the man with the golden arm ( the movie ) be a decent career vehicle for frank sinatra and but fail abysmally a a good adaptation of a fantastic book . you always hear about how book be change when they be make into films thing be cut out and dumbed down and etc . well and you can not even say they change anything with the movie they just tell a completely different story . the character and set be the same sure but not the ambiguous characterization and the depth of the men and woman of polish chicago in the book . a for the setting and it become merely a play stage and complete with the unnecessary support role player walk all too busilly down the claustrophobic and interior exterior street . the movie be a dumbed down and completely different take on frankie machine and drug addiction . when this happen and zosh and frankie and sparrow and all lose their psychological edge . frankie drumming and a modest dream in the book and become his full passion in the movie ( probably because sinatra be a musician ) . and drug addiction be treat a shlock and exploitavely . the acting be decent and especially the snakelike louie and who be more menacing in the movie than the book . but it just a shame this kind of movie can be herald a a classic alongside the book it be base upon and the real story of frankie machine . the movie just go to show hollywood can get anything right without dumbing it down and add a happy end . in this case and they just change it completely and cheapen an important and realistic story into hollywood fluff . i be sure a hell bias because i read the book first and so i can not really treat the movie honestly by know how good the book be . i actually think about turn the movie off ( and i never do that ) and just so i wouldn not get it silly plot confuse with the beauty of the book . but this be an overrated film and and while it not so bad and the book should come first and a it be the first . and it should have remain the only story of division street and frankie machine .