The Manchurian Candidate Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.5

The Manchurian Candidate Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 22, 2015

John Frankenheimer's "The Manchurian Candidate" (1962) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; audio commentary by the American director; archival interviews with Angela Lansbury and William Friedkin; archival documentary feature; and more. The release also arrives with a 38-page illustrated booklet with writings on the film and contemporary reviews. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

The session

John Frankenheimer’s The Manchurian Candidate is a prime example of a film that is every bit as brilliant as the novel that inspired it. It is most unfortunate that the Academy members never saw it as such.

The film opens up during the Korean War and follows closely Sergeant Raymond Shaw (Laurence Harvey, Darling, The Alamo) after he returns home as a hero. Shaw is enthusiastically greeted by his influential mother, Eleanor Shaw Iselin (Angela Lansbury, Please Murder Me!, Death on the Nile), and his stepfather, Senator John Yerkes Iselin (James Gregory, A Distant Trumpet), but before they can fly him back home he announces that he has accepted a job with one of their political opponents. Then, while trying to reacclimatize to civilian life, Shaw begins to experience intense flashbacks that quickly evolve into horrific nightmares.

Around the same time, Shaw’s former captain, Bennett Marco (Frank Sinatra, Ocean's 11), who has also struggled with nightmares after returning home from Korea, is ordered to begin a complex investigation. While gathering information, Marco meets Shaw and discovers that their nightmares are oddly similar.

Like Richard Condon’s terrific novel, the film oozes paranoia and moral ambiguity. Indeed, numerous events are seen from different angles and for a long period of time one remains uncertain how to deconstruct them. There are unusually quick character transformations that also seem completely out of sync.

Then everything begins to make sense -- slowly, yes, but the scattered pieces of the puzzle gradually become bigger and easier to arrange. One begins to understand how Shaw’s brain functions, who the people in his nightmares are, what the purpose of the solitaire game is, and where America is headed. The finale is stunning but, sadly, proved prophetic.

The brilliance of this film comes from the incredible vision of its creator. It is carefully structured as a pseudo-documentary -- the unusual camerawork and sharp editing routinely give it an edge and pace that feel strikingly contemporary -- but it has the visual elegance of a classic noir picture as well. More importantly, the dissection of America’s socio-political reality of the late ‘50s is so precise that it seems odd that at the time the powers that be were not alarmed by its message. (Or maybe not so much, because the exact same political hysteria that makes the film so fascinating to behold is now again part of our reality and yet very few appear to be alarmed by its presence).

There are brilliant performances as well. Harvey is tremendous as the emotionally unstable hero. Sinatra is equally convincing as the former captain looking for logical answers. Gregory also leaves a lasting impression as the overly ambitious senator. The true star of the film, however, is Lansbury, whose astonishing performance should have earned her an Oscar award.

Frankenheimer shot the film with acclaimed cinematographer Lionel Lindon. The atmospheric soundtrack was created by David Amram (Elia Kazan’s Splendor in the Grass, The Arrangement).

In 1994, The Manchurian Candidate was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

The Manchurian Candidate Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, John Frankenheimer's The Manchurian Candidate arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Arrow Video.

The release uses as a foundation the same remastering job which MGM accessed when they prepared the U.S. Blu-ray release of this classic film in 2011. This is certainly great news as I really like the organic appearance of the U.S. release. In fact, I've done some direct comparisons between the two releases and can confirm that aside from the minor framing discrepancy their basic characteristics are virtually identical.

Clarity is consistently pleasing. Image depth is also very good, though there are select areas where minor fluctuations exist (some of the fluctuations as well as the slightly out of focus segment with Frank Sinatra are actually part of the original cinematography). Well-lit close-ups almost always look terrific. The wider panoramic shots also appear well balanced. There are no traces of problematic sharpening adjustments, though the specific lighting in this film can occasionally mislead one to incorrectly assume that such are indeed present (see screencapture #11). Grain is retained and visible throughout the entire film, but it could be better resolved and distributed. Overall image stability is very good. Lastly, large debris, damage marks, and cuts have been removed, but a few flecks and tiny dirt spots remain. The encoding is good. All in all, while there is room for some cosmetic improvements, the current technical presentation of The Manchurian Candidate is indeed enormously pleasing. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

The Manchurian Candidate Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. For the record, Arrow Video have provided optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.

The inclusion of the original mono track is definitely something I appreciate as the U.S. release has only an elaborate 5.1 mix. This may not be an issue for most viewers, but I prefer to have the original mono track as the primary audio track. Depth and clarity are very good. Dynamic intensity is also pleasing, though unsurprisingly it is rather limited. The dialog is crisp and stable, but some extremely light background hiss is present (its presence is very easy to identity around the 01.02.33 mark). There are no audio dropouts, pops, or digital distortions to report in this review.

The Manchurian Candidate Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original theatrical trailer for The Manchurian Candidate. Music only, with English text. (2 min).

• Audio Commentary - director John Frankenheimer explains how the rights to Richard Condon's novel were secured, how specific sequences were shot (with some excellent comments about a very difficult segment with Frank Sinatra that was left in the film "as is" despite the fact that it appears slightly out of focus), how large portions of the film were edited, etc. Indeed, this is a very technical commentary that reveals what an enormously challenging project The Manchurian Candidate was. The commentary also appears on the MGM release.

• The Directors: John Frankenheimer - this archival documentary feature takes a closer look at the life and legacy of John Frankenheimer. Included in it are clips from archival interviews with Michael Hanan, Samuel Jackson, Angela Lansbury, Salome Jens, Martin Manulis, Ann-Margret, Roy Scheider, Frank Sinatra, Rod Steiger, and Kirk Douglas, amongst others. In English, not subtitled. (59 min).

• Interviews -
  
  1. John Frankenheimer, Frank Sinatra and George Axelrod - in this archival interview, John Frankenheimer, Frank Sinatra and George Axelrod discuss the production history of The Manchurian Candidate, the shooting of key sequences from the film (including the notorious karate fight during which Frank Sinatra broke his finger), some of the political overtones in the film, etc. The interview also appears on the MGM release. In English, not subtitled. (8 min).
  
  2. Queen of Diamonds: Angela Lansbury - in this archival video interview, Angela Lansbury discusses John Frankenheimer's directing methods, the controversial kiss at the end of The Manchurian Candidate, the film's reemergence during the '80s, etc. The interview also appears on the MGM release. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).
  
  3. A Little Solitaire: William Friedkin - in this video interview, director William Friedkin explains why John Frankenheimer and his work had such a profound impact on him, and discusses the unique roles of the female characters in The Manchurian Candidate, the film's documentary qualities, etc. The interview also appears on the MGM release. In English, not subtitled. (14 min).

• Booklet - 38-page illustrated booklet featuring: "The Manchurian Candidate" (2015) by Peter Knight; contemporary reviews of The Manchurian Candidate; "The Facts Behind the Fiction" (2012/15) by Neil Sanders; and technical credits.

• Cover - reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jay Shaw.

The Manchurian Candidate Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It is scary to see how accurately John Frankenheimer predicted the future in The Manchurian Candidate. And it is deeply unsettling to know that in the wired world we live in the film feels even more relevant today as seemingly daily we learn how easily some people are brainwashed by terror groups. If you don't have The Manchurian Candidate in your collection yet, I urge you to finally purchase your copy. It is an undisputed American classic. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.