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The Manchurian Candidate
2004
U.S. Army Major Bennett Marco (Washington) can’t sleep at night … and he doesn’t want to. Marco spends his days giving inspiring speeches about his platoon’s ambush in the Kuwaiti desert and the heroics of Sergeant Raymond Shaw (Schreiber), who won the Medal of Honor for saving Marco’s crew. But at night, Marco’s dreamlike .. Read more
| Starring | Denzel Washington, Liev Schreiber, Meryl Streep, Jon Voigt |
|---|---|
| Director | Jonathan Demme |
| Run time | 129 mins |
| Genres | Drama, Thriller |
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Critics' reviews (5)
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How I stopped worrying and learned to love the (global private equity) Funds Back in the days before the moon landings, Watergate and a year before the assassination of JFK, read more »
- LOVEFiLM
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Most helpful member's review
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36 out of 49 people found this review helpful
A bland remake of a classic film
The fact that Jonathan Demme's remake doesn't live up to the original comes as little surprise, unfortunately the film fails to impress even when taken on it's own merits. Pedestrian and uninvolving, it had me checking my watch within the first hour. It takes forever for the film to set up the basic premise and then never really delivers on it. The plotting is obvious and often ludicrous, leaving some gaping holes along the way.
'The Manchurian Candidate's main strength is in its fine cast, but not the leading man. Washington just seems to sit there in the middle of the screen for long periods, offering nothing of interest until he switches into his twitchy, sweaty, paranoid mode. It's probably the least engaging performance I've ever seen from this normally compelling actor.
Meryl Streep delivers her usual strong performance as Raymond Shaw's mother, and she gets all the best lines, but the real stand-out is Liev Schreiber as Shaw. He's convincingly slick as the aspiring polititian but also vulnerable and racked with doubt when he needs to be. John Voight is excellent in an all-too-brief role but Kimberly Elise is saddled with a very poorly-conceived character that she can't do much with.
The most disappointing thing about 'The Manchurian Candidate' is how a very creepy and unusual film has been transformed into a straight-faced, slick blockbuster, indistinguishable from many other conspiracy thrillers. Demme's tricksy, cluttered direction is annoying, as are his endless point-of-view shots(which worked well in the confines of 'Silence of the Lambs' but not here).
Demme does get one over on Frankenheimer's film with the well-orchestrated assassination climax, but too often this falls short. And its desperate attempts to make everything seem topical and relevant will ensure it quickly dates while the original continues to shine -
Most recent members' review
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1 out of 1 person found this review helpful
Average
Good acting by Denzel Washington and Meryl Streep but pretty hammy remake of the original. Long periods of boredom mixed with the odd bit of suspense. Watchable but not great.
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News and features
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Rachel Getting Married
- 19 Jan 2009
The family get-together movie never goes out of style – in fact, if anything, it seems more popular than ever. Last week’s A Christmas Tale gave us a Gallic spin on the usual collection of crazy relatives, resentments and reconciliations; a bit more style, a lot less sentimentality. Mind you, Jonathan Demme’s Rachel Getting Married is not your usual Hollywood frock frolic. Kate Hudson is nowhere in sight. Instead we get Anne Hathaway in black eyeliner and a severe bob. SheR Read more
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