Affair in Trinidad (1952) Online

The re-teaming of "Gilda" stars Rita Hayworth and Glenn Ford in the 1952 production "Affair In Trinidad" had Columbia Pictures executives having high hopes of achieving something nearing the same success as their enduring 1946 classic. But James Gunn and Oscar Saul's screenplay failed to reach the mark and the picture turned out to be nothing more than just another average Noir!

Nevertheless it did have some things going for it and not least a sizzling performance from the beautiful Rita Hayworth as a nightclub entertainer. The stunning Hayworth just gnaws at the scenery throughout and setting male hearts a racing with her inimitable renditions of a couple of songs which, in her hands, simply sparkle! Vincent Sherman does a reasonable job in the director's chair and the glorious black & white cinematography by Joseph Walker is as sharp as a button. The excellent DVD transfer is particularly enriched with well defined imagery!

Glenn Ford is his usual laconic, sullen and truculent self as Steve Emery who arrives in Trinidad only to learn that his brother has committed suicide. Refusing to believe the suicide claim he sets out to prove otherwise. Determined to get to the bottom of what exactly happened to his sibling and with the help of his brother's widow (Hayworth) he exposes the truth resulting in an action filled finale.

The picture is well held together by a good supporting cast such as Valerie Bettis (who also created Hayworth's couple of dance routines), Torin Thatcher as the police chief but especially Alexander Scourby as the smooth and charming baddie with the colorful name of Max Fabian. His role looking every bit like a dry run for his smooth and charming racketeer Mike Lagana in Glenn Ford's cop classic "The Big Heat" the following year.

Not too bad a movie really and I can think of worse ways to spend 94 minutes. But there are no extras - not even a trailer - which to put it mildly is nothing short of reprehensible!

Will people learn to stop comparing.....these movies were made 6 years apart and set out its goal of entertaining us to the hilt. Rita Hayworth alone is enough to watch it all the way....and the black and white cinematography is excellent. Yes the storyline is thin but it still is intriguing and well done. What a good job also done by the supporting actors...even Juanit Moores role turned out to be very important. You think i left out Glenn Ford....no way...some say it is wooden acting....no way. Ford could act without making physical gestures....just look at the expressions on his face. He is simply awesome. OH and by the way the ending is fine for me and i am really happy to own this very entertaining DVD

When one talks about Rita Hayworth and Glenn Ford as a screen team, one is primarily talking about Gilda. There first film, The Lady in Question had them as featured players, second was the classic Gilda, third was The Loves of Carmen with a horribly miscast Glenn Ford. It was after that one, that Rita Hayworth married Aly Khan and was off the screen for four years.

When she came back, Harry Cohn decided not to be too adventurous. Her last big success was Gilda with Glenn Ford, she got Glenn Ford. She was a singer stranded in the southern hemisphere in Gilda, she was again a singer stranded in Affair in Trinidad. Stepping into the George MacReady's shoes as villainous mastermind is suave and continental Alexander Scourby.

Rita's husband is murdered and the Trinidad police inspector Torin Thatcher knows full well Alexander Scourby is behind it. Scourby is your international man of mystery in the Sydney Greenstreet, Orson Welles tradition. Thatcher wants Rita to spy on Scourby and she agrees to find out exactly what he's up to.

In comes Glenn Ford into the picture as her late husband's brother. He wants some answers and nearly succeeds in wrecking the whole project. Good thing Rita's a quick thinking girl, a better thing is that Ford's a man of action, helps them both out in a pinch.

Come to think of it, though Alexander Scourby is a fine player, Orson Welles would have owned this part and even better if he had directed Affair in Trinidad. This is just the kind of story that someone like him could have made into a classic. What a film to remember with Rita with her most well known co-star and another ex-husband as well.

Harry Cohn probably would have shot anyone who brought him that idea, still it's interesting to speculate.

Though Affair in Trinidad got panned by critics it cleaned up at the box office with all of Rita's loyal fans wanting to see her again. It's still a treat for fans of the screen's greatest sex symbol.

To address some issues: there is a familiarity with 'Gilda' which is just that and cannot possibly take anything away from what a triumph this film actually is.

