The Manchurian Candidate
The Manchurian Candidate Theatrical Poster
Directed by	Jonathan Demme
Produced by	Jonathan Demme Ilona Herzberg Scott Rudin Tina Sinatra
Written by	Novel: Richard Condon Screenplay: Daniel Pyne Dean Georgaris
Starring	Denzel Washington Meryl Streep Liev Schreiber Jeffrey Wright Jon Voight Bruno Ganz
Music by	Rachel Portman
Cinematography	Tak Fujimoto
Editing by	Carol Littleton Craig McKay
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures UIP
Release date(s)	July 30, 2004
Running time	129 min.
Language	English
Budget	USD$80 million
IMDb profile

The Manchurian Candidate is a 2004 U.S. American film based on the 1959 novel The Manchurian Candidate by Richard Condon, and a reimagining of the previous 1962 film. The film stars Denzel Washington as Bennett Marco, a tenacious, virtuous soldier, Liev Schreiber as Raymond Shaw, a U.S. Congressman from New York, manipulated into becoming a vice-presidential candidate, Jon Voight as Tom Jordan, a U.S. senator and challenger for vice-president and Meryl Streep as Eleanor Shaw, also a senator and the manipulative, ruthless mother of Raymond Shaw. Promotional poster for The Manchurian Candidate, deemed This work is copyrighted. ... Jonathan Demme (born February 22, 1944, in Baldwin, New York) is an American film director, producer and writer. ... Jonathan Demme (born February 22, 1944, in Baldwin, New York) is an American film director, producer and writer. ... Scott Rudin (born July 14, 1958) is an American motion picture producer known not only for his award-winning films, but also for his legendary temper. ... Christina Sinatra (born June 20, 1948) is a movie producer and former actress. ... Richard Thomas Condon (born March 18, 1915 in New York, New York; died April 9, 1996 in Dallas, Texas), was a satirical and thriller novelist best known for conspiratorial books such as The Manchurian Candidate. ... Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. ... Mary Louise Streep, mostly known as Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an Academy Award-winning American actress who has worked in theatre, television, and film. ... Liev Schreiber (born October 4, 1967) is a Tony Award-winning American actor. ... Jeffrey Wright (born December 7, 1965) is a Tony Award-, Emmy Award-, and Golden Globe Award-winning American film and stage actor. ... John Vincent Voight (born December 29, 1938) is an Academy Award-winning American actor. ... (born March 22, 1941 in Zurich) is a Swiss actor. ... Rachel Portman (born December 11, 1960 in Haslemere, England) is a British composer, best known for her film work. ... Tak Fujimoto is a celebrated cinematographer who has contributed to many important and influential motion pictures. ... Carol Littleton (born in 1948 in Oklahoma) is the Academy Award-nominated American feature film editor of the heartwarming blockbuster, the Steven Spielberg-directed film, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial as well as editor of several other popular films (such as The Big Chill and Body Heat). ... Craig McKay is an Emmy-winning American film editor, probably best known for having edited The Silence of the Lambs, for which he received his second Academy Award nomination. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American motion picture production and distribution company, based in Hollywood, California. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Nations. ... United International Pictures (UIP) is a joint venture of Paramount Pictures (owned by Viacom) and Universal Studios (owned by NBC Universal), to distribute some of the two studios films outside United States (including territories) and Canada. ... is the 211th day of the year (212th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... USD redirects here. ... The year 2004 in film involved some significant events. ... Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from... This article is about motion pictures. ... See also: 1958 in literature, other events of 1959, 1960 in literature, list of years in literature. ... This article is about the literary concept. ... The Manchurian Candidate is a 1959 thriller novel written by Richard Condon, later adapted into films in 1962 and 2004. ... Richard Thomas Condon (born March 18, 1915 in New York, New York; died April 9, 1996 in Dallas, Texas), was a satirical and thriller novelist best known for conspiratorial books such as The Manchurian Candidate. ... The Manchurian Candidate is a film adapted from the 1959 thriller novel written by Richard Condon. ... Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. ... Liev Schreiber (born October 4, 1967) is a Tony Award-winning American actor. ... For other uses, see United States (disambiguation) and US (disambiguation). ... Type Bicameral Speaker of the House of Representatives House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi, (D) since January 4, 2007 Steny Hoyer, (D) since January 4, 2007 House Minority Leader John Boehner, (R) since January 4, 2007 Members 435 plus 4 Delegates and 1 Resident Commissioner Political groups Democratic Party Republican Party... This article is about the state. ... Look up Candidate in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... John Vincent Voight (born December 29, 1938) is an Academy Award-winning American actor. ... Type Upper House President of the Senate Richard B. Cheney, R since January 20, 2001 President pro tempore Robert C. Byrd, D since January 4, 2007 Members 100 Political groups Democratic Party Republican Party Last elections November 7, 2006 Meeting place Senate Chamber United States Capitol Washington, DC United States... The Vice President of the United States (sometimes referred to as VPOTUS[1] or Veep) is the first in the presidential line of succession, becoming the new President of the United States upon the death, resignation, or removal of the president. ... Mary Louise Streep, mostly known as Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an Academy Award-winning American actress who has worked in theatre, television, and film. ... Eleanor Iselin is a fictional character in Richard Condons 1959 novel The Manchurian Candidate. ... A senate is a deliberative body, often the upper house or chamber of a legislature. ...

