Affair in Trinidad

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

In this romantic spy thriller, a nightclub performer plys her trade in her husband's Trinidad bar. He is murdered by a notorious spy. Soon afterward, the police ask the widow to try to get close to the killer and gather information. Her work is nearly thwarted when her bumbling brother-in-law appears, looking to bring the killer to justice himself. This film marked the return of bombshell Rita Hayworth who had retired from movies during her marriage to Prince Aly Khan. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 1
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 (Pre-1954 Standard)
• Audio: Dolby Digital Stereo
• Screen: Black and White
• Features:
  • cc
  • Original Trailer
  • Martini Minutes: "How To Play The Leading Lady" and "How To Play The Leading Man"

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Glenn Ford - Steve Emery
       Rita Hayworth - Chris Emery
       Alexander Scourby - Max Fabian
       Valerie Bettis - Veronica
       Torin Thatcher - Inspector Smythe
       Howard Wendell - Anderson
       Karel Stepanek - Walters
       George Voskovec - Dr. Franz Huebling
       Steven Geray - Wittol
       Walter Kohler - Peter Bronec
       Juanita Moore - Dominique
       Gregg Martell - Olaf
       Mort Mills - Martin
       Robert Boon - Pilot
       Ralph Moody - Coroner
       Don Blackman - Bobby

• Director:

  Vincent Sherman

• Producer:

  Vincent Sherman

• Screenwriter:

  James Gunn, Virginia van Upp, Oscar Saul, Berne Giler

• Cinematographer:

  Joseph Walker

• Composer (Music Score):

  George Duning

• Songwriter:

  Lester Lee, Bob Russell

• Composer (Music Score):

  Morris W. Stoloff

• Editor:

  Viola Lawrence

• Art Director:

  Walter Holscher

• Set Designer:

  William Kiernan

• Costume Designer:

  Jena Lewis, Jean Louis

• Sound/Sound Designer:

  Lodge Cunningham

• Makeup:

  Clay Campbell

• First Assistant Director:

  Sam Nelson

REVIEW:

• When released in 1952, the ads for Affair in Trinidad trumpeted "She's back!" -- indicating that the powers that be realized that the lure for potential Trinidad viewers was clearly Rita Hayworth, returning to the screen after a four-year absence. True, Glenn Ford was also on board, and he's a worthy addition, but Trinidad was made because Columbia suddenly had Hayworth on hand and needed to use her as soon as possible. As might be expected under the rushed circumstances, the resulting film is a bit of a mess; the quartet of credited screenwriters came up with no more than a tepid rehash of Gilda with a very healthy helping of Notorious thrown in, but without any character of its own. The screenplay veers all over the place, the plot is unnecessarily confusing and the characters behave in unrealistic ways simply to keep the plot moving. Director Vincent Sherman is not in top form, and the direction comes off as unfocused and unsure. That pretty much leaves things up to the cast. Hayworth's overall performance is fine, but except for the two dance sequences is unexceptional. Those musical numbers, however, more than compensate: rarely has the screen witnessed such torrid, erotic dancing. The star tears the roof off, demonstrating how in the right hands, even something as unplanned as a stray twirling of hair can be imbued with an amazing sensuality. Hayworth also enjoys chemistry with Ford, who for his part does more than adequately with a role that calls for too much superficial posturing. The supporting cast is solid, with Valerie Bettis earning very high marks. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi