway, could they truly characterize selflessness?