The Manchurian Candidate (Special Edition)
by John Frankenheimer
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DVD details
Actor: Angela Lansbury, Frank Sinatra, Henry Silva, Janet Leigh, Laurence HarveyDirector: John Frankenheimer
Brand: LEIGH,JANET
Cinematographer: Lionel Lindon
Producer: John Frankenheimer
Writer: John Frankenheimer
Producer: George Axelrod
Writer: George Axelrod
Producer: Howard W. Koch
Writer: Richard Condon
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; Spanish (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: AC-3, Anamorphic, Black & White, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 126 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-07-13
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
DVD Reviews of The Manchurian Candidate (Special Edition)
DVD Review: Some basis in fact
Summary: 5 Stars
I don't know if I can add much insight to the already over 200 reviews here, but I did want to make one comment about the brainwashing procedure--the most important and sinister idea in the whole movie--and without which there wouldn't have been a film.
It turns out that there was at least some small basis in fact for this. The Manchurian Candidate came out in 1962 (not sure of the exact date), but anyway, 10 years later I was in college and happened to take an intermediate sociology class in which the subject of brainwashing by social coercion and other methods was discussed. My professor had us read a paper or two on this procedure based on what was known in the west about it at the time.
Mainly, it was used by the Chinese authorities to reprogram individuals who were labelled as incorrigible anti-revolutionaries, and some details of the procedure, known in Chinese as tzu tzing kuo tsau (not sure of the exact transliteration anymore), were known. Chiefly, these involved solitary confinement, techniques to disorient the individual (preventing sleep, interrogations at all hours of the night, etc.) and social pressure and social rewards to break down the individual's personality structure and reprogram them as desired. They were supposed to have achieved some success with these methods.
However, it was not considered possible to create "sleeper assassins" using these methods, as depicted in this movie, despite the concerns in the west about the possibility of developing such a technique. And methods like hypnosis don't work, either; later in college I had the opportunity to take part in a hypnosis experiment where I was hypnotized, and the instructor again mentioned in his lecture that it was not possible to get anyone to do anything against his moral principles using hypnosis.
Anyway, just a few comments on this aspect of the movie since none of the other reviews had discussed the subject in any detail.
DVD Review: A Classic
Summary: 4 Stars
This is one of the great Cold War thrillers.
It features Laurence Harvey as Raymond Shaw, Frank Sinatra as Major Bennett Marco, Angela Lansbury as Shaw's mother, Mrs. Iselin, and Janet Leigh as Rose.
Although the story is familiar to most people, I'll recap it briefly. Shaw, Marco, and several fellow soldiers are captured during the Korean War. They are transported to China where they undergo intense brainwashing. When they come back, they are all convinced that Shaw (who is well connected politically - his stepfather is a U.S. senator) singlehandedly wiped out countless numbers of the enemy and saved them all. He is awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor based upon their testimony.
After his return to the States, his handlers intend to use him as a political assassin. Prior to that, Marco and some of the others start having nightmares making them think that everything is not as it seems. Maj. Marco is intent on finding out the truth.
I will refrain from telling anymore to avoid spoilers. Suffice it to say, there are lots of psychological machinations and some intense action. This film is very well done. It was made in 1962 so the viewer should not expect lots of special effects, etc. In spite of that, I think that this version is far superior to the more recent one. For those who want to see the movie and don't know which one to get, this is the one.
DVD Review: Profound, Introspective Movie on Assassination Politics
Summary: 5 Stars
The 60s and beginning in the 50s, was the age of political assassination. So many countries including foreign governments used assassination as part of controlling world and national politics. This makes the movie fascinating. There were also instances in the Korean War of attempted brainwashing. All governments were fascinated by the potential of psychological torture and warfare. The Manchurian Candidate is a wonderfully made film about a group of soldiers taken prisoner in Korea then brainwashed into being Communist agents without their knowledge. The American operatives then take hold of them to carry out an assignation of a political leader to gain power. Very clever, wonderful performances and held back from public view for years after it was released. Great film. DVD Review: Hugely overrated and somewhat dull; I don't think this aged very well...
