| The Manchurian Candidate |
| BEFORE seeing the Manchurian Candidate REMAKE on 31-7-04 Due to the uproar and media coverage of the *REMAKE* of The Manchurian Candidate, I have been prompted to create my own "Manchurian Candidate" page (mainly because I think the remake is a bunch of bologna). The Manchurian Candidate, originally, was a brilliantly crafted political thriller that no movie we'd ever known could match. The plot was fantastic, the characters marvelous, and the ideas and unspoken and underlying themes were creepier than anyone wanted to imagine, let alone see on a big screen. That said, does anyone really expect the remake to even begin to measure up? Let's start with the characters... Srgt. Raymond Shaw, the main victim of the mind-boggling brain-washing sessions by Koreans (or, I believe in the "new" movie, they're Kuwait army officers), was originally (not to mention fantastically) portrayed by the under rated actor, Laurence Harvey. I've not seen anything else Laurence Harvey has done, but if I ever get the chance, you can bet I'll take it. Raymond Shaw is a horribly selfish, angry man, who is brain-washed to become "a killer from a world of killers," which, in the first 20 minutes of the picture is painfully obvious. Harvey pulls this off with the right amount of strength, power, and at times, that wonderful "glazed" look, through the entire piece (even when walking straight into a lake in New York City when the temperature outside was freezing, and the crew had to bust the ice simply for him to walk into it, without so much as a wince when he hit the water). Captain Bennet Marco---Frank Sinatra. The first person we "meet" in the movie who remembers, vaguely and through nightmares, but nonetheless remembers, the brain-washing sessions. Frank Sintra did a wonderful job with this one. I'm not sure even that there are words. In my opinion, Captain Marco is the under-dog of the movie. In a way, maybe. In the beginning, no one believes him. He uses his vacation to prove that there's something happening. He attempts to save the day (well, I won't spoil THAT much of the movie!). He comes out on top. Rosie---Janet Leigh. Personally, I've never been that big of a Janet Leigh fan, nor do I know much about her or her acting training, but I DO know that in this movie---hers is a strange presence, but a welcome one. It seems to me that whenever Rosie is around in this movie, there's a certain sense of normalcy--a certain feeling that finally there's someone in this movie not as crazy and power-hungry as everyone else. I think she represents the common person. She really doesn't know what's going on until later, and so in that respect, it gives the audience, I think, something to say, "Hey, I knew this before a character in the movie...I must be really getting this!". Jocie Jordan--Leslie Parrish. I understand why this character is so important, but she's so naive and farm-girlish that I choose not to discuss her presence in the movie. She dies, anyway. Johnny Iselin---James Gregory. Senator John Yerkes Iselin is a joke, right down to the core. He is clearly controlled by his wife, the woman with no first name, MRS. Iselin (Angela Lansbury, more on that later), and is so moronic that it just seems normal that he would be running for President---or, Vice President---whichever. He's an idiot. They say it in the movie, they prove it with his dialogue, and James Gregory plays it that way. Good for him. He's amazing. MRS. Iselin---Angela Lansbury. Finally, the good stuff. Okay, okay, I'll admit---the whole reason I even SAW this movie was because Angela Lansbury is in it. You caught me. I'm a fan, so kill me (I know, bad choice of words). But, my fan status notwithstanding, Angela Lansbury did one heck of a job with Mrs. Iselin. By the end of the movie I wanted to kill her. I've read it before and I completely agree, even when she's not THERE, she's THERE. Her presence is a constant, unwanted presence. When she's around, you want her to leave, and when she leaves, you want her to come back so you can ask her what she's plotting. There are aboslutely NO redeeming qualities of Mrs. Iselin. She is the most evil person anyone could ever imagine. Not really worthy of being called a person. Angela Lansbury, brilliant actress that she is, recognizes that in her and she plays it for all it's worth, even adjusting her voice so that it's NOT, in fact, Angela Lansbury that you see in the movie, but totally and completely Mrs. Iselin. I can not imagine a performance of Mrs. Iselin being more gripping and more chilling than hers. Is MERYL STREEP really up for the challenge? Apparently so, because she's accepted, played and discussed the role at length. I just hope she knows what she's doing. Destroying a materpiece, that's what they're doing. Moving on to the plot--the plot plot plot. Do I sound as though I'm babbling? 