Merry Andrew wrote:From Here to Eternity was his "comeback" film, proving to the world that he was a better actor than he was a crooner (heresy!!!). But I still say it was an easy role for him to play, not that much of a challenge. The Man With the Golden Arm is in a different category, I think. I liked The Manchurian Candidate but thought that he was upstaged by Lansbury and Lawrence Harvey, two first-rate professionals. Perhaps it's just that I had read Condon's book and Sinatra didn't square with my mental image of Capt. Marcos.
I agree... It may just be my love for that movie overshadows whether he was the best actor for the role.
I also thought he was miscast in The First Deadly Sin. Great book, but I always pictured someone like Charles Durning playing the detective.
The only great flaw to The Man With the Golden Arm, the author(s) wrote themselves into a corner at the end and had to use a climax that the dimmest among the audience could have seen coming.
It was the '50s, edgar - not an uncommon way of doin' things then.
Thinkin' some more on Frank's movie roles, I never really did buy any of his detective performances as I recall - dunno for sure why, mebbe it was just that it was Frank in a role I thought better suited for someone else. Gonna hafta watch a couple, see if I can figure it out, or even if mebbe I've changed my mind.
You're missing two great Sinatra performances in
"Suddenly" and "Von Ryans's Express," perhaps my favorite Sinatra portrayal with a dynamite climax.
(Putting "Come Fly With Me" album on the car CD will still attest that he was the antithesis of the pop singer and can't be replaced although Michael Buble has come mighty close, albeit with a distinctly different set of vocal chords).
There are a number of Sinatra films I have yet to see.
Frank Sinatra
Date of birth (location)
12 December 1915
Hoboken, New Jersey, USA
Date of death (details)
14 May 1998
Los Angeles, California, USA. (heart & kidney disease; bladder cancer; senility)
Mini biography
Growing up on the streets of Hoboken, New Jersey, made Frank Sinatra determined... (show more)
Sometimes Credited As:
Chairman of the Board
Daddy
IMDbPro Professional Details
Filmography as: Actor, Miscellaneous Crew, Producer, Composer, Director, Himself, Archive Footage, Notable TV Guest Appearances
Actor - filmography
(1990s) (1980s) (1970s) (1960s) (1950s) (1940s)
1. Young at Heart (1995) (TV) .... Guest Appearance
2. Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) (voice) (archive sound) .... Singing Sword
3. Cannonball Run II (1984) .... Frank Sinatra
4. Sinatra: The Man and His Music (1981) (TV) .... Star
5. The First Deadly Sin (1980) .... Edward Delaney
6. Contract on Cherry Street (1977) (TV) .... Dep. Insp. Frank Hovannes, Organized Crime Unit (OCU)
... aka Stakeout on Cherry Street
7. Dirty Dingus Magee (1970) .... Dingus Billy Magee
8. Lady in Cement (1968) .... Tony Rome
9. The Detective (1968) .... Det. Joe Leland
10. Tony Rome (1967) .... Tony Rome
11. The Naked Runner (1967) .... Sam Laker
12. Assault on a Queen (1966) .... Mark Brittain
13. Cast a Giant Shadow (1966) .... Vince Talmadge
14. Marriage on the Rocks (1965) .... Dan Edwards
15. Von Ryan's Express (1965) .... Col. Joseph L. Ryan
16. None But the Brave (1965) .... Chief Pharmacist Mate
... aka Yusha nomi (Japan)
17. Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964) .... Robbo
18. 4 for Texas (1963) .... Zack Thomas
19. A New Kind of Love (1963) .... Singer behind opening credits
20. Come Blow Your Horn (1963) .... Alan Baker
21. The List of Adrian Messenger (1963) .... Cameo
22. The Manchurian Candidate (1962) .... Capt./Maj. Bennett Marco
23. Advise and Consent (1962) (voice) (uncredited) .... Club 602 Singer
24. The Road to Hong Kong (1962) (uncredited) .... The 'Twig' on plutomium
25. Sergeants 3 (1962) .... Mike Merry
26. The Devil at 4 O'Clock (1961) .... Harry
27. Pepe (1960) .... Cameo appearance
28. Ocean's Eleven (1960) .... Danny Ocean
29. Can-Can (1960) .... François Durnais
30. Never So Few (1959) .... Capt. Tom Reynolds
... aka Campaign Burma (USA: alternative title)
31. A Hole in the Head (1959) .... Tony Manetta
32. Some Came Running (1958) .... Dave Hirsh
33. Kings Go Forth (1958) .... 1st Lt. Sam Loggins
34. Pal Joey (1957) .... Joey Evans
35. The Joker Is Wild (1957) .... Joe E. Lewis
... aka All the Way (USA: reissue title)
... aka The Joker (USA)
36. The Pride and the Passion (1957) .... Miguel
37. Around the World in Eighty Days (1956) .... Saloon Pianist
38. Johnny Concho (1956) .... Johnny Concho aka Johnny Collins
