The Man With the Golden Arm (1955)
86%RT Audience Score: 83%
Awards & Nominations: 2 wins & 1 nomination
The Man with the Golden Arm is a difficult watch, but it’s held together by Frank Sinatra’s impressively committed work in the title role
The Man With the Golden Arm” is a movie that will make you feel like you need a shower after watching it. But don’t worry, it’s not because of the acting or the plot. It’s because you’ll feel like you’ve been transported to the grimy underbelly of society and need to wash off the grime. Frank Sinatra’s performance is top-notch, but be warned, you’ll need a stiff drink after watching him go through withdrawal. Overall, it’s a strong and gripping film, but maybe don’t watch it on a first date.
Production Company(ies)
Twentieth Century Fox,
Distributor
Reel Media International [us], United Artists
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
James Bond Island, Phang Nga Bay, Thailand
MPAA / Certificate
PG
Year of Release
1955
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Mono Dolby Surround 7.1 Dolby Atmos
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 11.66 : 1
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Runtime:1h 59m
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Language(s):English, Thai, Cantonese
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Dec 14, 1955 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 3, 2002
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Frank Sinatra, Eleanor Parker, Kim Novak, Arnold Stang, Darren McGavin, Robert Strauss, directed by Otto Preminger, written by Nelson Algren, Walter Newman, Lewis Meltzer, Ben Hecht, drama, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Marjory Adams, Mildred Martin, Saul Bass, James Morgan, Helen Bower, Mae Tinee, Philip K Scheuer, André Bazin, Hortense Morton, Robert Hatch, Frank Morriss, R.H Gardner, MPAA rating, illegal card dealer, heroin addict, recovering addict, drum set, small-time con man, drug dealer, straighten up, honest work, title role, lower-depths characters, painful subject, insidious circumstances, rat in a maze, horrific theme, moralistic, hipster cool, driving jazz score, knock out performance, stiff as a board portrayal, weakling, crippled wife, love triangle, connected, waste of time
Worldwide gross: $20,972,000
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $138,968,713
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 871
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 15,154,712
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $7,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $46,384,751
Production budget ranking: 846
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $24,978,188
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $67,605,774
ROI to date (est.): 95%
ROI ranking: 959
Eleanor Parker – Zosch Machine
Kim Novak – Molly
Arnold Stang – Sparrow
Darren McGavin – Louie
Robert Strauss – Schwiefka
Director(s)
Otto Preminger
Writer(s)
Nelson Algren, Walter Newman, Lewis Meltzer, Ben Hecht
Producer(s)
Otto Preminger
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
2 wins & 1 nomination
Academy Awards
All Critics (59) | Top Critics (23) | Fresh (48) | Rotten (11)
The scene in which Sinatra writhes and screams in pain and delirium is one of the most shocking I have ever seen on the screen. But it is strong and effective, and, I believe, justifiable.
December 23, 2020
Marjory Adams
Boston Globe
TOP CRITIC
This dramatization of Nelson Algren’s novel provides a sometimes revolting, sometimes dreary excursion into the lives of a full set of American lower-depths characters.
December 23, 2020
Mildred Martin
Philadelphia Inquirer
TOP CRITIC
Saul Bass’s credit titles are as brilliant as one might expect after Carmen Jones but this is an unattractive film: not because the subject is painful, but because [Preminger], with his thorough skill, shows himself so profoundly insensitive to its pain.
December 23, 2020
James Morgan
Sight & Sound
TOP CRITIC
Sinatra gives a perfect portrayal of a man pulled out of line by forces stronger than he. Torn between his dream of a new life and the insidious circumstances of the old, Frankie is caught like a rat in a maze.
December 23, 2020
Helen Bower
Detroit Free Press
TOP CRITIC
It’s not a pretty picture, but it packs a lot of punch.
December 23, 2020
Mae Tinee
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
Preminger gives you the feeling of claustrophobia, to be sure, but that’s not the only reason you’d like to get out. Along with in there is a growing sense of monotony and, in my case at least, an increasing disassociation with the whole shabby affair.
December 23, 2020
Philip K. Scheuer
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
These weaknesses can be ignored thanks to the admirable verisimilitude and powerful originality of the main character, wonderfully interpreted by Frank Sinatra.
December 7, 2021
André Bazin
L’Éducation Nationale
Producer-director Premlnger is one of Holly wood’s most intelligent film makers. It is to be regretted that his artistic gifts were not channeled into a more uplifting drama.
December 23, 2020
Hortense Morton (Screen Scout)
San Francisco Examiner
Forgetting for a moment the contempt Otto Preminger has shown for the spirit of Algren’s novel, he has committed the commercial sin of producing and directing a dull movie.
December 23, 2020
Robert Hatch
The Nation
The core of The Man With the Golden Arm is its horrific and honest theme. And Frank Sinatra’s performance makes it valid. This is a strong, lurid and gripping film.
December 23, 2020
Frank Morriss
Winnipeg Free Press
After a while, its unbroken grimness… becomes monotonous. The spectator finds his mind straying from the fervid activity taking place on the screen. He may even get a little bored.
December 23, 2020
R.H. Gardner
Baltimore Sun
Sinatra sweats out his craving for a shot — thirst, hysteria, spasms, cramps, near-madness the will to suicide, unconsciousness, chills, and a hangover craving for sugar. Frankie makes it all look very terrible and very real.
December 23, 2020
Dick Banks
Charlotte Observer…
Plot
Scaramanga is a hitman who charges one million dollars per job. He becomes linked to the death of a scientist working on a powerful solar cell, and James Bond is called in to investigate. As he tracks down Scaramanga, he realizes that he is highly respected by the killer, but will this prove to be an advantage in the final showdown?
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film on Fresh Kernels.
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