Firstly, I love how it is such a classic, straight-to-the-point Hayworth vehicle. Business: Harry Cohn had to 'give away' Born Yesterday, which was intended for his number 1 star, to Judy Haliday; now she was "back!" just like the posters said; she had star power and wasn't given From Here To Eternity as her comeback simply because she had too much box-office to be in an ensemble picture; and what better way than to give fans a sure-fire treat - Hayworth and Glenn Ford in another simmering film noir? Except, this is no 'Gilda' - this is 'Affair In Trinidad'. Hayworth reinvents herself, her talent bristling with abandon in her opening number The Trinidad Lady. The swirling intro to this film is over in seconds and there she is - still the star and definitely not off the pedestal. We can see the transformation is what films can get away with just that little bit more - when Hayworth 'slides' to show off her amazing legs it's like a revelation, a force that cannot be held back. This is Rita dancing with her trademark unearthly grace, yet now she has experience that she can convey like never before.

This is certainly true with her acting too. She had always been able to give spirited performances that she isn't always - superficially at least - given much credit for. But here she handles her scenes with great texture, assurance and (key to most starlets of the era's guaranteed appeal) vulnerability. My favourite scene is when she is 'stealing time' to peek through documents for the police - she gets a rare kind of drama not normally given to her before. It's just en interesting, daft moment that is perhaps just typical 1950's melodrama, but glamorous and crucial at the same time.

We also see the impressive actress Valerie Bettis, who is very much a character that was emerging in this period - a very vamp-like, sardonic lady with a smouldering alcohol-sustained sexuality, in the vein of Gloria Swanson, Bette Davis, etc. She eats the scenery, which is an acquired taste, but well worth it. The actress in question is Valerie Bettis who it would appear was a successful TV actress in the same decade. Her character Veronica Huebling certainly tried to use her sex appeal to entrap and exploit men, the way she believes Chris Emery (Hayworth) is able to, which possibly explains her heavy drinking.

Juanita Moore conveys a powerful presence also, managing some interesting lines. Some of which are dated, or perhaps just twee, but to be enjoyed nonetheless.

When Hayworth famously tosses her hair again, we don't need to hear any 'Gilda' comparisons. She had moved on, she had made straight-forward vehicles all through her ascent to super-stardom and fans will definitely appreciate the familiar elements resonating their own special glory, but shaken together as it is, we get something new that is definitely worth investigation.

After her divorce from Prince Aly Khan, Rita Hayworth returned to America and Columbia immediately put her into this film, reuniting her with her favorite costar, Glenn Ford. Associate producer of "Gilda" , Virginia Van Upp, was also on board, as was Stephen Geray who had portrayed Uncle Pio in the earlier film.

It is a noir along the lines of the aforementioned movie, with Rita portraying Trinidad café dancer Chris Emery, whose husband, Neal, is the owner of the joint. The authorities show up one evening after her dance routine to inform her that her spouse has apparently committed suicide. Although shocked, she later cooperates with police when they conclude that he actually was murdered and they ask her to help with the investigation. They suspect the wealthy playboy Max Fabian (Alexander Scourby), of the crime, and since he is infatuated with Chris, she can get close to him. Neal's older brother, Steve (Ford) arrives, unaware of his brother's death, but once he learns of it, he is determined to find out the truth. He is suspicious of Chris, but he is also attracted to her - something he tries to conceal. As Chris cannot reveal what she is up to, Steve begins to suspect that she knows more about Neal's death than she will admit. He is infuriated further by Fabian, who makes it no secret that he desires her. This leads to a showdown at the villain's mansion, with a strew of menacing, secondary characters to supply a sub-plot of spies and world control a la Gilda.

Although not quite on par with the earlier Hayworth/Ford teaming, this is an entertaining picture that should please the viewer in the way of suspense, intrigue, and of course, the electricity generated between the two stars. And the songs (Rita's vocals were dubbed by Jo Ann Greer), "Trinidad Lady", and "I've Been Kissed Before", steamy dance routines (created by Valerie Bettis, who appears as the wife of one of the spies), and the gowns by Jean Louis are definitely a highlight.

Update - the film was released on region 1 DVD in 2008. Good to have it, although I thought it could have gotten more extras - but this is Columbia, so one shouldn't expect that to happen too often.

Definitely a must for Rita and Glenn fans.

