ABSTRACT
Released by United Artists, The Man with the Golden Arm is a film that challenged Hollywood conventions of censorship, especially the Production Code’s restrictions on the depiction of drug use. In this chapter, we explore how it both navigated and commercially exploited controversy. The film reflects changing attitudes to the representation of social issues, and literally and figuratively gambles by boldly casting heartthrob and star Frank Sinatra, who channels key elements of his star persona in his expressive performance of a card dealer, jazz drummer, and drug addict. We argue that stylistic elements such as Elmer Bernstein’s jazz-influenced score and Saul Bass’s striking title sequence, as well as the film’s independence from traditional Hollywood promotion and distribution, contribute to its risk-taking independent sensibilities. As such, the film prefigured the film industry’s increased appetite to produce and market films with controversial themes and stylistic experimentation, bridging studio-era and independent-era Hollywood.