Summary: 2 Stars
A lot of people will disagree with me here, and I won't fault them a bit. `The Manchurian Candidate' is considered a classic and so just about everyone and their mother is going to be up in arms when they read this review.
I just didn't get it.
That statement isn't to say that I didn't understand it, it's to say that I just didn't get why this could be considered so grand a film. It is touted as one of the most chilling and suspenseful political thrillers of all time, but quite honestly I found most of the film rather corny and the other half was plain dull. The only aspect of the film that kept me entertained was Angela Lansbury's brilliant portrayal of the evil Mrs. Iselin. She understood how to work with what she was given, stripping away the corn that was so prevalent and delivering a flawlessly chilled performance.
So, the film tells of Bennett Marco who is having strange dreams involving the brainwashing of his platoon, all of it having something to do with Raymond Shaw, a decorated war hero whose new title seems to strike Bennett as odd; since Raymond was no hero. As Bennett starts to unlock the truth, Raymond's dastardly mother Mrs. Iselin gets desperate to have her son complete the task before him.
I can understand why maybe this was considered so great back when it was released, but quite honestly, I do see how this can still be considered great. The plot is simple, yet it is overdone far too much in areas. The acting aside from Lansbury is decent at best, with Laurence Harvey turning in a dreadful performance (and I thought after seeing `A Room at the Top' that he could do NO WRONG) and Frank Sinatra struggles to define himself here. He does a decent job in parts, but overall he appears to be struggling. I also felt that technically the film had some issues, especially towards the beginning, with the voiceover. I thought that some of the major plot developments were a tad corny, some of them not just a tad, and they took away from the `chilling' aspects of the film. I also felt that the pacing in the films center was horrible. It drug out the prose too long and added back story that, if handled properly could have been interesting, but wound up feeling unnecessary.
The film starts off on the low side of decent, takes a dive into mediocre and then struggles to redeem itself with a surprisingly riveting ending that just doesn't have enough to completely save the film entirely.
Like I said, this is not a popular opinion, but it is mine none-the-less, and any of you who are familiar with my reviews know that I am honest always. You may love this movie, and if so feel free to defend it (that's what the comment section is for) but I personally just didn't get it. I adored Lansbury, but as far as political thrillers go, this one lacks any real bite.
DVD Review: The Manchurian Candidate
Summary: 4 Stars
A classic movie. Sinatra is great and the drama builds thru the whole movie. Great!
Description of The Manchurian Candidate (Special Edition)
Eerie, shocking, daring, thrilling and mesmerizing, The Manchurian Candidate will leave youbreathless (People)! Featuring an all-star cast, including Angela Lansbury in an Oscar?(r)-nominated performance, this chilling and controversial (Leonard Maltin) film may be the most sophisticated political satire ever made (Pauline Kael). When a platoon of Korean War G.I.s iscaptured, they somehow end up at a ladies garden club party. Or do they? Major Bennett Marco (Frank Sinatra) can't remember. As he searches for the answer, he discovers threads of a diabolical plot orchestrated by the utterly ruthless Mrs. Iselin (Lansbury) and involving her war hero son (LaurenceHarvey), her senator husband (James Gregory) and a secret cabal of enemy leaders.You will never find a more chillingly suspenseful, perversely funny, or viciously satirical political thriller than The Manchurian Candidate, based on the novel by Richard Condon (author of Winter Kills). The film, withheld from distribution by star Frank Sinatra for almost a quarter century after President Kennedy's assassination, has lost none of its potency over time. Former infantryman Bennet Marco (Sinatra) is haunted by nightmares about his platoon having been captured and brainwashed in Korea. The indecipherable dreams seem to center on Sergeant Raymond Shaw (Laurence Harvey), a decorated war hero but a cold fish of a man whose own mother (Angela Lansbury, in one of the all-time great dragon-lady roles) describes him as looking like his head is "always about to come to a point." Mrs. Bates has nothing on Lansbury's character, the manipulative queen behind her second husband, Senator John Iselin (James Gregory), a notoriously McCarthyesque demagogue. --Jim Emerson
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