On the orders of Columbia studio head Harry Cohn, Rita Hayworth was transformed from a latin B player to an A picture love goddess, her high spirits passing as all-American in titles like Cover Girl and Gilda. However the curse of the beautiful is that they become possessions by collectors, just as Rita told screenwriter of Gilda, Virginia Van Upp - "Men fell in love with Gilda but woke up with me". Her greatest collector was Prince Aly Khan, and the idea of capturing a movie star predated Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier in the 1950's. However the Hayworth/Khan marriage failed and Rita returned to Hollywood. Perhaps in a depression, unhappy with the vehicle provided for her comeback role, or simply older, Hayworth's sparkle had dimmed.

That's not to say that she doesn't look beautiful in the film. Whilst not lit as gorgeously as she was by Rudolph Mate in Gilda, she has a moment here standing in repose in shadow, smoking. But even with her character being a recent widow, her voice is dead and she carries herself like a somnambulist. She is best when she is dancing as she does twice here. In the first, Trinidad Lady, is the Carmen Rita - barefoot and tossing her dress. The framing distances us - director Vincent Sherman may be more interested in the crowd around the stage, but she looks happy performing. The second, I've Been Kissed Before, has obvious parallels to her Put The Blame on Mame from Gilda. She wears a shimmery black dress as fetishistic as the famous black satin sheath, the number is schematically arranged to present her as a tramp to later be rewarded with a face slap, even the choreography recalls that of Mame. However her announced intention to dance, even if contextualised, is a dramatic change of characterisation. She gives us the Gilda we want, and not the woman we have accepted up to this time - the one we have woken up with.

The Gilda connection is made in the film by the casting of Glenn Ford as her romantic partner, thankfully treating her a little kinder this time around, Steven Geray in an amusing supporting role as her employer, Alexander Scourby as a pseudo-George Macready but without the menace, the locale being Trinidad as Gilda was set in Buenos Aires and a plot about German-ish hoods investing in shady activities that pose a threat to security. Ford tells us he was a pilot in the war and since he isn't old enough to mean WW1, we know that Upp and her co-writers have written their screenplay in a rush, explaining Hayworth's own reluctance to participate.

Scourby is give the witty lines like "Some people are mellowed by drink. Have another" and "At the risk of dislocating your personality, try to be calm". He has a funny exchange with Ford about Hayworth - "I think you look lovelier in this color than any other. Don't you agree?" "There's a few shades I haven't seen her in yet". Valerie Bettis who created Rita's dances also appears as the wife of one of the Germans and her drunken energy is very welcome. She has a great laugh and even gets to parody Hayworth's dancing at one point, and Juanita Moore is good as Rita's maid. Sherman provides an exterior of an airport with seemingly limitless open skies, and gives Scourby's interior an imposing staircase.

This film is not a bomb, plot holes notwithstanding. Sherman moves things along and at least Hayworth isn't the embarrassment she was in the Hall of Mirrors sequence in The Lady from Shanghai. Perhaps Aly Khan took the best of her and Harry Cohn was left to salvage her career with the little she had left to give.

This highly entertaining movie was the return of Rita Hayworth to the screen after a brief flirtation with married life and screen retirement. For her comeback, to establish back with the graces of the movie buying public, she is teamed with Glenn Ford who starred with her in her biggest and most popular hit Gilda. This was no guarantee for box office magic because an even bigger budgeted movie "Carmen" starring the aforementioned tanked in 1948. But that was a unoperatic take on the famous opera story Carmen with a woefully miscast Glenn Ford in a Tyrone Power like role. Avoid that movie. But going back here to the mystery and intrigue of Gilda, this movie was a box office hit unlike the earlier comment mistakenly claimed and was one of the 23 biggest hits of its year. ( I don't know the exact rank). And Glenn Ford was wooed away from Columbia by MGM with a bigger paycheck and Hayworth stayed on at Columbia through the late fifties. The plot a mismash of Notorious and the earlier Gilda as Hayworth plays the temptress who is really an innocent who all men cannot resist. Her husband is murdered and his brother shows up to find things more fishy than they really are. One thing about Hayworth, she could hoof for sure and sell sex through dance and the two musical numbers are a delight. Forlorn shadows, dark passages, whispers in the dark follow as Vincent Sherman, a true craftsman, if not an auteur (I do not believe an auteur is superior to a craftsman. An auteur just has a regular theme in the movies he/she directs.) brings sharp direction and well-earned suspense to this fine movie. Catch it whenever it airs or better, just rent it.

