Love Affair: Leo McCarey

Leo McCarey's Love Affair is the second Irene Dunne movie that I've seen recently that I originally dreaded watching but ended up loving. The first was George Stevens' I Remember Mama, a melodrama about inner city immigrants living in San Francisco in the 1910s. Another similarity between the two films is that they were made by directors that I usually feel ambivalent about: I love McCarey's comedies but rarely enjoy his dramas and I find Stevens' work to be painfully hit-or-miss. But I was taken aback by how deeply Love Affair effected me. The film is rich in McCarey's trademark warm, subtle humanism (which, admittedly, I find weighs down most of his dramas instead of improving them). The film, about a Frenchman named Michel Marnet (Charles Boyer) and an American named Terry McKay (Irene Dunne) who fall in love during an Atlantic cruise and swear to reunite at the top of the Empire State Building six months later, is gentle and sweet. But it also contains moments of stunning artistry, usually thanks to the efforts of cinematographer Rudolph Maté, most famous for his work in such immortal classics as The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) and Vampyr (1932). Two early scenes where the couple meets with Michel's grandmother Janou (Maria Ouspenskaya) on the island of Madeira are particularly stunning. First, they pray in a local chapel. The lighting, Maté's cinematography, and McCarey's careful editing helped turn what could have been a boring scene into a moment pregnant with the numinous. The second scene takes place right as they are about to leave the island. Janou wants to play them a song before they depart. As her shriveled hands stumble and trips over the keys, Terry begins to sing along with the music. By the end, Janou stops and collapses in tears. Is she mourning the loss of her talent? Is she happy that Michel has found his soul-mate in such a kind, loving young woman? Or is it something more intangible? I'm not sure. But I have a feeling that I will be revisiting this scene sometime in the future.

8/10