The Man with the Golden Arm (1955)
Genre: Drama
Duration: 119 minuten
Country:
United States
Directed by: Otto Preminger
Stars: Frank Sinatra, Eleanor Parker and Kim Novak
IMDb score:
7,3 (13.558)
Releasedate: 26 December 1955
The Man with the Golden Arm plot
"An 'untouchable' theme…an unusual motion picture!"
After six months of drug addiction in prison, Frankie Machine returns to his old Chicago neighborhood, where his disabled wife, Zosh, is eagerly waiting for him. He is determined to say goodbye to his old life for good and dreams of a musical career as a drummer in an orchestra. But soon he reconnects with his old 'comrades'.
Actors and actresses
Frankie Machine
Zosch Machine
Molly
Sparrow
Louie
Schwiefka
Drunky
Vi
Sam Markette
Williams
Reviews & comments
Zinema (crew films)
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- 10289 messages
- 7414 votes
An Otto Preminger joint.
After seeing this stylish drama about junkie Sinatra and his daily worries in the slum, you would almost know where Spike Lee must have gotten his inspiration. Maybe not all, but still. So from Preminger's pantry. At least a little. Arnold Stang even looks like the white father of the bespectacled mastermind behind 'Do the Right Thing', among others.
Here too, the neighborhood is used excellently as a backdrop. As not only Preminger and later Lee would do, but in an atmospheric way. This gives the film viewer the feeling of being neighbors from the same street. Something that only the greatest directors can achieve. Partly because of that and a number of good acting performances, this classic can still compete, despite all its datedness.
Good.
Translated from Dutch · View original
mister blonde
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- 12764 messages
- 5953 votes
Quite a good movie, but The Man With the Golden Arm didn't really grab me. It is quite atmospheric because of the black and white photography and moody (although also somewhat hysterical) jazz music. The beautiful set in itself partly works. Actually, it fits better with a Wilder comedy than with such a film. The real streets of a city, such as in Mean Streets to name a few, make more of an impression than such a directed stage, in which passers-by just walk by on que (I'm sure you don't spell that way).
Preminger stretched the Hayes code a bit, I think. I don't think I've seen an older Hollywood film that so openly showed drug addiction. Sinatra is one of the few examples of a singer who can also reallyact, which makes it quite believable. However, many of the characters and events surrounding them are somewhat cartoonish, making the whole thing seem a bit naive. A drug dealer, for example, is manipulating just a little too clearly. Yet this film has clearly made its mark and is an influence on much of the 1970s work.
Some mixed feelings, in that respect I understand the semi-classic status of the film. 3.25 stars.
Translated from Dutch · View original
BBarbie
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- 12893 messages
- 7675 votes
If Otto Preminger had placed two real actresses next to an excellent Frank Sinatra instead of the mannequins Parker and Novak, I think this would have been a very beautiful, catchy film. Due to the very poor acting of the ladies, who both play a crucial role in the story, the film barely rises above mediocrity. That's a shame, because it's quite a daring story for the 1950s. However, the largely disappointing acting prevents the film from making a lasting impression.
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