The Manchurian Candidate

MPAA Rating

PG-13

Theatrical Release Date

Oct 23, 1962

Genre(s)

• Murder & Mayhem
• Classics
• Suspense
• Thrillers
• Assassination Plots
• Political Conspiracies
• Drama
• Korean War
• Cold War
• Mystery & Suspense

Rating (Stars)

Description

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. Digital video disc extras include interviews with Sinatra, producer George Axelrod, and director John Frankenheimer, and audio commentary by Frankenheimer. --Jim Emerson

Director

John Frankenheimer

Stars

• Frank Sinatra
• Laurence Harvey
• Janet Leigh
• Angela Lansbury
• Henry Silva

Running Time

129 minutes

Original Price

$14.95

Current Value

$1.57

DVD Features

• Black & White
• Closed-captioned
• Dolby
• DVD-Video
• Full Screen
• Letterboxed
• Widescreen
• NTSC
• 1.75:1