Movie

The Man with the Golden Arm

1955 · 119 min

A grim, claustrophobic descent into addiction and guilt, with jazzy energy and raw emotional performances that linger.

Tagline: An 'untouchable' theme… an unusual motion picture!
Overview: When illegal card dealer and recovering heroin addict Frankie Machine gets out of prison, he decides to straighten up. Armed with nothing but an old drum set, Frankie tries to get honest work as a drummer. But when his former employer and his old drug dealer re-enter his life, Frankie finds it hard to stay clean and eventually finds himself succumbing to his old habits.

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How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone: darkstrength 3 of 3
bleakstrength 2 of 3
melancholicstrength 2 of 3
tensestrength 2 of 3
Pacing: measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention: engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes: addiction
guilt
obsession
betrayal
redemption
Places: big city
home
Era: contemporary
Audience: adult
Form: single location
Content intensity: Gore none
Language mild
Violence mild
Sex mild

All scales, 0 to 10

Scales, 0 to 10
Scale	Value	0 to 10
Action	2
Horror	1
Humour	2
Realism	8
Romance	4
Tension	7
Darkness	8
Complexity	6
Emotional weight	8

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Details

Genres: drama, crime
Directed by: Otto Preminger
Written by: Lewis Meltzer, Walter Newman
Starring: Frank Sinatra, Eleanor Parker, Kim Novak, Arnold Stang, Darren McGavin, Robert Strauss, John Conte, Doro Merande
Music: Elmer Bernstein
Cinematography: Sam Leavitt
Runtime: 119 min
Country: United States of America
Languages: English

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The Man with the Golden Arm

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