Affair in Trinidad (1952)

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

From my favorite movies..

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

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

"Affair in Trinidad" (1952) was supposed to be Rita Hayworth's "comeback" after a several year hiatus from Hollywood. Columbia pictures clearly pulled out as many stops as it could to get audiences into the theaters to see "Trinidad." The film's opening narration and its exotic locale are obviously derived from "Casablanca." Hayworth's pairing with leading man Glen Ford hearkened back to the great success of "Gilda." And the film's plot, using Hayworth to spy on Cold War conspirators, owes more than a little to Hitchcock's "Notorious."The film does have some entertainment value, but Hayworth was clearly rusty and her great beauty was beginning to age even though she was only 35 at the time of the film's release. Oddly, only two scenes show off her signature erotic singing and dancing, and the second one of these is a complete dud. Her chemistry with Ford is also much more forced in "Trinidad" than it had been in the far superior "Gilda." A love triangle involving a rich, shady older man is another element borrowed from "Gilda," but with much less complexity in the plot and with no depth whatsoever in the development of the rival/antagonist.I have always found it curious that in "Gilda," "Trinidad," and a few other films Rita Hayworth is often billed as a "femme fatale." Actually, she is the reverse of a femme fatale - - a woman with overt sexuality and seemingly loose morals who turns out to be "good" and "vulnerable." At least in "Gilda" her sexuality is trafficked upon in noirish ways until her heart-of-gold is finally established. Here in "Trinidad," despite being advertised as the hottest "Lady of Trinidad" and her introduction via a come-hither, bump and grind dance number, we are asked to believe that not only is she not promiscuous but that she is practically virginal, not having had sex in several years even with her suicidal/murdered ex- husband.With Hayworth's characters sexuality is typically a come-on and a mask, not a source of power or a threat to masculine dominance as it is with true femme fatales like Barbara Stanwyck's Phyllis Diedrich in "Double Indemnity." Also unlike true film noirs, the plot in "Trinidad" (and to a lesser degree "Gilda") resolves in a closed, happy ending, not a descent into chaotic darkness. Both of these characteristics are typical of the 1940s & 50s Hollywood mainstream drama, and NOT of the true film noirs that ran counter to the mainstream and remain more interesting to modern audiences than the standard Hollywood fare.All in all, "Affair in Trinidad" is a derivative work with both eyes on the box office and not much depth or credibility. Its claims to film noir status are dubious at best. And Rita Hayworth fans - of which I am one -- are likely to be left cold by the action and the romance.

Affair in Trinidad was a hit of its day, but it suffers from a lukewarm reputation as a late rehash of Gilda.The plot is reminiscent of Notorious: a girl 'with a past' infiltrates a group of wealthy and amoral expatriates who are planning a terrorist attack on the US. The girl is doing so undercover, helping the good guys following the death of her father (Notorious) or her in-name-only husband (Affair). Glenn Ford has little to do: we always know more than he does, which is one of the plot weaknesses. Alexander Scourby is excellent as the enamored magnate (the Claude Rains role in Notorious). In smaller roles, Juanita Moore is striking as an omniscient maid with a great island wardrobe: the role is a stereotype, but Moore is magnificent. Obscure Valerie Bettis is also noticeable as a sarcastic lush (she was, in addition, the choreographer for Rita Hayworth's borderline-sleazy dance numbers). Rita Hayworth is at the pinnacle of her beauty. There is not one angle under which she is less than gorgeous (which cannot be said of some of her earlier hits like Cover Girl, for instance). However, she is also a bit vacant, a bit sad, a bit extinguished. Her performance would appear stronger if the character had been clearly written as a complex girl (like Bergman in Notorious), instead of also making her the hootchy-kootchy queen of the local cabaret. It is a writing problem, not an acting problem. The contrast between the character's inner turmoil and her torrid dance numbers is unmanageable. Still, this is a very enjoyable movie of its time, and probably Vincent Sherman's best alongside Nora Prentiss. Watch it if you know Notorious well (and you will also notice some similarities with the later North by Northwest towards the end).

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.