The Manchurian Candidate (DVD)

Magnificent, one of the best American movies of the sixties, ever so slightly buried when its startling prophetic imagery was too close for comfort in the aftermath of the Kennedy assassination. It's a perfect adaptation of Richard Condon's magnificent parody of the cold war (one of the few successful attempts to film Condon's outstanding novels), featuring red-baiting fascists and communist plotters as being part of the same insane conspiracy. The remarkable plot, with a Korean War vet (Laurence Harvey) programmed by Chinese scientists to assassinate key American political figures, manages to assault all sides. The central idea is that the evils of ...  Read the complete review

Back during the cold war the ever-present threat of attack from the USSR was always at the back of the minds of millions of Americans. The build up of nuclear weapons and the possibility of all out war was not just talk, it seemed to be more likely to happen than not. Playing on these fears Richard Condon (?) wrote a novel, 'The Manchurian Candidate' that highlighted those fears and brought forward the terrifying idea of brainwashed American soldiers being used to further the will of a communist nation. The original film, made in 1962 and starring Frank Sinatra and Angela Lansbury, is a classic film. Not only does it have two tremendous ...  Read the complete review

The Manchurian Candidate is a surprisingly daring sixties film directed by maestro John Frankenheimer. It tells of six soldiers returning from the Korean war that appear to have been mentally programmed by the East to assasinate important targets in the west, unbeknownst to them of course. What makes the film so good is the excellent handling of tension by Frankenheimer, and star making performances from Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey, Angela Lansbury and Janet Leigh. The cinematography is all the better for being in black and white, as the older feel to the film makes it seem even more tense and brave. Sinatra banned this for 25 years due to a ...  Read the complete review

This is a review of the original 1962 verson of the film and not the updated version that stars Denzil Washington. The 1962 version stars the singing superstar that s Mr Frank Sinatra alongside Angela Lansbury, this is a film that is well worth watching as in my opinion it contains opne of the most powerful and terrifying scenes even shown on the big screen and you will never be able to think of an old ladies knitting club in the same way again after you see it. Sinatra plays the role of a former US soldier by the name of Bennet Marco who after returning from the Korean war is haunted by nightmares and all of his dreams feature a member of his team Sergeant ...  Read the complete review

Synopsis ====== Denzel Washington plays a Gulf War veteran who gives accounts of his experiences. Most notably one incident where they are ambushed and one of their platoon, Raymond Shaw, single handedly takes on the enemy and saves most of them. Shaw's father was a failed politician. Shaw is a candidate for Vice President and has been helped a lot by the Medal of Honour that he received for his courage in the war. He is being pushed very hard by his mother (Meryl Streep) who is very ruthless. He often resents her interference in his life and seems to have more morals. Things get complicated when it turns out the surviving ...  Read the complete review