The first film version came in 1962 and was directed by John Frankenheimer and stared Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey and Janet Leigh.The story is centred around Major Ben Marco who is an intelligence officer in the U.S. Army. He served valiantly as a captain in the Korean war and his Sergeant, Raymond Shaw, even won the Medal of Honor. Marco has a major problem however: he has a recurring nightmare, one where two members of his squad are killed by Shaw. He's put on indefinite sick leave and visits Shaw in New York. Shaw for his part has established himself well, despite the misgivings of his domineering mother, Mrs. Eleanor Shaw Iselin. 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 step-father, the ineffectual U.S. Senator John Iselin, who is intent on seeking higher office. When Marco learns that others in his Korean War unit have nightmares similar to his own, he realizes that something happened to all of them in Korea and that Raymond Shaw is the focal point.
The later version was created in 2004 and directed by Jonathon Demme and stared Denzel Washington, Liev Schrieber, Meryl Streep and Kimberly Elise.
When his army unit was ambushed during the first Gulf War, Sergeant Raymond Shaw saved his fellow soldiers just as his commanding officer, then-Captain Ben Marco, was knocked unconscious. Brokering the incident for political capital, Shaw eventually becomes a vice-presidential nominee, while Marco is haunted by dreams of what happened - or didn't happen - in Kuwait. As Marco (now a Major) investigates, the story begins to unravel, to the point where he questions if it happened at all. Is it possible the entire unit was kidnapped and brainwashed to believe Shaw is a war hero as part of a plot to seize the White House? Some very powerful people at Manchurian Global corporation appear desperate to stop him from finding out.
The Opening Sequences
The openings of both films start with Ben Marco, identifying him as the main character, but the older version of the film jumps straight into the dream of Marco and the brainwashing scene whereas the later version shows Marco's life and Al Melvin, a member of the squad, having the dreams.
The flashbacks to the battle scenes in each movie differ a lot. In the recent version it is much more sophisticated and is set in Kuwait. The older version puts the soldiers on a grassy mound set in Korea in a film studio but the recent version has CGI, explosions and night vision and put us in the heart of battle.
The Brainwashing Scenes
These scenes are very different in the films, the older version shows the brainwashing by having the soldiers at a ladies meeting discussing flowers interchanging with the communist organisations operations.
This compares to the advanced technical operations being performed in the more recent version with horrific and graphic scenes of drills and brain implants.
This shows the technical differences between the two films.
Racism
This film also touches on the racial elements from the times. In the 1962 version there are many racial stereotypes for example the token black soldier and the mysterious and dangerous men from the east. However the 2004 version includes a black protagonist an has a multi racial society setting.
Media
The portrayal of the media coverage of both films is relative to the budget and resources they had. For instance the 1962 version has the entire press in one room asking questions which seems very simple and cheap and doesn't create any depth. The 2004 version however creates a deep, realistic feel to the movie because of the resources available the director was able to create a reel of footage spliced from real footage which imitated real news channels.
The Paranoid Thriller
This sun genre of thriller is one we haven't explored and it is very interesting. The main protagonist, the resourceful hero, is trying to regain and unravel his sanity. Marco is represented as a masculine man who has the respect of other men, he is also accustomed to danger and has a record of bravery in the army. This film includes a range of genres psychological, paranoid and political thriller.
These films were made to deliver a message to the public about politics and what could possibly be happening. 'The director elaborates and makes the film bigger than life: sadder, darker and stranger than real life' This seems true because of the extent to which the film thinks the brainwashing could go, I believe that the concept is plausible but the extent with the entire scheme is going too far.
Key Scenes
Murder of Senator Jordan
The first key scene in the film that shows the terror of what can happen with these brainwashed characters is when Raymond commits the murder of Jordan, this scene differs from the original by having Raymond drowning the senator. The drowning creates a dream like state, this could symbolize the main characters drowning, this is reinforced by the fog clouding over the events and removing clarity. There is non-diegetic music used to enhance the tension as Raymond approaches his victim, we regularly see this technique in thrillers. The editing reflects Raymond's hypnotised state of mind.
Marco shooting Raymond and his mother.
This is the climax of the film where Raymond realises what he is becoming and decides to sacrifice himself and his mother to rid the possibility of being owned and operated like a machine. There is an undercurrent hint of the Oedipus complex from the Greek myth. In the novel Raymond's mother uses his brainwashing to have sex with him before the climax but concerned that not even a reference would be made to it because of the censors the film makers have her kiss him on the lips to imply her incestuous attraction to him.
Star Power
The modern version cast a prominent actress as Raymond's mother and this gives her a much larger part than before. This could because of the profile of Meryl Streep because she was an A-lister she would have brought in more money. The new version has two stars with Washington and Streep whereas the previous version had one; Sinatra. This was probably to draw in more people to create a bigger revenue. However Angela Lansbury, who was Raymond's mother in the original, did get an Oscar nomination for her performance, although she was not a big acting star she was still a good actress or she would not have received her ward nomination. Her performance seems very controlled and very planned she shows the diabolically smart plans that are forming in her head.
The End
The final shot of the Manchurian Candidate shows a picture of Mt. Rushmore, which invites viewers to ask questions about past and present leaders and how much we actually know about them and how they gained power. The question "what if?" should always be remembered whilst watching this film. There is always a serious message as this film could be viewed as a reflection of who we are and what society could become. Never believe everything you see.
I think the more recent version was better because of the better resources they had with the CGI and the editing advancements that they did not have in the original. These films differ from other thrillers because they are more complex, we only learn the information as Marco learns it which keeps us in suspense and tantalises us with clue and red herrings.
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