The Perfections of Love Affair

I don't know that I would go so far to say that Love Affair (1994) is a perfect movie, as I'm pretty sure such a thing does not exist. There are a lot of perfect touches in it though, or at least bits and aspects of it that touch pieces of me. I like the other versions of the story, especially An Affair to Remember with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr who are two favorite actors for me, but this version is my favorite.

The music is pretty much perfectly matched to the movie throughout, both the songs and the excellent Morricone score. The casting is superb, with everyone playing their parts big or small in such a way that the whole story meshes together and no one is a distraction. I can't think of a single shot that does not mesh into and serve the story and it is a pleasure to watch. There are so many little shots that show a little touch that enhances the story and moves it along efficiently.

Even though the whole is absorbing, it is also touching to think that Bening and Beatty were together when making this, and unlike some off-screen pairs who can't make it look like they're in love on-screen, they manage it quite nicely. It's an amusing parallel when they use old pictures of Warren to illustrate his character, and like his character, he was a playboy who settled down.

It is a joy to see Katharine Hepburn on screen again, physical imperfections and all. The scenes at her house and the superb acting there make the rest of the movie believable, especially in the aspect of making the audience believe Mike might actually be able to finally settle down. My other favorite scenes are when Terri and Mike are talking on the upper deck in the rain before the conga line interrupts, the party right before that, the conversation as they're flying into New York and in the terminal, and naturally the final scene.

Since I never was the social butterfly type like Mike, Terri's steadiness tends to be easier for me to identify with. I also love her intelligence and deft handling of Mike in the early parts of the movie. In any case, there are so many human moments in the film that it is quite amazing it holds them all. I've heard that Carrie Fisher did some uncredited work on the script to polish it, and it didn't surprise me when I heard it.

I love the ideas in this film. The idea that people can step out of the comfort of their routines and personas and take a chance on loving someone else who on the surface might not be a good idea. Ginny's observations that "The trick in life isn't getting what you want, my dear, it's wanting it after you get it" and "But I'm not sure Michael is a duck, although he does do a pretty good imitation of one...impostors are usually desperate to behave like what they know they're not." The idea that we can love people despite their imperfections. The idea that love can and will overcome tragedy, and we can keep going.

It's a carefully assembled brew of funny and sad, touching moments and amusing ones, and it just works.