39. High Society (1956) .... Mike Connor
40. Meet Me in Las Vegas (1956) (uncredited) .... Cameo appearance
... aka Viva Las Vegas! (UK)
41. The Man with the Golden Arm (1955) .... Frankie Machine
42. The Tender Trap (1955) .... Charlie Y. Reader
43. Guys and Dolls (1955) .... Nathan Detroit
44. Not as a Stranger (1955) .... Alfred Boone
... aka Morton Thompson's Not as a Stranger (USA: complete title)
45. Young at Heart (1954) .... Barney Sloan
46. Suddenly (1954) .... John Baron
47. From Here to Eternity (1953) .... Pvt. Angelo Maggio
48. Meet Danny Wilson (1952) .... Danny Wilson
49. Double Dynamite (1951) .... Johnny Dalton
... aka It's Only Money
50. "The Frank Sinatra Show" (1950) TV Series .... Host
51. On the Town (1949) .... Chip
52. Take Me Out to the Ball Game (1949) .... Dennis Ryan
... aka Everybody's Cheering (UK)
53. The Kissing Bandit (1948) .... Ricardo
54. The Miracle of the Bells (1948) .... Father Paul
55. It Happened in Brooklyn (1947) .... Danny Webson Miller
56. Till the Clouds Roll by (1946) .... Finale specialty
57. Anchors Aweigh (1945) .... Clarence Doolittle
58. Step Lively (1944) .... Glen Russell
59. Higher and Higher (1944) .... Frank Sinatra
60. Ship Ahoy (1942) (uncredited) .... Singer in Tommy Dorsey Orchestra
61. Las Vegas Nights (1941) (uncredited) .... Singer in Tommy Dorsey's Band
... aka The Gay City (UK)
The "finale specialty" in "As the Clouds Roll By" was on a gigantic soundstage with most of the LA Philharmonic (who in that era played many of the Hollywood film scorings) and Sinatra belted out one of the finest renditions of "Ole Man River" ever and clad in an eye-dropping white suit (shades of Alec Guinness!). As far as musicals, his stint as Chip in Bernstein's "On the Town" was cast perfectly and my favorite as far as the musicals he's sang, danced and acted in. He wasn't a bad hoofer either.
I recently saw Suddenly. It's a wonder that one didn't sink his career for a second time.
You're in a distinct minority -- the IMDb user rating is 7 out of ten like the film and the user reviews are nearly all quite good. It didn't sink his career at the time as he did get great critical response for his role as well as the supporting cast. The movie was a box office hit and was part of the boost to comeback. Wish all you want...
Boxoffice Magazine review of the DVD of "Suddenly" (Three Stars):
SUDDENLY REVIEW LINK
I ain't sure what you mean by "wish all you want." That is an honest assessment of the film on my part. If it don't jive with what others think, so what? What's the beef?
Not just me that discounts one-liner reviews such those that are easily rebuted. It's a fine film in my book even if it seems dated with the identical theme being recycled even by the likes of Clint Eastwood. I think "The Parallax View" may have been the best of the lot. It's a consistant temptation on these thread to pass off a film as bad with no real explanation as to why one thinks it is bad.
The theme is timely. I just felt that the script and the direction were weak.
At the time the theme was screen dynamite and I found it to be a very good thriller but not as good as "The Parallax View." Lewis Allen who directed "Suddenly" was no stranger to thrillers having directed 1944's "The Uninvited" with Ray Milland -- a real nail biter. He went on to TV directing including "The Rifleman," "Bonanza" and "The Fugitive." I still think the dialogue was sharp and the direction excellent but there were some problems in the editing of the film. This could be what made it fall short of a four star movie.
Damn it! I'm going to watch it again this week and see if I can change my mind. I bought it a few months back because I am a Sinatra fan. I felt disappointed for the reasons I gave; perhaps I was hasty.
It just might not appeal to you because of the vintage. I wouldn't rush to see it again with the plot twists fresh in your mind. I would perhaps wait a few years and embark on another Sinatra fest.
I watch very old films all the time. Most of my favorite stars are dead. Last night I watched Cagney in Blood on the Sun. I loved it. Most of my favorite films are old or pretty old. I don't judge by any standard but the internal mechanism that tells me film good/film bad/other.
I actually meant that political thrillers have evolved over the years and it tends to make the older ones seem dated. Not so "The Manchurian Candidate" nor "The Parallax View" but "Suddenly" can seem rather wan compared to all that's gone before us since then.
Correction
Blood of the Sun, not Blood on the Sun.