Tagline:

• Everything is under control.

Plot

While the plot of the 2004 film still centers on a candidate brainwashed with the involvement of his mother and her own political aims, the mechanics of the story and the parties involved are quite different from the original film in cases. In particular, the political dynamic of the plot is transformed: while the earlier film imagined a Red-baiting Republican McCarthy-esque figure as an unwitting front for an international Communist conspiracy, the remake has a centrist New Democrat as an unwitting front for a shadowy corporate oligarchy. This article is about the U.S. senator from Wisconsin (1947-1957). ... Communism is an ideology that seeks to establish a classless, stateless social organization based on common ownership of the means of production. ... In politics, centrism usually refers to the political ideal of promoting moderate policies which land in the middle ground between different political extremes. ... For the Canadian New Democratic Party, see New Democratic Party. ...

The movie follows Maj. Ben Marco (Denzel Washington), a war veteran who begins to doubt what is commonly known about his famous army unit. During Desert Storm, Sgt. Raymond Shaw (Liev Schrieber) supposedly rescued all but two members in his unit, of which Marco was the commanding officer. While this made Shaw a war hero, gained him the Medal of Honor, and launched him into a career in politics, Marco and other members of the troop feel that while they remember that Shaw did rescue them, they don't actually remember him doing it. The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States. ...

The members begin to come together in the dystopic near-future of 2008 after Shaw, now a United States Congressman, becomes his party's candidate for Vice-President. He is an unexpected candidate, as Connecticut Senator Tom Jordan (Jon Voight) was the leading choice for some time. Jordan is pushed aside by Shaw's mother, New York Senator Eleanor Shaw (Meryl Streep), who blackmails the party leaders into nominating her son. An obvious rivalry exists between Eleanor Shaw and Tom Jordan, partly due to a past relationship between Raymond Shaw and Jordan's daughter Jocelyne (Vera Farmiga). A dystopia (or alternatively cacotopia) is a fictional society, usually portrayed as existing in a future time, when the conditions of life are extremely bad due to deprivation, oppression, or terror. ... 2008 (MMVIII) will be a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (common) era, in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... John Vincent Voight (born December 29, 1938) is an Academy Award-winning American actor. ... Vera Ann Farmiga (born August 6, 1973) is an American actress. ...

After Shaw is nominated, Marco begins investigating what really happened during the war. Allied with a female FBI agent named Rosie (Kimberly Elise) he links the mystery of his lost platoon to Manchurian Global, a global conglomerate with major political connections, including the Shaw family. Soon Marco discovers Manchurian Global's brainwashing of his "lost" platoon, and their plans to take over the White House with Shaw, under the power of the company and Eleanor Shaw, who is even more power hungry than she appears. Kimberly Elise (born Kimberly Elise Trammel on April 17, 1967) is an African-American actress. ...