When one approaches a 1940's title like 'Affair In Trinidad', you'll be hard pressed to figure that it's some sort of musical with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, or some madcap Marx Brothers comedy, not a hard edged murder mystery, yet that's what this badly titled movie is. Not that there's nothing wrong with the movie, I liked it. It's just the title is sort of curious. Rita Hayworth is a.. uh.. entertainer in very sleazy club (check out the people "returning" downstairs (cough) and keeps the people entertained by singing and dancing very suggestively to a song called "Trinidad Lady". Actually, she's SMOKING (as in hot!) in this scene, her dress and dancing are amazing. But soon, the police arrive on the scene, her husband has committed suicide, and they want to find out the reasons leading to his death. Glenn Ford, playing as steely jawed as Glenn Ford can, who plays his brother, wants to know too! From there, it's a whirlwind of deception, romance and thrills (well, not really), that is not really suspenseful, because we find out early on who did it, we just have to find out why (and that reason is a silly post-war hokum). Oh well, Hayworth IS pretty to look at, and Glenn Ford is great as usual, so the combination of the two is sorta fun to watch.

Above average film starring Glenn Ford and Rita Hayworth once more.

In this one, Ford comes to Trinidad just in time to learn that his brother as supposedly committed suicide and meets Hayworth, the widow.

Hayworth is fascinating in the role and an absolute joy to watch. She can do some really heavy duty acting here and then break into a wonderful song and dance routine. Both her singing and dancing are up to par here as well as a wonderful plot involving spies. Hayworth has been asked by the government to infiltrate the ring and it appears that she is very much against her brother-in-law in an attempt to shield him from apparent danger.

Alexander Scourby is excellent in the villain role.

Certainly not as good as "Gilda", and nowhere even close to being as good as "Notorious", but I still find it a very enjoyable movie. I enjoyed the directing, the song/dance numbers, and was not bothered by the storyline that others on this site found weak. I like Glenn Ford, too, but I found his performance a little too much on the melodramatic side, and less on the believable side, but he was still enjoyable overall.

A couple of things reminded me of other films: 1) The moment when Rita opens the door to the guest house to find all the bad guys standing just outside waiting for her somehow reminded me of when Bob Cummings and Priscilla Lane enter the train car of circus freaks in "Saboteur"...both scenes were a little eerie...and both were very nice cinematic moments. The other comparison that was a bit distracting for me was 2) how much Alexander Scourby in "Affair" reminds me of Morris Carnovsky, Bogart's nemesis in "Dead Reckoning"...they have a very similar look, and their characters are also very much alike.

A previous reviewer knocked Rita Hayworth's performance as being lifeless...Yes, it could be that it was Rita's lack of enthusiasm, but I wouldn't know her frame of mind, so I don't know if that comment is fair for people to make...to me, I took it as her choice for the character...it made perfect sense for her to be dazed and detached...think about all that her character has suffered in a loveless marriage, an unfulfilling job, the grief she feels for her failed marriage, her husband's death, her own emotional death, then what she is forced into doing in terms of the lies, deceit, and intrigue for the police. Add to that her confusion over her feelings for her brother-in-law and is it any wonder that the character's head was swimming? I think Ms. Hayworth did a fine job with the role...and was she ever gorgeous, too!!

"Affair In Trinidad" will never be accused of being a masterpiece, but it is absolutely worth viewing if you're in the mood for some enjoyable, Noirish entertainment.

I am flabbergasted by the low imdb average for this film! From the opening credits onward I was riveted by this film. Like Steve Emery (Glenn Ford) I was fixated on finding out what happened to the late Mr. Emery. This film has intrigue, suspense, and no short amount of sultriness thanks to the gorgeous Rita Hayworth (Chris). Hayworth also performs two stunning dance numbers. Mention should also be made of the terrific performances turned in by the actors who play the motley crew led by Max Fabian (Alexander Scourby). The only drawback to the movie is the absurdness of Fabian's plot. He was helping the Nazis secure launching bases for possibly attacking U.S. cities. This is pure propaganda. The Nazis had no such plan. They couldn't even take Paris. Perhaps this plot point was developed to scare Americans into supporting the Allied campaign against the Nazis. Still Affair in Trinidad is a terrific suspense thriller, 9/10.

