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Well, the reason the writers chose to alter the story at that point was that they felt it was necessary for Frodo to enter Cirith Ungol alone, & the only way they could think of to arange that was to have Gollum make Frodo turn on Sam.
I don't think it works, & they fall on their faces as a result. Perhaps its another example of their obsession with 'what will work cinematically'. They seem to have laboured under the assumption all along that certain things in the books just wouldn't work, without even trying them out. Perhaps the problem was that they were always focussed on what would work best in each individual scene & weren't able to step back sufficiently & look at the whole. Its clear that with Faramir they made alterations in order to increase the dramatic tension of film two, wthout realising the hole they were digging for themselves in film three. His volte face in the last couple of minutes of Towers is not only unconvincing but actually embarrassing to watch as the character has to change from a hardened warrior who's only concern is obeying orders to an all around nice guy - & why? Well, because they knew that in film three he would have to be someone the audience liked & cared enough about that they wouldn't freak out & object when Gandalf 'drops his general's baton' in the middle of the siege to go & save him.
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