Synopsis
Near the end of the Korean War, a platoon of U.S. soldiers is captured by communists and brainwashed. Following the war, the platoon is returned home, and Sergeant Raymond Shaw is lauded as a hero by the rest of his platoon. However, the platoon commander, Captain Bennett Marco, finds himself plagued by strange nightmares and soon races to uncover a terrible plot.
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Cast
- Frank SinatraCapt./Maj. Bennett Marco
- Laurence HarveyRaymond Shaw
- Angela LansburyMrs. Iselin
- Janet LeighEugenie Rose Chaney
- James GregorySen. John Yerkes Iselin
- Henry SilvaChunjin
- Leslie ParrishJocelyn Jordan
- John McGiverSen. Thomas Jordan
- Khigh DhieghDr. Yen Lo
- James EdwardsCpl. Allen Melvin
Recommendations
- 100
Austin Chronicle
Angela Lansbury's frighteningly in-check performance is alone worth the trip. - 100
Chicago Reader
A veritable salad of mixed genres and emotional textures, this exciting black-and-white cold war thriller runs more than two hours and never flags for an instant...A powerful experience, alternately corrosive with dark parodic humor, suspenseful, moving, and terrifying. - 100
Chicago Sun-Times
Here is a movie that was made more than 25 years ago, and it feels as if it were made yesterday. Not a moment of The Manchurian Candidate lacks edge and tension and a cynical spin. [Re-release] - 100
Empire
A dazzling spy thriller that’s still amazing. - 100
Los Angeles Times
The Manchurian Candidate proves that its fascination is intact. [12 Jan 1998, p.C1; Re-Release] - 100
The New Yorker
It may be the most sophisticated political satire ever made in Hollywood. (As quoted by Roger Ebert) - 91
Entertainment Weekly
This gonzo satiric thriller is a riveting portrait of early-60's paranoia. [15 Nov 1996, p.82] - 90
Time
The performances are daring and assured, especially Lansbury's holy terror of Momism and Harvey's snide, pathetic pawn, brainwashed by both KGB AND CIA. [21 March 1988, p.84]
