User reviews

RITA is a very intriguing pictorial biography of the great RITA HAYWORTH, so stunning and alive on screen, so sadly used and abused in her personal affairs--particularly by the men she married.

From her first union with a man who wanted to be her press agent to show biz celebrities like ORSON WELLES and DICK HAYMES, she made one unfortunate mistake in the direction of marriage and family, after another. Charming and sweet by nature, her smoldering screen personality playing sirens like GILDA and CARMEN fooled the men into thinking she was that sort of sexpot in real life. Such was not the case.

Career difficulties emerged when she fled Hollywood to become a princess by marrying Prince Aly Kahn, much to the distress of Columbia chief Harry Cohn. This meant an absence of a few years off screen before the marriage collapsed and she returned to resume the career in Hollywood that she interrupted at the top of her popularity.

Apart from all the photos and film clips documenting her journey to screen success, all of the personal data is given some fresh viewpoints by others who knew her well. Thus, we get to know Rita and understand how she was "used and abused" by a string of husbands who eventually failed to give her the love and security she needed. The harrowing descent into illness is depicted too, but what one is left with is a portrait of a movie star that the camera and public loved as no other.

Summing up: Well worth watching with tantalizing glimpses of some of her most famous roles.

Though the above summary comment was a request that Rita made of the press, the life of one of the world's most charismatic and glorious looking stars comes off as being just that - sad. For all the joy she gave the world and continues to give it, there should have been a lot more personal joy in the story of Rita Hayworth.

This is a wonderful documentary because it incorporates the memories of Rita's family as well as friends and coworkers. She was obviously a warm and loving person but probably someone who would have been content as a wife and mother. Certainly her children brought her great happiness. The biographical film emphasizes her attraction to manipulative, controlling men, attributing this to her being her father's dance partner and his dance student from a young age. Though not mentioned, it has been brought up elsewhere that Rita and her father often registered as husband and wife when they toured as dancers and shared a bed. If this is so, the root of her problems can be traced to this abusive relationship. Rita, however, remained a devoted daughter to both of her parents as well as a loving sister to her two brothers.

She was unable to have a happy marriage, though she certainly fell in love with both Orson Welles and Prince Aly Kahn before moving on to loser Dick Haymes, who almost cost her her children, and James Hill, who, like Haymes, was apparently abusive. Her first husband, Edward Judson, viewed her as an investment only, and according to publicist Henry Rogers, was furious when she had an affair with Anthony Quinn during the filming of "Blood and Sand" - not because she was having an affair, but because she was having an affair with someone who wasn't in a position to do anything for her career. The first signs of Alzheimer's began to show in the early '60s, and when she died in 1987, she was bedridden and knew no one.

So this is a great documentary if only to show that great beauty and talent do not confer a great life, and that what you see on the screen very often is real, honest-to-goodness acting. Because no doubt about it, through life's unhappiness, Rita Hayworth was a true goddess. With that face, voice, body, smile, hair, her magnificent and vivacious dancing, her charm, the sexiness she exuded as well as the vulnerability, she was a true angel who walked among us. She left the world greater for not only her screen presence, but for bringing to the fore a horrific disease. Quite a legacy. Quite a lady.

Rita personifies the very meaning of beauty, joy and life....but alas, it is on the silver screen where those qualities are most evident. In her personal life, so much of the joy of life seems to have eluded Rita. This marvelous documentary explores the life Rita lived, and it was an adventurous and incredible journey for her. In our era, we have the ability to look back over the entire life work of this magnificent woman, and we can only mourn for her the tragedies that seemed to stalk her journey. She seems to have ultimately been a simple woman who would have been content with an ordinary life, husband, children, house and garden with the white picket fence. But such was not to be. With her poise, incredible beauty and great acting skills, she created an aura which shone through all her work in films. This documentary is an excellent portrayal of her life with all the good and bad revealed, but at the same time, it is properly respectful of the lady and reveals her to have been a wonderful human being. Watch it for "Gilda" and rejoice in the portrait of "Rita."

I saw this doc. at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, CA, and when it premiered on TCN. .

Included is some truly original and magical imagery: home movies, screentest footage, and interviews with Anthony Franciosa, Marc Platt, and Juanita Mooreand. The late, great Ann Miller sheds light on Rita's unique temperament and sense of humor. Eli Wallach shares his ideas about the Hayworth magic. And Kim Basinger's narration haunts as if it were Hayworth's own joyless song.

Her famous Life Magazine pin-up could not be included in this film:-( but another version is used. Final thoughts, this is the best documentary I have seen on Rita Hayworth. It captures her unique essence and explores her lasting legacy. I thank Elaine Archer for making such a wonderful homage to Rita Hayworth.