Glenn Ford and Rita Hayworth worked together on Gilda in 1946 and produced one of the best in the film noir genre. Affair in Trinidad is an obvious try at recreating that magic, but it didn't work. The film is watchable and with decent performances and moderately intelligent dialog but overall it just seems a little tired. There is insufficient excitement, perhaps because the viewer keeps expecting Gilda type fireworks and they just don't happen. An interesting point is how a character is identified as a Russian agent without the word ever being spoken. He leaves the room and someone comments that he has walked out on them. Someone else says, "Must be a national characteristic." Another point that bears mentioning is that the film was made in 1952. The plot revolves around the theft of plans for a missile. The arch-criminal points to Cuba on a map and says that by locating their missiles there, they can strike at any target in the US. This was 10 years before the Cuban Missile Crisis, even before Castro ever came to power.

I found it odd that reviewers, and the plot summary, center on Glenn Ford coming to investigate his brother's murder.

The plot does not actually center on this, since Ford comes a bit late into the film. Moreover, he is skeptical that his brother committed suicide, but murder is not established until later in the film.

The spotlight is really on Rita Hayworth, who plays the role very well, being both good at being the cabaret singer-dancer that she is, and a straightforward and caring person hoping to help the British authorities bring justice to the case. It is, as barely noted, actually a spy thriller! And it is very well done, given that one cannot actually discern if the spies are committed Nazis or some kind of eastern Europeans--in other words, as distinct from other cold war era films it doesn't go after the Russians as well it might have.

During the time that this 1952 film was being filmed, its star, Rita Hayworth was thinking of terminating her contract with Columbia Pictures. Why didn't she? It would've prevented her from making films like this. This film plays like an obvious attempt to repeat the big box office success of "Gilda", a 1946 Columbia Picture starring Hayworth as she is reteamed with her "Gilda" costar Glenn Ford. The farfetched plot has nightclub singer Hayworth and her brother-in-law (Ford) joining forces to track down her husband's murderer. In the box office results, the film was a disappointment and it eventually inspired longtime Columbia Pictures contract players Hayworth and Ford to pursue film careers as freelances.

In Port of Spain, Trinidad, the mediocre painter Neal Emery is found dead apparently after committing suicide. Inspector Smythe (Torin Thatcher) seeks out Neal's wife, the dancer Chris Emery (Rita Hayworth) that is the lead attraction of the Caribe night-club to tell her about the death of her husband. Soon Smythe finds that Neal actually was murdered and his prime suspect is Neal's friend, the wealthy Max Fabian (Alexander Scourby) and has eyes on Chris. Smythe asks Chris to spy Fabian to find an evidence to arrest him.

Meanwhile Neal's brother Steve Emery (Glenn Ford) unexpectedly arrives in Trinidad to visit his brother and learns that his brother had committed suicide, but he does not believe on the official statement. He stays at Chris house and decides to investigate the murder of his brother. Soon Chris and Steve fall in love with each other, but Chris cannot tell to him the reason why she continues to meet Fabian.

"Affair in Trinidad" is a film-noir with a not well developed story where Rita Hayworth steals the movie and makes it worthy. Glenn Ford's character is too nervous and shows no chemistry with Rita Hayworth. Actually there is nothing to explain why the offensive Steve and Chris falling in love with each other. The cinematography is magnificent and the plot is reasonable, but the rushed conclusion ruins this film-noir. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Uma Viúva em Trinidad" ("A Widow in Trinidad")

After their sizzling triumph in 'Gilda' ('46), Columbia paired Rita Hayworth with Glenn Ford a few times hoping to ignite some of the same kind of sparks. Unfortunately, 'Affair in Trinidad' is only moderately successful in keeping you hooked on the slender storyline. It is really the chemistry of the two stars that makes more of an impression than the plot--which is rather routine. Ford comes to Trinidad to find out the truth behind his brother-in-law's murder. The on-again, off-again romantic feud is finally resolved when the killer is brought to justice. This was Hayworth's comeback film after divorcing Prince Aly Khan and Columbia was hoping to rekindle public interest in her with a torrid sort of role. The results were too tepid and it only did fairly well at the box-office. Vincent Sherman's direction keeps things moving smoothly--but the overall result is a disappointing melodrama.

