Customer Reviews

The Manchurian Candidate

5 star:		(166)
4 star:		(41)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is a great DVD with many excellent bonus features, including the Director's commentary that adds so much to the understanding of how the film was made. The film was shot primarily with wide angle lenses which heightens the effect of some very frightening screens. For example is there anything more incredible than the scene where the captured, brainwashed prisoners believe they are attending a ladies' garden party, while actually on stage as human guinea pigs in a meeting of communist cadres. Just an amazing juxtaposition of images! The storyline is well developed and never loses the taut feeling of suspense from start to finish. Laurence Harvey, Frank Sinatra, and Angela Lansbury are particularly fine in their roles. If there is only one criticism, it is that Harvey lapses at times into his original British accent, which is disconcerting. But given the power of his performance in this role, this is a minor detail that can easily be overlooked. The film is shot in black and white, which is far better suited to its cold war images. Just puzzled why MGM issued the cover for this DVD in color? Anyway, highly recommend this DVD!

So powerful a cinematic portrait of a potential political assassination is this superb film improbably featuring Frank Sinatra in his finest movie role that it was banned from further release following JFK's murder in Dallas after its original early 1960s big-screen release for several decades. Directed by the near-legendary John Frankenheimer, this riveting screenplay based on the novel written by Richard Condon (Winter Kills) focuses on the way in which propaganda and the manufacture of political views can influence one's perception and behavior in the most provocative of ways. Sinatra's portrait of an officer, Bennet Marco, a man obsessed by his experience as a prisoner of war during the Korean conflict, is truly a maginificent interpretation of a man teetering on the edge of madness, driven by both his nightmares and his conscience to attempt to unravel the mystery by working through the very effective brainwashing accomplished by the North Koreans over a platoon of men Sinatra's character commanded.

Sinatra is more than ably supported by an all-star cast, including Lawrence Harvey as the title character, former Sergeant Raymond Shaw, scion from a wealthy American family who is now a North Korean sleeper, someone brainwashed into becoming a virtual ticking time bomb, set to go off when the sequence of precipitating code words are uttered to him. His suffocating cow of a mother is played extremely well by Angela Lansbury, whose husband (played by James Gregory) is an easily manipulated but McCarthy-like Senator looking to find a way to engineer his progression to the Oval Office.

Through chance conversation with other former fellow POWs, Marco becomes suspicious of his memories, which seem contrived and somehow false, but he has great difficulty (and hallucinatory nightmares) as he agonizes ever closer to uncovering the horrific truth. The plot runs interestingly and unpredictably toward its surprise conclusion, and it is so well choreographed and photographed with Frankenheimer's usual brilliant flair for the visually stunning and surprising, that one is whirled along toward the conclusion with scarcely a moment to reflect on all the twists and turns Marco discovers along the way. This is a terrific thriller, one that has suspense, realistic characters, and the kind of riddle within an enigma plot that should both entertain and edify you all at the same time. Enjoy!

It's about time this Cold War classic (based on the novel by Richard Condon) was re-released on DVD with a few extras. I haven't seen the remake yet (and if I do, it'll be purely because Denzel is in it), but it has its work cut out for it if it aims to be as good as the original.

You can read the other reviews if you want plot details. In a nutshell: Laurence Harvey is Raymond Shaw, a sergeant in the U.S. Army captured and brainwashed in Korea along with the rest of his platoon; Frank Sinatra is Maj. Bennett Marco, who was captured and brainwashed with the others; Angela Lansbury is Shaw's mother (even though in real life she was just three years older than Harvey!), a manipulative witch now married to Sen. John Iselin (James Gregory) and conniving to get him into the White House. The problem: the boys are all back home, Shaw has received the Congressional Medal of Honor, the platoon members don't recall their period of captivity, and Marco is having the _strangest_ dreams . . .

The DVD transfer is clear and crisp, and the extras are okay. But the real star is the film itself, which is just absolutely brilliant and sometimes wickedly funny (e.g., exactly _how_ many Communists have been identified? Close-up of a Heinz catsup bottle . . . and the number is . . . ). The psychological tension here is excruciating; the brainwashing sequences alone will give you the willies.

The cast performs flawlessly, with even Sinatra holding his own; Harvey is eerily disturbing and Lansbury is just plain scary. John Frankenheimer's direction deserves all the kudos it received, George Axelrod's screenplay is mostly excellent (the exception being that Janet Leigh's character Rosie is strangely underdeveloped and seems 'tacked on'), and David Amram's score is really cool (I especially like the opening theme).

And as the existence of a remake indicates, the movie is still unfortunately timely (at least in its broad outlines) even though the Cold War is over. As anyone familiar with e.g. the history of LSD is aware, communist regimes weren't the only governments in the world to experiment with mind control.

