The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
Movie Grade A+
McCarthyism Connection Grade A-
McCarthyism Connection
Director John Frankenheimer says on the commentary track that he is proudest that the film hammered McCarthyism; there's a scene where the hard-drinking Sen. Iselin can't decide how many communists he thinks are in the State Department, and settles on 57 after studying a ketchup bottle. (Roger Ebert)
Genre
Drama
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Jack A+
Roger Ebert Great Movie
IMDB 8.4
This was truly a great movie. Probaly the best of all the conspiracy movies made in the 1960's. It also had one of the greatest female villains in the movies - Mrs. Iselin.
It was also one of the greatest comic representations of McCarthyism - in this case called Iselinism.
What made it truly unique was that it effectively took shots at the paranoia of the left and the right. We have to worry about the Commies and we also have to worry about the fascists.
The movie was eerily prophetic with the Kennedy assassination taking place the very next year. This was a great movie on every level.
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