The Manchurian Candidate

Starring: Denzel Washington, Liev Schreiber, Meryl Streep, Jon Voight
Directed by: Jonathan Demme
Rating: R
Genre: Thriller
2004

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: Major Ben Marco (Denzel Washington) tries to shift through his nightmares to discover what really happened one night during the Gulf War. As he tries to piece together the truth, he begins to suspect Sgt. Raymond Shaw (Liev Schrieber), the Vice-Presidential candidate, may be a pawn in a plot to put a sleeper in the White House.

Review:

Tim: This is a tightly twisting, intelligent political thriller that is actually one of the better remakes of recent years. More political thrillers need to be made if they can all be this good.

Denzel Washington gives a good performance, but no where near his best. Regardless, the man can act and carries the movie well. Liev Schrieber is a much better actor than anyone gives him credit for and turns in another excellent performance here. He gives arguably the best performance of the film. Meryl Streep is malicious and perfectly unlikable. She is great in the role and always ins, especially in powerful roles like this one.

I'm a sucker for political movies, especially when speculating possible catastrophes involving the White House. I find them fascinating. Sure, the "science" here is a little fantastic and occasionally borders on silly, but it is forgivable because you are so firmly attached to the edge of your seat that not much else enters your mind.

Not everything in the movie is completely believable and the movie stretches a bit in some of its claims and events. This is where the film is at its weakest. Despite a few minor problems, The Manchurian Candidate is enjoyable and electrifying.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 8



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Manchurian Candidate (1960), JFK, Nixon