Manchurian Candidate, The (2004)

 “The assassin always dies, baby. It’s necessary for the national healing.” – Eleanor Shaw

Number of Times Seen – 2 (4 Jun 2007 and 13 Aug 2014)

Brief Synopsis – A soldier upon returning from fighting in the Gulf War, begins to have nightmares and soon suspects that something secretive happened when he and his patrol went missing for a few days.

My Take on it – One of the biggest problems when remaking a movie are the inevitable comparisons to the original.

That is ultimately the fault with this movie since on it’s own it’s a very good thriller, but once you compare it to the 1962 version, it pales in comparison.

The way it was updated now that communism has ended works well for the world we now live in. I also liked the modern adaptation of the movie’s title.

Leib Schreiber is much better in this movie than Lawrence Harvey was in the original, but the rest of the cast is inferior to their original incarnations.

Denzel Washington is no Frank Sinatra and as great an actress as Meryl Streep is she doesn’t compare to what Angela Lansbury did in the original.

Pretty good thriller, but the original is much better.

Bottom Line – Competent and interesting thriller as long as it isnt compared to the original movie. Schreiber is better than Harvey was I the original but Sinatra and Lansbury are mhch stronger there than Washington and Streep are here. Recommended!

Rating – Globe Worthy

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