After the 1930s American movies increasingly reflected the period in which they were made. Whereas the 1930s on film had been a panacea for largely escapist entertainment set against mythical art deco backdrops not found anywhere in the real world, by the late 1940s film culture was awash with a growing sense of realism artistically reconstituted to be reconciled between reality and the world that movies and movie stars existed in. As the studio system that fostered glamour steadily slipped into obscurity throughout the 1950s and later oblivion by the mid-1960s, the grand chasm between life on film and life in general continued to shrink.
During the 1940s and even more so throughout the 1950s WWII increasingly became the signifier for this new realism. But by the 1960s America was a country morally and socially disillusioned by war itself and culturally numbed by the thought of nuclear obliteration. It was the perfect decade for movies about the cold war. Filmmakers reflected their angst, concerns and ambiguity about the future. The first of these critiques arrived early in the cycle: John Frankenheimer's The Manchurian Candidate (1962).
Based on Richard Condon's 1958 novel, the screenplay by George Axelrod begins in earnest during the Korean War. The Soviets capture an American platoon and take them to Communist China where they are brainwashed. After the war, the soldiers, including Staff Sergeant Raymond Shaw (Laurence Harvey) return to America with an implanted narrative account of a skirmish that did not actually happen.
Shaw's mother Eleanor (Angela Lansbury) has remarried to Senator John Iselin (James Gregory)a thoroughly misguided McCarthy-esque fop whom she hopes to put in the White House. Eleanor arranges for a marching band to meet her returning war hero, thereby linking the Senator's name with her son's presumed military success. But Raymond shuns the spotlight and thwarts any and all further attempts to make himself a part of their political machinery.
Instead, Shaw rekindles his romance with Jocelyn Jordan (Leslie Parrish), the daughter of one of his stepfather's arch political rivals, Senator Thomas Jordan (John McGiver). Unlike Senator Iselin, Senator Jordon holds no grudges over Raymond's head. In fact, he is both tender and encouraging of the romance that continues to blossom between Raymond and his daughter.
Under Platoon Commander Captain Bennett Marco's (Frank Sinatra) recommendation, Shaw is awarded the Medal of Honour. But something is remiss. Marco knows that Shaw is cold and calculating, yet he finds himself compelled to refer to him as the kindest, bravest, gentlest man he's ever known. This reflection of Shaw is echoed by the other soldiers in his platoon. But Marco is having second thoughts. Since his promotion to Major he has been plagued by crippling nightmares in which he witnesses Raymond Shaw murder two of his fellow soldiers at the behest of a Chinese commander.
Learning that another soldier from his platoon, Allen Melvin (James Edwards) is also having these nightmares, Marco decides to go to Army Intelligence with the understanding that they have all been brainwashed. After identifying key figures in the Communist government, Army Intelligence agrees that something is wrong and decides to help Marco in his investigation.
Meanwhile, Eleanor Iselin is revealed to be the communist's American operator responsible for triggering her son's brainwashing whenever he is shown the Queen of Diamonds playing card. Inadvertently, Jocelyn arrives at a costume party thrown by Eleanor dressed as the Queen of Diamonds. Raymond becomes hypnotized by her and when Jocelyn suggests that they should marry Raymond agrees under her spell.
Although pleased by the announcement, Senator Jordon informs Eleanor that he will seek her husband's impeachment if he even dares a run for the White House. Instead, Eleanor hypnotizes Raymond with another bout of cards and thereafter sends him to the Jordan residence to assassinate the Senator. In the ensuing gunfire Jocelyn is also murdered.
This act dutifully carries out, Raymond arrives at the Jordan house much later to discover the bodies. With no prior knowledge of his crime, Raymond is genuinely grief stricken. Meanwhile, Marco has befriended Rose Chaney (Janet Leigh) a compassionate reporter who encourages him to seek help for his persistent and haunting nightmares.
Learning the secret of the Queen of Diamonds on his own, Marco confronts Raymond with a game of cards and observes as he triggers Raymond's complete obedience. Under this hypnosis Marco commands Raymond to break his association between the Queen of Diamonds and any assignments given to him thereafter.
Unaware that Marco has tampered with her son's programming, Eleanor primes Raymond to assassinate the Presidential nominee at the convention center, thereby securing Senator Iselin's nomination. Raymond complies with her command, or so it would seem. He arrives at the convention center disguised as a priest and takes refuge in a high balcony where he assembles a rifle with a scope.
Having deconstructed the plot for himself, Marco hurries to the convention center with his superior, Colonel Milt (Douglas Henderson) in tow to apprehend Raymond just as the Presidential nominee (Robert Riordan) is about to take the podium and deliver his speech. Instead, Raymond exacts his revenge on his mother and stepfather, shooting them both dead before taking his own life in front of Marco while still wearing his Medal of Honour.
The Manchurian Candidate is taut entertainment with a political kick. Frankenheimer and Axelrod had to do some minor tweaking of the book's references to incest between Eleanor and her son but otherwise remained relatively faithful to their source material.
One interesting anomaly in both the book and the film worth noting; neither makes comment about whether or not Rose Chaney is Marco's controller in the same way that Eleanor is Raymond's. Yet, the initial 'cute' conversation between Rose and Marco while on a train bound for Washington suggests a rather curious familiarity for two people who have just met. In the book Rose is more a transient figure. In the film she becomes a romantic interest for Marco, one - so it is hinted by the end of the story - who will continue to remain at his side.
After 1963 The Manchurian Candidate was rarely shown in public presumably because Frank Sinatra had it removed from distribution after the assassination of his friend, President John F. Kennedy as an obvious embarrassment of art influencing life. In the years since the decision to keep the movie out of circulation seems to have been inspired more by bad timing and lapsed contracts that necessitated a renegotiation of terms before the film could be reissued.
Viewed today, The Manchurian Candidate continues to pack a powerful punch. The usually starchy and stoic Laurence Harvey is the ideal candidate to play Raymond Shaw - a man so emotionless, mentally scarred and morally conflicted that he is driven into isolation from the human race. Sinatra proves himself a remarkably eclectic talent. Anyone who has seen ol' Blue Eyes as the singing scrawny counterpart to the more robust Gene Kelly during their musical heyday at MGM will be hard pressed to ignore how far the singer has transcended to becoming a real actor in this movie. Angela Lansbury is diabolically effective as the unscrupulous matriarch who would exploit her own son to topple a government. In the final analysis, The Manchurian Candidate is not to be missed.
Fox/MGM Home Video's Blu-ray transfer is adequate though not exceptional. The biggest improvement to the B&W image is in its black levels. These have become very deep, especially when compared to those on the DVD, supporting Lionel Lindon's very sombre cinematography. Overall, the image is 'tighter' on Blu-ray. But edge effects and issues with grain not looking very film like still persist, particularly during the opening sequence shot at night and title sequence that immediately follows it. Bottom line: this is a 1080p bump of the original DVD transfer rather than a complete rescan of the original camera negative in hi-def. That said, the image improves marginally in all aspects.
The audio has received a new DTS upgrade in 5.1 but the question remains...why? This isn't exactly a movie to give your surrounds a workout and it would have been more advantageous to have a true hi-res scan with the original mono elements intact. Extras are all carried over from the DVD release including a comprehensive audio commentary by John Frankenheimer and several brief but instructive featurettes on various aspects of the making of the film.
FILM RATING (out of 5 - 5 being the best)
4
VIDEO/AUDIO
3
EXTRAS
2
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