However good or bad the remake turns out to be, we can at least be glad it provided a commercial incentive to release a new edition of the 1962 original. Grab it while it's available.

So powerful a cinematic portrait of a potential political assassination is this superb film improbably featuring Frank Sinatra in his finest movie role that it was banned from further release following JFK's murder in Dallas after its original early 1960s big-screen release for several decades. This new re-mastered DVD version makes the cinematic experience even better! originally directed by the near-legendary John Frankenheimer, this riveting screenplay based on the novel written by Richard Condon (Winter Kills) focuses on the way in which propaganda and the manufacture of political views can influence one's perception and behavior in the most provocative of ways.

Sinatra's portrait of an officer, Bennet Marco, a man obsessed by his experience as a prisoner of war during the Korean conflict, is truly a maginificent interpretation of a man teetering on the edge of madness, driven by both his nightmares and his conscience to attempt to unravel the mystery by working through the very effective brainwashing accomplished by the North Koreans over a platoon of men Sinatra?s character commanded.

Sinatra is more than ably supported by an all-star cast, including Lawrence Harvey as the title character, former Sergeant Raymond Shaw, scion from a wealthy American family who is now a North Korean sleeper, someone brainwashed into becoming a virtual ticking time bomb, set to go off when the sequence of precipitating code words are uttered to him. His suffocating cow of a mother is played extremely well by Angela Lansbury, whose husband (played by James Gregory) is an easily manipulated but McCarthy-like Senator looking to find a way to engineer his progression to the Oval Office.

Through chance conversation with other former fellow POWs, Marco becomes suspicious of his memories, which seem contrived and somehow false, but he has great difficulty (and hallucinatory nightmares) as he agonizes ever closer to uncovering the horrific truth. The plot runs interestingly and unpredictably toward its surprise conclusion, and it is so well choreographed and photographed with Frankenheimer?s usual brilliant flair for the visually stunning and surprising, that one is whirled along toward the conclusion with scarcely a moment to reflect on all the twists and turns Marco discovers along the way. This is a terrific thriller, one that has suspense, realistic characters, and the kind of riddle within an enigma plot that should both entertain and edify you all at the same time. Enjoy!

Widely considered one of the best and most influential films ever made, THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE is a Cold War thriller released in 1962 (near the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis) that concerns a brainwashed assassin tasked to kill the President (shades of John F. Kennedy). The intense reality of this film led star Frank Sinatra (who plays Maj. Bennett Markoe) to pull the film from distribution for decades after Kennedy's shooting death in Dallas, 1963.

THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE concerns Korean War Medal of Honor winner Raymond Shaw (Laurence Harvey), the son of powerful politicians, whose bravery under fire saved most of his platoon. However, Markoe and several other men have been having odd dreams in which a ladies' garden club transmutes into a meeting of high-level Communists during which Captain Shaw kills two men upon their command. Markoe quickly becomes convinced that these dreams may be more real than anyone wants to admit.

Shaw, described as the "kindest, gentlest man" anybody ever met is in reality a one-dimensional stick of a man whose head "always seems about to come to a point" according to his own dragon lady mother (Angela Lansbury).

Lansbury is busy shoving her stupid red-baiting husband (James Gregory) toward the White House. Satirically, the McCarthyesque candidate has made his career denouncing Communists in the government---how many? Well, the ketchup bottle says "57", so that's an easy number to remember.

In the meantime, there are enemies to be neutralized, including Raymond's beloved employer who is a left-wing newspaper owner, his Senatorial liberal father-in-law (John McGiver), and his cute but overly influential wife Jocelyn (Leslie Parrish), all of whom end up dead.

After Jocelyn's death, the distraught Shaw seeks out Markoe, who discovers that Shaw himself is the killer, programmed to follow orders when shown a Queen of Diamonds (a little Alice in Wonderland, anyone?) from any card deck.

Finally becoming aware of his own brainwashing at the hands of the Red Chinese, Shaw takes revenge on the agents assigned to be his American Control Officers---who are none other than his staunch anti-Communist parents, the would-be President and First Lady.

A film truly frightening in its implications, THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE is a film that should be required viewing for any American voter.

John Frankenheimer's amazing screen version of Richard Condon's 1959 book "The Manchurian Candidate" works brilliantly on two levels at the same time: as a wildly bizarre political thriller and as a satire of the American political spectrum--taking potshots at both the left and the right (it's no accident that when the liberal senator is assassinated we see milk spouting out instead of blood).

The cast is uniformly excellent (it is by far Sinatra's best film role--even in light of "Eternity" and "Golden Arm") but Angela Lansbury creates one of the great screen villianesses,(even more amazing considering the fact that she was only two years older than Laurence Harvey when the film was made and convingingly plays his MOTHER!).

