The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and (2004)

The first version was reviewed by the Club members for a compare and contrast exercise with the 2004 version.

The Storyline (1962)

An American POW in the Korean War is brainwashed as an unwitting assassin for an international Communist conspiracy.

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 (Laurence Harvey) is lauded as a hero by the rest of his platoon. However, the platoon commander, Captain Bennett Marco (Frank Sinatra), finds himself plagued by strange nightmares and, together with fellow soldier Allen Melvin (James Edwards), races to uncover a terrible plot.

Link to Wikipedia

Link to IMDb Site

Link to Rotten Tomatoes

Running Time – 2hrs 6mins (126 minutes)

UK Classification – PG

The Manchurian Candidate (2004)

The two versions of The manchurian candidate were reviewed by the Club in September.

The Storyline (2004)

Kuwait, 1991. Seized in a nocturnal ambush during the Gulf War, the platoon led by Major Bennett Marco (Denzel Washington) and Sergeant Raymond Shaw (Liev Schreiber) are taken to a secret island laboratory. There they are brainwashed and implanted with mind-control chips by the sinister Manchurian Global corporation. False memories of Shaw’s bravery are implanted and Shaw returns to America a decorated hero.

Washington, the present. Shaw secures a vice-presidential nomination after bullying intervention by his mother, Senator Eleanor Prentiss Shaw (Meryl Streep), who is in uneasy alliance with Manchurian Global. Marco and his surviving platoon members suffer nightmare flashbacks challenging Shaw’s heroism. In a violent confrontation with Shaw, Marco uncovers a microchip implanted in the candidate’s back. Expert Richard Delp (Bruno Ganz) examines it and, via electroshock therapy, helps Marco recall what really happened in Kuwait.

Marco’s superiors are sceptical but FBI agent Rosie (Kimberly Elise) becomes his confidante. The brainwashed Shaw responds to subconscious triggers from Manchurian Global and murders several people who threaten his political ambitions. In New York, Marco and Rosie try to reason with him. Eleanor Prentiss Shaw, the mastermind of the plot, uses subconscious triggers to control Marco, ordering him to attend her party’s Election Day rally. Marco is programmed to kill the new president-elect, leaving Shaw free to rule America alone. But Shaw, battling against his brainwashing, makes sure both he and his mother are slain by Marco’s bullet, averting a corporate coup d’état.

Link to Wikipedia

Link to IMDb Site

Link to Rotten Tomatoes

Running Time – 2hrs 10mins (130 minutes)

UK Classification – 15

The Club reviewed the two films on 19th September at 19:30. Both versions received praise.