This Rita Hayworth - Glenn Ford pairing may not be the classic that "Gilda" became, or quite as exotic as the title implies, but it's a pretty neat little mystery on its own. Though the supporting cast - the suavely villainous Alexander Scourby, the quirky Valerie Bettis, the comic-relief Steven Geray, etc. - is interesting enough, it's largely up to the two main stars to carry the movie. Rita Hayworth gives a low-key performance for the most part, but she also explodes in two wonderful song-and-dance numbers (one thing I noticed here is that her body was quite athletic by that era's standards). Ford's rugged masculinity is somehow a perfect counterpart to Hayworth's sensuality - they make a good pair. The film gets quite tense in the second half, when Rita goes on what is essentially a spy mission, but the ending is pretty rushed - and Rita's dangerous work does not really get rewarded since the police find the evidence they were looking for to get the bad guy from another source! But for fans of the two leads, "Affair In Trinidad" is still a must-see. *** out of 4.

Rita Hayworth and Glenn Ford re-team for "Affair in Trinidad," a 1952 film also starring Alexander Scourby, Juanita Moore and Valerie Bettis. Hayworth plays Chris Emery, a nightclub performer whose husband Neil dies by apparent suicide that turns out to be murder. His brother Steve (Ford) shows up on the day of the inquest, having received a letter from Neil on the day he died. He assumes the worst about his widowed sister-in-law and her relationship with a wealthy man, Max Fabian (Scourby).

Either I dosed off or the actual mystery was never fully explained. It was explained sort of, but I was never clear what Rita, her husband, or the people in Max's house had to do with it. The story, as the subject line indicates, is a gemisch of "Gilda" and "Notorious" and not as good as either one. Interestingly, the plot predates the Cuban missile crisis by 10 years. Totally amazing. For that alone, it's worth seeing.

Except for Ava Gardner, probably no actress defined the word "hot" like Rita Hayworth. For a woman who was painfully shy and didn't even want to be in show business, she sure could turn it on. And turn it on she does in two musical numbers, "I've Been Kissed Before" and "Trinidad Lady." She wears some gorgeous gowns, too. Glenn Ford and Rita make a wonderful team, certainly one of Hollywood's sexiest film love matches. Juanita Moore is excellent as the all-knowing maid, Dominique, and Alexander Scourby is an elegant villain.

"Affair in Trinidad" is well directed by Vincent Sherman with a nice, dark atmosphere, and one really believes it's Trinidad. Watching Rita Hayworth is never a waste of time; this isn't the greatest movie ever made, but Rita creates a few sparks.

As far as I am concerned this is a remake of "Morocco."

That movie was a vehicle for Marlene Dietrich, someone with personal appeal — a celebrity — but scant talent as an actress. The challenge there was a matter of branding. She had been successful in some German films, where story and acting didn't matter — it was all about mood. The idea was to bring her to Hollywood as a redhead with her (to me fairly uninteresting) German director and recreate that mood for the payoff US audience.

It has since become a formula: a woman in a "night club" in a far off or exotic place, faced with the attentions of two men: one "genuine" (and probably tough) and the other rich. I found "Morocco" to be a bad film and got some hate mail. But it was effective marketing, because the key to whole formula was the night club act which we must see early in the story.

That's where we establish the notion, the immense sexual charm, the ability to drive men crazy. Its a simple example of what I call folding: we as an audience are represented on- screen by an audience who watches. They are charmed out of their dull lives by this special woman, and so are we, in theory. Dietrich's Moroccon act was engaging because it seemed sexually deviant for the time. Bisexual, aggressive, hungry. It built a career for a weak actress.

So you can imagine the thinking with Hayworth. Here we had the number one pinup during the war, someone who in image as an engineered redhead in a significant way drove the war, the yearning part. And perhaps she ruined countless marriages as fantasies met reality as men returned. Now her career was in ruins in only a short time. Personal foibles, weak talent, changing times, bad choices.

So they copied "Morocco," added a pseudonoir thriller story (some nonsense about spies) and put huge attention into the signature nightclub number at the beginning, repeated in a way later in the story. To emphasize her soft appeal, a witchy young broad is there to heckle.

Unfortunately, it is in black and white. The famous artificial hairline can be seen though.

If you come to this, I will leave it to you to decide whether she succeeded. The public said no, and I think I do as well.

You have a few choices with these. You can be exciting dance-wise, like say Ginger, Moira, Cyd or Carol Haney. Or even Judy.