'Cause that's what this plot will leave you doing. From one twist to the next twisted murder, you're continuously appalled and amazed at the viciousness and inhumanity of these people. It disgusted me. If you've never seen it---watch it. It will open up possibilities and corners of your mind that you never knew exsisted---let alone that could be unlocked by a movie from the 60's. Another stroke of John Frankenheimer's genius---the entire movie is in black and white. Now, perhaps this isn't owed to Frankenheimer's brilliant and ever-working mind, but it does make for, in my opinion, a stronger movie (as if it needed to be stronger). Instead of focusing on "What color is that?" and "WHOA! Look at that outfit!", the black and white film makes it easy to focus on the plot and the evil that positively bubbles up around you when you're watching. This isn't a movie to miss. Buy it today! AFTER seeing the remake on 31-7-04 I took the liberty of making notes whilst watching the movie (not easy in a dark movie theater), and I thought I'd share them with you---spoiler-free, of course. I sat down in the dimly lit theater, slightly biast, but letting all thought of what will hereby by referred to as "the original" pass from my mind. Felt rather excited. Two minutes into the picture, I was already disliking the soundtrack, due to the fact that it wasn't quite setting the mood I thought it should. Too much knowledge of the picture can do that to you. I was also a bit disappointed in the ignorance of certain people for even the thought of a remake. A bit into the movie I noticed that, while the premise is different and the characters are doing different things, some scenes from the original are re-done nearly identical. For instance, the use of the TV monitor's during a speech, while still being able to see "Mrs. Iselin" (although in the remake, she's still Mrs. Shaw, not remarried...yet another sad thing), clearly knowing most of the words of the speech. Just proves how powerful she is. Also, "Rosie"---the Janet Leigh speech about being "fragile" at a particular moment is basically the same thing. Worded ONLY SLIGHTLY differently. Some lines are exact. Also, the El Dorado 5970 or whatever number that is that is Rosie's number---is ALSO Rosie's number in the remake. A refreshing part of the movie (well, for me at least), is one particular Eleanor Shaw speech, restoring my faith in the writers of the remake. It was a fantasticly written and delivered speech. Props to Meryl Streep, even though I'm not a huge fan. Also creatively picked was the assasain for the movie, who, in order to protect the ending, I won't reveal, only to tell you that---it's different than the glorious original. The movie, as it should be, is creepy (a-duh). Honestly, though, I'm a bit scared to admit that---it didn't scare me. It makes me wince, then, to think what it WOULD take to scare me, but maybe it's because I knew generally what was coming. It really scared me more hearing the gasps from the people around me, because I had no idea that those gasps where coming. There was a different way to kill the Jordan's---well, there was a different way to kill just about everybody in the movie. It's almost completely different from the original, and barely deserving of the MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE name...however, as far as remakes go---I think that the casting directors did a marvelous job of finding the talent to at least attempt to fill the shoes of the talented original. There was quite an interesting shock at the end, for those of us who have seen (many times) the original. I've said it before, and I'm sure it will happen again, but nothing can top the original. The one and only Manchurian Candidate aired in 1962 on the big screens. Nice try, though, to those in the remake. |
| Disclaimer: The opinions expressed on this page are solely the opinions of the webmaster. Possible spoilers may follow for anyone who hasn't seen the ORIGINAL Manchurian Candidate. summaries and details are what the author remembers from the 1962, original movie, directed by John Frankenheimer and starring Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey, Janet Leigh and Angela Lansbury. That said, read if you dare. |
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| Comments? E-mail the Websmaster/author or discuss Manchurian Candidate on Lizzie's Angela Lansbury Message Board. |