When you’ve seen it all, you’ll swear there’s never been anything like it!|Oct. 01, 1962|United States|126 Min.|PG-13
Genre: Drama;Thriller
Description: The Manchurian Candidate (1962) tells the story of a U.S. Army platoon captured by Soviet and Chinese soldiers during the Korean War. The men are taken to Manchuria in communist China, where they are subjected to intense brainwashing. Three days later, Sergeant Raymond Shaw and Captain Bennett Marco return to UN lines. Shaw is awarded the Medal of Honor for his supposed heroism in combat, though two men from the platoon are killed.
Back in the United States, Shaw’s mother, Eleanor Iselin, exploits his newfound status to advance the political career of her husband, Senator John Iselin. Despite the soldiers’ robotic praise of Shaw as “the kindest, bravest, warmest, most wonderful human being,” he is actually a cold and detached loner.
Major Marco begins having recurring nightmares, in which Shaw is shown murdering his fellow soldiers while under communist control. When another soldier from the platoon shares the same dream, Army Intelligence assists Marco in investigating the matter.
Marco discovers that Shaw was programmed as a sleeper agent during captivity, capable of committing deadly acts without remembering them. Shaw’s “heroism” was fabricated through brainwashing, and his actions are triggered by specific cues, such as the queen of diamonds in a game of solitaire.
Eleanor orchestrates Shaw’s role in her husband’s political rise, which parallels McCarthy-era anti-communist demagoguery. Shaw rebels against his mother and stepfather by working for their rival, a newspaper publisher named Holborn Gaines, but communist agents confirm Shaw’s conditioning by forcing him to kill Gaines. The film explores themes of manipulation, loyalty, and the psychological toll of political manipulation.
Cast director: John Frankenheimer
Cast actor: Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey, Angela Lansbury, James Gregory, Janet Leigh, Henry Silva, Leslie Parrish, John McGiver, Khigh Dhiegh, James Edwards
Original name: The Manchurian Candidate