Or you can be sexy, unique. They chose the latter, and I think that was their mistake. They chose the Dietrich route.

Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.

Glenn Ford and Rita Hayworth pretty much epitomized classic Hollywood glamour, and "Affair in Trinidad" shows the chiseled pair reunited after the success of "Gilda." By most measures, "Trinidad" is a solid, big budget topliner, but the film's hurried ending and blunted racial archetyping dock it some points. Nonetheless, the performances are good ones, and the picture's murder mystery, at least until the stumbling climax, is consistently interesting and believable. Rita Hayworth is older here, but still stunning, and Glenn Ford is solid in the lead, providing plenty of romantic sensibility, as well as good ol' tough guy moments. The story involves Ford traveling to Trinidad after receiving a letter from his brother, only to find him dead and presumably murdered. What follows is a story of international intrigue, with Ford working to unravel the reasons for his brother's murder, as well as the identity of his killer(s). Meanwhile, his brother's widow (Hayworth) may hold the key to exposing the killer(s), but her cooperation with the British counsel prevents her from telling Ford important secrets. Predictably, there is a love story subplot, with Ford and a nefarious businessman vying for Hayworth's hand, and some of the exchanges are terrific. Again, however, the climax is hurried and disquieting, ending the picture on an unbalanced and underwhelming note, but not so much as to spoil the experience. There are a lot of good moments in this one, and fans of 40's Hollywood should be pleased. ---|--- Was this review helpful?

Affair in Trinidad is one of those pretend film noir movies that the public seem to love more than the critics, both back then on release and also now. I was personally hoping that as a big fan of Glenn Ford, and being an admirer of Rita Hayworth, I too would be thumbing my nose at the critics. Sadly not.

Directed by Vincent Sherman and with a screenplay by Berne Gilder and James Gunn, the story is set in Trinidad and pitches Hayworth as a recently widowed nightclub dancer and Ford as the deceased man's brother. The death is suspicious and as the law closes in (in the form of Torrin Thatcher) secrets will out and a bigger picture kind of emerges.

Ok! Lets not compare to Gilda and Notorious, for obvious reasons, and just accept Affair in Trinidad as its own entity. What transpires is a tired tropical exercise in romance and spy like intrigue. In fact it's a bit of a hack job coasting in on the two leading stars reputations, Ford as a genre presence and Hayworth as some sort of ogle feature. The plot is ridiculous where nothing much makes sense. Character's motivations are sketchy at best, and once the screenplay plays its hand for reveal purpose, you wonder just where are the villains from and what exactly are they up to?! Is that explained or did I have a power nap?...

It doesn't help that head weasel Max Fabian (Alexander Scourby) is so not threatening, and boring to boot, that it renders the intended dramatic oomph at pics finale as being akin to a damp squib. Hayworth goes through the motions in the acting scenes, only holding court with her two dance numbers (voice dubbed by Jo Ann Greer), and while Ford can brood with the best of them, his character is so poorly written it doesn't let the actor shine.

As for this remotely being film noir? Not a chance, neither visually, thematically or in characterisations does it work on that film making style. Consider me bloody annoyed. 5/10

For someone who dances in a nightclub and whose husband sells cheap tourist paintings, Rita Hayworth has an awfully expensive, glitzy wardrobe. She can dance up a storm, but I guess her singing voice was subpar, as the studios used a professional to dub her songs, in several of her films at least. Blooper: As Glenn Ford explained to Rita, he had veen a B-29 bombwr pilot during the war. He said that he was so excited to be flying home to Chicagi from San Francisco that he almost swt the plane down "on Michigan Boulevard." As most Chicagoans know, there is no Michigan Boulevard (at least not in the 1940s) - it is called Michigan Avenue. Michigan Avenue HAD been called Michigan Boulevard at one time, but not since 1871 - before even Ford's parents had been born.

And, the question is - Who killed "nice guy" Neal Emery, and why?... Well - As the story goes in "Affair In Trinidad" - The answer to Neal's untimely murder is a seriously complicated matter (as you'll soon find out).

IMO - This 1952 "Rita Hayworth" come-back film was certainly better than I had thought it would be. But, it was certainly not "Film Noir" as it has been erroneously categorized.

