The Man with the Golden Arm (1955)

The Man with the Golden Arm
Directed by Otto Preminger
Written by Walter Newman and Lewis Meltzer from the novel by Nelson Algren
1955/USA
Otto Preminger Films/Carlysle Productions
First viewing/Amazon Instant
#307 of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die

[box] Frankie Machine: You got any money, Molly?… I feel so sick. I hurt all over…

Molly: Jump off a roof if you’re gonna kill yourself but don’t ask me to help ya…[/box]

This is probably the first post-Code heroin addict movie.  As such, I should cut it some slack for the many elements that have become cliches over the years.

Frankie Machine (Frank Sinatra) has just been released from a federal prison hospital where he has kicked the monkey off his back.  He returns to his wife Zosh (Eleanor Parker), a clinging whiner.  It is clear he sticks around solely due to his guilt over being the driver in an auto accident that has left her in a wheelchair.  He would rather be with Molly (Kim Novak) and she reciprocates his feelings.  They keep it platonic for the moment though.

Frankie learned to play drums in the hospital, is talented at it, and has a referral from the doctor to a booker of players in big bands.  He soon has lined up an audition. Unfortunately, his golden arm refers to his prowess as a poker dealer rather than as a drummer.  From the moment Frankie enters the his local hang-out, his former employer is after him to get back in the game and his pusher is needling him to take his first shot.  A few setbacks pull Frankie back to his old life.

The third act features the obligatory withdrawal scene, a murder, and the resolution of the love triangle.  With Arnold Stang as Frankie’s friend.

This movie was another Code breaker from Otto Preminger and surely felt quite wild and risque in 1955.  I’ve seen so many other drug movies (not my favorite genre at that) that today its presentation of drug culture seems vaguely hilarious.  The pusher is the most ludicrous of the characters.  Sinatra is very solid though and the ladies are good,  My favorite part was Elmer Bernstein’s jazzy score.

The Man with the Golden Arm was nominated for Academy Awards in the categories of Best Actor; Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White; and Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture.

Trailer