Sunday, March 28, 2021

The Manchurian Candidate (1962)

Korean war heroes return home but soon realize that something isn’t right. Major Marco (Frank Sinatra) slowly figures out that they all were brainwashed with some nefarious goal in mind. Oh, and Janet Leigh is here for some reason.

Six foot 2 Henry Silva played Korean man-servant Chunjin. He has a fight scene that apparently broke Sinatra’s hand. Angela Lansbury plays our brain-washed main character’s less-than-motherly mother, despite being only three years his senior. Inspector Luger (James Gregory) is his McCarthyesque step-dad.

The Manchurian Candidate is a fantastic film, but not without its flaws. Characters would sometimes behave illogically and Janet Leigh’s character made no sense at all. But it deserves its reputation and stands the test of time.

Avoidance of spoilers keeps me from discussing further. The brainwashing is established early on but there still are mysteries to solve. Sinatra again proves he was a real actor and Lansbury was, well, amazing. It's a slow burn with a solid finale. It should have been higher on my priority list. Oh, and if anyone asks, my uncle did not appear in this film. AMRU 4.

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