Affair in Havana ** (1957, John Cassavetes, Raymond Burr, Sara Shane) – Classic Movie Review 11,492

Director László Benedek’s enjoyably twisty, well handled, entertainingly acted 1957 black and white film noir crime film Affair in Havana is written by Burton Lane and Maurice Zimm, and stars John Cassavetes, Raymond Burr and Sara Shane.

Burr plays millionaire Cuba sugar-cane grower Mallabee who blames his unfaithful wife Lorna (Sara Shane) for the accident that put him in a wheelchair. The disloyal Lorna is having an affair with Havana nightclub piano player Nick (John Cassavetes) and Mallabee hires a private investigator to follow his wife.

Also in the cast are Lilia Lazo as Fina, Sergio Pena as Valdes, Celia Cruz as Singer, Jose Antonio Rivero as Rivero, and Miguel Angel Blanco as Captain of Police.

It is based on an original story by Janet Green.

Filming started on 6 August 1956 in Havana and its US release by Allied Artists Pictures was on 1 October 1957.

Burr appeared in more than 50 films between 1946 and 1957, creating a gallery of villains that made him a film noir icon. Burr’s rare roles on the right side of the law include the aggressive prosecutor in A Place in the Sun (1951).

In 1956, Burr had a piece of career-changing great fortune, when he auditioned for the role of Los Angeles district attorney Hamilton Burger in TV’s Perry Mason. Executive producer Gail Patrick Jackson was impressed with Burr’s courtroom performance in A Place in the Sun and had him in mind when they began casting the role of  Hamilton Burger but now told him he was perfect for Perry Mason if he lost at least 60 pounds.

Burr was known for his loyalty to his friends and colleagues, and he gave enormous sums of money, including his salaries from the Perry Mason movies, to charity.

The Best of Raymond Burr: Desperate (1947), Sleep, My Love (1948), Raw Deal (1948), Pitfall (1948), Abandoned (1949), Red Light (1949), M (1951), His Kind of Woman (1951), The Blue Gardenia (1953), Walk a Crooked Mile (1948), Borderline (1950), Unmasked (1950), The Whip Hand (1951), FBI Girl (1951), Meet Danny Wilson (1952), Rear Window (1954), They Were So Young (1954), A Cry in the Night (1956), Affair in Havana (1957), and Crime of Passion (1957).

© Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 11,492

Link to Derek Winnert’s home page for more reviews: http://derekwinnert.com/