Back in 1952 the movie-going public literally flocked in droves to see this b&w crime/drama (which was shot entirely on sets in the USA at Columbia Studios).

You see - Glamour girl, Rita Hayworth had been away from starring in pictures for 4 years. During that time of absence she had been married to Prince Aly Khan.

To say that their royal, fairy-tale marriage was a messy affair would truly be an understatement - As it ended in accusations (by Hayworth) of cruelty and abuse. (Oh-me! Oh-my!)

"Affair In Trinidad" was produced on a $1 million budget. It made back 7 times that amount in its first year of release.

Although the 80-minute TV version leaves a few holes in the script and omits a couple of minor characters (I didn't notice any refugees), it is a considerable improvement on the original – and this will please just about everybody except Mr. Ford's most rabid fans. Mr. Ford makes a late entrance and disappears from the film altogether during most of the climax, but his absence is not missed all that much. He is less indulgently photographed than Rita Hayworth and his mannerisms seem even more theatrical than usual.

On the other hand, Miss Hayworth is very kindly treated by Joseph Walker's soft-focus lighting and is stunningly gowned. She also has the lion's share of the action and acquits herself so effectively in the dramatic sections that the climactic sequences will have most viewers on the edges of their seats. Vincent Sherman's direction shows his customary skill in the handling of action and his usual efficiency in dialogue scenes. Joseph Walker's atmospheric photography is also a big help in creating suspense.

Alexander Scourby is delightfully sinister as Max Fabian. Surprising to see dance choreographer Valerie Bettis as one of his confederates (she has the inside gag line, "Maybe I ought to learn to dance!" which was no doubt penned on the set) and essaying a scene in which she is slightly whiffed most effectively too! Torin Thatcher plays a police inspector with his usual air of forthright efficiency, whilst Howard Wendell does rather better as the American consul here than he does as the police commissioner in "The Big Heat". Steven Geray tries a part right off his usual track and is most effective as a corrupt night club proprietor. The other roles are comparatively small, but are well cast and played.

Production values leave nothing to be desired — with the exception of the songs which are pedestrian and the dances which contrive to be both distasteful and unexciting.

****SPOILERS**** 1940's love goddess Rita Hayworth's long awaited return to the silver screen is as hot as a pistol as dancer & singer Chris Emery in "An Affair in Trinidad" where she goes undercover as a secret agent for the free world. While doing her super sexy dance number at the Cari-B night club Chris is told by Trinidad police inspector Smythe, Torin Thatcher, that her husband Neil was found dead of a self inflicted gunshot wound floating in Trinidad Bay. Not at first knowings what to think Chris is later told that Neil was in fact murdered and the person behind his murder was Max Fabian, Alexander Scourby,a good friend of Chris as well as international gun runner.

Needing Chris to get the goods on Fabian and put him behind bars Chris reluctantly goes along with Thatcher's plan to trap Fabian in a honey pot affair but it's Neil's brother, just in from the states, Steve Emory, Glenn Ford, who ends up messing things up for both her & Inspector Thatcher. Steve realizes right from the start that his brother Neil was murdered and feels that his wife Chris together with her "lover" Max Fabian had something to do with it. Keeping secret that she's really working undercover to expose Fabian to the police Chris is smacked around, as well as smacks back, by an outraged Steve who's in danger of exposing what she's really involved in:Saving Trinidad as well as the free world from a Communist takeover!

***SPOILERS**** It turns out that Fabian is free lancing as a spy and saboteur for an unnamed but obviously communist, just pick one of many, government in stealing the most up to date propulsion secrets, gotten from the Nazis, of the US Air Force. With Fabian later finding out what Chris is up to he plans to have her knocked off by his goons but with Steve, who by now found out the truth to all this, jumping in to save her things go downhill for him. All of Fabian's plans backfire with himself getting iced, by mistake, by one of his goons that ends up not only saving both Chris & Steve but the entire free world from being nuked with the information he was to provide to, well just lets just stop beating around the bush and name it, the USSR! Even though she's been away from making motion pictures for some four year Rita Hayworth never looked more sexy & beautiful here and is the only reason for watching the movie.

P.S It was later that Rita's mind not body began to deteriorate due to the then undiscovered ravages of Alzheimer's Disease and the poor woman was unable to remember her lines or work that tragically turned her life into a vegetated state and passed away in 1986 at the age of 68.