Love Affair (1994)

Love Affair (1994) ** 1/2 (out of 4)Mike Gambril (Warren Beatty) is a former NFL player who has a good life since his fiancé is rich. Terry McKay (Annette Bening) is also engaged to a successful man. Mike and Terry meet on a plane and over the next few days end up spending time together and falling in love. They plan to meet three months later but something happens.Does that plot sound familiar? If so then you've probably seen the 1939 version of LOVE AFFAIR or perhaps you've seen its remake AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER. If not then the year before this version you probably saw SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE. I remember seeing this version of LOVE AFFAIR when it was originally released and wondered why they decided to make the movie at that point. I'm sure they thought they were going to make some easy money but the film ended up being a bomb and has since been forgotten.FOr the most part this remake of LOVE AFFAIR is pretty much a great looking picture that obviously had a lot of talent involved with it and there's no doubt that it had a large sum of money. So what went wrong? The term all style and no substance certainly fits here because we've seen this story so many times before and there's just nothing new done with it. Sure, there are a few minor changes here and there but the structure of the story is the same and there's just no heart or soul here.It's really too bad that this film has so many flaws because the cast is terrific. Beatty pretty much plays a character like himself in real life and there were some fun jokes aimed at him. Bening, his wife in real life, is as charming as always and there's no question that the two have some nice chemistry. Then you've got Katharine Hepburn who came out of retirement for what would be her last theatrical film. The film soaks up and pays loving tribute to the legendary actress and her scenes are certainly magical.Outside of that, the film looks great and the cast is very good but there's just not much here. The ending lacks any real emotions. The way the two come together just wasn't all that believable or heartfelt. LOVE AFFAIR is the perfect example of a film that seemed to just throw a great cast together, throw a bunch of money at them and they expect it to turn out as planned. Well, it just didn't work out that way.

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.

You can't help but compare this to An Affair to Remember, whether you've seen the original Love Affair, or not. The cinematography of this film is very dated, unfortunately during a period when there seemed to have been a 'darker the better' policy, even outdoors during daylight. In stark contrast to An Affair to Remember which was always bright enough to see the scene. Grant and Kerr are a more believable couple than Beatty and Bening, ironically. Bening's affection for her character's friend (Meg Ryan) in the Women was more obvious than her love for Beatty's character in this movie. Maybe Beatty's inadequacies were just more obvious next to the brilliance of Katherine Hepburn, but his character's love of his aged relative was not obvious at all. Thinking back on the movie 24 hours after seeing it for the first time, I can't think of any reason why I'd recommend it.

If you know the story, and have seen the earlier versions, this is still worth a viewing. The current drama/romance genre is something I am not often fond of, yet this film had a resonance, especially for the holiday season.No, it is not the same as the Deborah Kerr, Cary Grant version, but that is a bit dated. There is a cameo scene with Katharine Hepburn, she as Beatty's great- aunt, he as someone at a crossroads in his life; wondering if there will be a turning point. Bening is a singer/actress, they agree to meet in NY, a year after if neither is attached to their current significant other. Beatty and Bening actually make a nice couple, for me to have enjoyed this film at Christmas, points to the fact that it is not another romantic comedy we can toss out ( a rare thing) probably because Beatty and Bening have a believable chemistry together.The final scene, sad as it is Christmas, and the children singing a version of the Beatles' "I will" is atmospheric. It was (for me anyway ) a more moving scene than the older version, perhaps because the children singing in the 1950's version- were singing a song from that 1950's time period....Highly recommended. 8/10