George Axelrod ("Seven Year Itch") wrote the wildly hip screenplay and Frankeheimer's depection of the brainwashing sequence remains today one of the great cinematic moments of all times.

The film was not a major box office or critical success in 1962, owing to the fact that this was dangerous material at the height of the Cold War...it dissapeared from sight for 25 years (rumor has it that Sinatra had it pulled after JFK's assassination); finally seeing a re release in the late 1980's.

DVD boasts remarkable sound and video quality..includes a great commentary by Frankenheimer and a 1988 interview with Sinatra, Frankenheimer and George Axelrod.

A great film!

Could not believe it when I found this by accident at Best Buy (for ten bucks!) and couldn't wait to see this old classic in HD. I have owned this movie on laserdisc and DVD and did not expect much improvement on blu ray. Boy, was I wrong! This great classic has NEVER looked better! The clarity of the black and white print Fox/MGM used is very crisp and detailed. There is so much 'depth' in the picture, its multi layered just like the story itself. If you are only aware of the remake, do yourself a favor and indulge in this classic. It is still haunting after all these years. The video is not the only thing restored, they retained the 1.75 aspect ratio, the audio is now in DTS-HD 5.1, and sounds decent for a film from 1962. The special features are re- release from DVD, except s 'new' interview with director and a few stars. This is the best (for 1080p) this film (even with a little grain...no DNR) has ever looked...and for ten bucks, I got a steal. Awesome!

The term Manchurian Candidate has become a part of the language through this movie and the book from which it was made. It is a pretty good mystery-thriller. The actors do fine jobs in their respective roles. Frank Sinatra does his finest acting work as Major Bennett Marco, Lawrence Harvey is perfect as the strange Raymond Shaw, Janet Leigh is wonderful as the love interest for Bennett Marco (is she an agent for someone?), and Angela Lansbury gives an all time great performance as Raymond Shaw's mother and evil mastermind. And who can say enough about the performances of James Gregory, Henry Silva, John McGiver, Leslie Parrish, and Khigh Dhiegh?

The black and white filming adds to the psychological aspects of this story by making it more unreal and dreamlike. The sequence with the men at the garden party is brilliantly done and is made an even greater triumph by being all in light and shadow rather than color.

Could such brainwashing actually take place? I strongly doubt it, especially not in three days. But it makes for a great plot device in a thriller. Yes, the movie departs a bit from the book, but it does a great job of putting the book on the screen. The director's commentary is spare, but good. The additional features also add to our appreciation of the film. The quality of the picture is very good - even the famous out of focus scene where Marco finally breaks through with Shaw.

Fine DVD for your collection.

How could you ever improve on a movie like this one? You cannot, so I don't know why they even tried to last year. The Manchurian Candidate is flawless. Personally, I'm not much of a Sinatra fan but I loved him in this film. He was the perfect Major Marco. Actually, all the acting is first tier as Angela Landsbury is marvelous and you feel utter sympathy for Raymond Shaw even though it doesn't make much sense in light of what he did. Within the parameters of the Cold War, the movie is both consistent and logical. The McCarthy type character is portrayed as a fool and a drunk, but, as was the case during the 1940s and early 1950s, the presence of Soviet spies in America was very real. The Manchurian Candidate is dark, anti-utopian and, therefore, excellent. It will a valued part of any DVD collection.

Regrettably, this film was inaccessible for many years because of concerns about its subject matter following the killing of President Kennedy within a year after the film's release. There were also legal disputes which delayed its re-release until 1987. Directed by John Frankenheimer, it examines a hypothetical but plausible plot to assassinate a Presidential candidate so that his running mate, Senator John Iselin (James Gregory), will then be elected and thereby under total control of a foreign power (presumably China). It would be unfair to those who have not as yet seen this film to say more about the narrative. Sinatra plays Captain Ben Marco who is given primary responsibility for identifying and then stopping the assassin. The plot resembles a jigsaw puzzle in certain respects as both Marco and we struggle to fit the various pieces together. The sub plot involves Sergeant Raymond Shaw (Harvey), stepson of Senator Iselin, who retires from military service after being awarded a Congressional Medal of Honor. Amidst several strong performances, Angela Lansbury's is most impressive as the dimwitted Senator Iselin's shrewd and assertive wife. Under Frankenheimer's crisp and sure direction, the tension slowly but relentlessly builds as the nominating convention approaches. I am among those who think the inclusion of Rosie (Janet Leigh) is unnecessary, if not a distraction. Two performances are noteworthy: Gregory as Iselin and John McGiver as his staunch adversary, Senator Thomas Jordan. After more than 40 years, the film still has a sharp edge. When I first saw the film, I did not expect the climax, one which still retains its emotional impact. Memories of certain scenes, especially of dominant images, are indelible. This is probably Frankenheimer's greatest achievement as a director.