 From 1952 to 1953 , Rossen wrote Mambo , trying to repair his finances after almost two years without work following the 1951 HUAC hearing . He had to produce the film in Italy , and it was premiered in Italy in 1954 and the USA in 1955 . Rossen later said " Mambo was to be for fun only , " but he " took it seriously , and it didn 't come off . " Critics dismissed the film . However , in 2001 , Dorothea Fischer @-@ Hornung concluded that the film achieved more than Rossen and contemporary critics realized . The female lead resolves her own conflicts by devoting herself to dance . Katherine Dunham 's choreography highlights this process ; and innovative cinematography intensifies the dance scenes . 
