Affair in Trinidad

I mentioned earlier today that there are movies available on DVD from Sony/Columbia's MOD scheme at the TCM Shop that don't seem to be available at Amazon. Such is the case with Affair in Trinidad, which you can buy here.

The movie starts off with a brief blurb about Trinidad's location, and its being a British colony back at the time the movie was made. We then see the authorities bring in a boat with a dead man aboard. The man in question was Neal Emery, a struggling artist who was married to the lovely Chris Emery (Rita Hayworth). Chris works in the local nightclub where she charms all the men because, well, she's Rita Hayworth.

Neal had a brother in Steve (Glenn Ford), and just before Neal died, he wrote Steve with the possibility of a job offer. So Steve makes his way down to the island, only to find out that his brother is dead. The authorities rule it accidental at first, but Steve isn't so sure. He also isn't so sure of his sister-in-law.

Apparently among the people Chris has charmed is local rich guy Max Fabian (Alexander Scourby), as she goes to soirees at his house and presumably used her influence to get Max to commission a painting from Neal. Steve, however, wonders if there was more between Chris and Max than just that. But just as interesting is that Steve spots a coincidence. The letter Neal wrote him was on paper with a letterhead that had a coat of arms, and when he's drinking at Max's house, the drinking glasses have the same coat of arms! Further, Steve knows just enough about one of Max's guests to make Max nervous.

Now, if you're beginning to sense a love triangle that sounds as though it could have come straight out of Gilda, you're not alone. This was Rita Hayworth's first movie after her marriage to Aly Khan broke up, and Columbia put her in something with their big male star Glenn Ford in the hopes that the audiences would love the re-teaming, which they did. But getting back to Affair in Trinidad, we learn through exposition that Max, like George Macready's character in Gilda is involved with the enemies of America.

There are differences between Affair in Trinidad and Gilda, however, the big one being that Hayworth has a character with a different sort of complexity, as we see when she tries to get into Max's guest house because, well, you'll see why. And Max's retinue is more important than anything George Macready had in Gilda, notable Max's drunken sister, who provides the comic relief. There's a murder at the airport which leads Steve to investigate further and learn the truth about his brother, although whether he can save his sister-in-law in time remains to be seen.

For better or worse, people are probably always going to make comparisons between Affair in Trinidad and Gilda. That's a shame, because while Gilda is definitely a better movie, there's really nothing wrong with Affair in Trinidad. It's another piece of solid, if undemanding entertainment, produced as a vehicle to get people another chance to see Rita Hayworth. She does a more than adequate job with her part, as do Ford and Scourby. It just doesn't rise to the level of exceptional.

Still, if you want to pay MOD prices, or if the movie shows up on TV, I can heartily recommend Affair in Trindad.