Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Bea Swanson This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

richard-1787 There are already 315 reviews of this movie on here, so I doubt I will provide anything new. I just want to add my praise for the way director Frankenheimer builds the suspense toward the movie's remarkable ending. And, while all the acting is fine, I have to single out Angela Lansbery's truly remarkable performance as Raymond's mother. There are few more bone-chilling villains in American movies. No, I suppose if you think about it the plot isn't very realistic. But the suspense doesn't give you a chance to contemplate that.Watch it. You'll enjoy it.

cristianocrivelli Time is the ultimate judge, isn't that what they say? Well 1962's The Manchurian Candidate is all the evidence I need. It feels ahead of it's time still and so relevant. In 2004, Jonathan Demme - one of my heroes - remade it with Meryl Streep - one my favorites - and Denzel Washington - one of my favorites - and the whole thing felt so old hat that I had to see John Frankeihemer's 1962 version again. Wow! Angela Lansbury creates one of the greatest villains in movie history. She is phenomenal and like it happens she's the kind of monster you can't have enough of. Frank Sinatra is really good here and the creepiness of Laurence Harvey is unsurpassed. So, well, yes, time has confirmed and protected the greatness of this outrageous thriller.

Matthew Kresal There are works of fiction whose very name can conjure up images and meaning for people who have never even experienced them. The Manchurian Candidate, the 1962 film based on Richard Condon's 1959 novel, is one such example. The film's title has entered into the public consciousness, a term for brainwashing and seemingly incomprehensible betrayal in common use. Yet how many of those who use the term have seen the film and experienced what is likely to be one of the best thrillers of its era or any other?Part of what makes the film so successful is, perhaps paradoxically, the fact its based on a novel. Having read Condon's original novel a couple of years ago and then coming back to the film a couple of times subsequently, it is amazing to see how much of it makes its way into the film. It's not just brushstrokes that make their way in but entire scenes with large portions of dialogue presented with little edits made to them (the much discussed first scene between Marco and Rosie is a prime example). Even some of the costuming choices are drawn straight from Condon's novel. Scriptwriter George Axelrod is able to take the dark comedy of Condon's novel and put it into what is essentially a thriller that satirizes the McCarthyism of the previous decade and makes it all work together. Not everything makes it into the film of course but much of what makes the film memorable (the plot and dialogue especially) is owed to its source material and the wise decision of Axelrod in keeping as much of it as possible.Axelrod's script is only part of what makes The Manchurian Candidate the film that it is. Part of it is, of course, the cast. Frank Sinatra was a solid choice for the role of Major Marco who finds himself first facing a potential phantom from his past before realizing that he, and the country he serves, is facing a much larger threat. Laurence Harvey was likewise a good choice for the always odd and never quiet normal Raymond Shaw whom is at the center of the film's plot. Though given a top credit, Janet Leigh's Eugenie Rose Chaney actually doesn't have much to do in the film except perhaps be a romantic foil for Sinatra and a bit of a red herring but Leigh shines in what scenes she does have thanks to her chemistry with Sinatra. The supporting cast is solid as well from James Gregory as the bombastic McCarthy like Senator Iselin to John McGiver as his rival Senator Jordan with Henry Silva, Khigh Dheigh, and Albert Paulsen in roles of varying villainy. There is one other name that needs to be mentioned though.Because, perhaps oddly, the real star of the film is credited fourth in the film's title sequence. Angela Lansbury's performance as Raymond's mother has become something legendary and not without good reason. Despite being not much older than Harvey was when the film was made and made to look the part thanks to what must have been some excellent make-up, Lansbury was perfect casting for the role. For those who only know her from Murder, She Wrote will be in for a shock as they see the same often quiet determination give in to bouts of conniving manipulation across much of the film's running time. Mrs. Iselin is the power behind the throne, quietly moving pieces around while those around her (namely her senator husband and son Raymond) take the credit. Yet few things will prepare the unsuspecting viewer for the revelations that pile up towards the end of the film including a scene that is every bit as recoiling now as it must have been in 1962. It is no surprise that she was nominated for an Oscar for her performance as it still stands as one of cinema's greatest villains.Last but definitely not least, are those behind the camera. The stark black and white cinematography of Lionel Lindon serves the film well with its neo-noir feel that uses shadows and interesting angles to suggest how 'off' things often are. That is especially true when combined with the editing of Ferris Webster and when the two are combined during the film's lecture scenes or with the climactic sequence at the convention, the results are truly stunning. Director John Frankenheimer brought together a fine team to help him bring Condon's novel to the screen and his work on the film stands as among the best of his long career and there is little doubt that it stands up so well as a result of his work.All of this combines to make The Manchurian Candidate both an excellent thriller and a fine film. From Axelrod's adaptation of Condon's idiosyncratic novel right down to its dialogue, the performances of the entire cast, and the direction of Frankenheimer, the film is a masterclass on how to adapt a novel to the screen faithfully and yet tell a tense and utterly enthralling story at the same time. It's no wonder that it has become not just a touchstone for films but in the culture at large for it is simply a well made and enjoyable piece of work ever after fifty-five years.

cmccann-2 Like the auteurs of the French New Wave, US film director John Frankenheimer also approached filmmaking with a fresh playfulness during the early 1960's. Indeed, his 1962 film, The Manchurian Candidate, endures as one of the more unique and interesting American films of its period.The film follows a group of soldiers who've recently been released from the Korean War effort. While Major Marco (Frank Sinatra) suffers from strange reoccurring dreams, his friend Robert Shaw (Laurence Harvey) is even more disturbed as he embarks on a sort of unconscious political killing spree. When Marco learns that Shaw is at the center of a right wing-communist brainwashing conspiracy culminating with the assassination of the presidential incumbent, Marco ultimately realizes he must stop his fellow former soldier before it's too late. The film is also complimented by performances by Janet Leigh, James Gregory and Angela Lansbury.With its use of everything from montage to Cinema Verite-style filming, Candidate was one of the most stylistically bold American films this side of Citizen Kane. Additionally, the film serves as a worthy time capsule of the cold war paranoia that existed during the Kennedy administration (also proving eerily prescient with Kennedy's later assassination in November 1963). With a recent Criterion re-release and the turbulence of today's political situation in the US, now's as apt a time as ever to revisit this seminal classic of American cinema.