They really weren't that bad to me. Sure, they were fillers but they did have the purpose of showing what Terry's life was like. I thought the kids' scenes were actually kinda sweet.
"This isn't exactly the first grave we've dug. You still think I'm a catch?" - Sam Winchester
You're not alone. I like the kids.
shareI didn't mind the kids nearly as much as Kerr's character.
shareThe children's scenes and songs are loud and annoying distractions. The film would have benefited if they were left out, and they are a main reason why the second half of the film is inferior to the first half. That's the way I see it.
shareAs much as I liked the performances between Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr, the one thing I didn't like about An Affair to Remember were the couple scenes involving the children singing. Honestly, they were too much and the reason why I knocked my rating for this film by quite a few points. I get it. This was a film made during the fifties when film was trying to keep up with television. But holy sh-t! I could have done without those two scenes bogging down the running time and even taking me out of the film. Watching those scenes were like having a toothache and waiting to see the dentist, only to find out he is gone all weekend long and you have to wait until Monday.
Before you call me a misanthrope, I don't mind sentimental films. I liked Intolerance, City Lights, Brief Encounter, The Snake Pit, Limelight, The Miracle Worker, and A Patch of Blue. Those are some really good sentimental films that I happen to like.
In this case, I felt the director was trying to hit the audience over the head again and again with the children's scenes that I felt, if I were an editor, should have been left on the cutting room floor. The children would have been much more suited for a cheesy 1960s Disney live-action film than a 1950s melodrama with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr.
To each his own, I guess.
I detest cheap sentiment.