The Manchurian Candidate

"When you've seen it all, you'll swear there's never been anything like it!"

Oct 24 1962 PG-13 2h 6m
Drama, Thriller

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.

Plot

Major Bennett Marco (Frank Sinatra) is an intelligence officer in the U.S. Army. He served valiantly as a Captain in the Korean war and his Sergeant, Raymond Shaw (Laurence Harvey), even received the Medal of Honor. Marco has a major problem however: he has a recurring nightmare, one where two members of his squad were killed by Shaw. He's put on indefinite sick leave and visits Shaw in New York City. Shaw, for his part. has established himself well, despite the misgivings of his domineering mother, Mrs. Eleanor Shaw Iselin (Dame Angela Lansbury). She is a red-baiter, accusing anyone who disagrees with her right-wing reactionary views of being a Communist. Raymond hates her, not only for how she's treated him, but equally because of his stepfather, the ineffectual U.S. Senator John Iselin (James Gregory), who is intent on seeking higher office. When Marco learns that others in his Korean War unit have had nightmares similar to his own, he realizes that something happened to all of them in Korea, and that Raymond Shaw is the focal point.

Written by

Richard Condon, George Axelrod, John Frankenheimer

Directed by

John Frankenheimer

Production Countries

United States of America

Production Companies

United Artists, MC Productions

Languages

English

Awards

Nominated for 2 Oscars. 6 wins & 9 nominations total

Scores
# of Votes
82,126
Average Rating
7.9 out of 10
Metascore
94
Popularity
NA