Soon Eleanor Shaw begins to take matters into her own hands, trusting Manchurian Global less and less. Her ruthlessness is shown when she uses her own brainwashed son to assassinate Senator Jordan, who had been contacted by Marco and had begun to support his investigation in an attempt to expose her plan. As she becomes more and more controlling, it is soon revealed that the Vice-Presidential spot is not what she has in mind for her son, but the presidency. On election night, the newly elected president will be assassinated, and the planned assassin of Shaw's running mate is none other than Marco himself, who was also brainwashed in the war.

As the movie comes to a close, Shaw and Marco begin to regain a conscious state even while under Manchurian Global's control. At the election night celebration party, the newly elected Shaw and Major Marco realize what must be done. Shaw leads his mother onto the stage with him, and Marco fires one shot, killing both of them as they hug. Just before Marco can kill himself (which had been part of Eleanor Shaw's plan), Rosie stops him by shooting him in the shoulder. The FBI covers up Marco's involvement, pinning a Manchurian Global conspirator with the shooting.

Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. ... Mary Louise Streep, mostly known as Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an Academy Award-winning American actress who has worked in theatre, television, and film. ... Liev Schreiber (born October 4, 1967) is a Tony Award-winning American actor. ... John Vincent Voight (born December 29, 1938) is an Academy Award-winning American actor. ... Kimberly Elise (born Kimberly Elise Trammel on April 17, 1967) is an African-American actress. ... Vera Ann Farmiga (born August 6, 1973) is an American actress. ... Ted Levine (born May 29, 1957 in Parma, Ohio) is an American actor best known for playing the serial killer Buffalo Bill in the 1991 blockbuster thriller The Silence of the Lambs. ... Miguel Ferrer (born February 7, 1955) is an actor of Puerto Rican-Irish-American descent who is often cast in movies as a villain. ... Dean Stockwell (born March 5, 1936 in North Hollywood, California) is an Oscar-nominated American film and television actor. ... Jeffrey Wright (born December 7, 1965) is a Tony Award-, Emmy Award-, and Golden Globe Award-winning American film and stage actor. ... Simon Montagu McBurney (born August 25, 1957 in Cambridge) is a British actor and director. ... (born March 22, 1941 in Zurich) is a Swiss actor. ... Tom Stechschulte is an American actor. ... Robyn Rowan Hitchcock (born March 3, 1953) is a singer-songwriter, psych folk artist, and occasional actor. ... Obba Babatundé (born December, 1951, in Queens, New York) is an American actor of both stage and screen that is known for an Emmy-nominated performance in the television movie Miss Evers Boys, and NAACP Image Award-nominated performance in the TV movie Introducing Dorothy Dandridge, and a Tony Award... John Aprea (born March 4, 1941 in Englewood, New Jersey) is an Italian-American actor, best known for in movies for his role as Young Sal Tessio in The Godfather: Part II (1974) and on television as Lucas Castigliano on the soap opera Another World, from 1989 to 1992. ... Roger Corman Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926), sometimes nicknamed King of the Bs for his output of B-movies (though he himself rejects this appelation as inaccurate), is a prolific American producer and director of low-budget exploitation movies. ... Alan Stuart Al Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an Emmy Award–winning American comedian, actor, author, screenwriter, political commentator, radio host and, recently, politician. ... Bill Irwin (born April 11, 1950, Santa Monica, California as William Irwin) is an American actor and clown noted for his contribution to the renaissance of American circus during the 1970s. ... Adam LeFevre (born on 11 August 1950 in Albany, New York, USA) is an American character actor who works in cinema, television, theater and commercials. ... Charles Napier in Miami Blues Charles Napier (born April 12, 1936 in Scottsville, Kentucky, USA) is an American character actor, known for his portrayals of square-jawed tough guys and military types. ... Tracey Walter is a recognizable American character actor (b. ...

Awards and Nominations

2005 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films (Saturn Awards) Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. ...

• Nominated - Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film
• Nominated - Best Supporting Actor (Film) — Liev Schreiber
• Nominated - Best Supporting Actress (Film) — Meryl Streep

2005 BAFTA Film Awards The following are a list of Saturn Award winners for Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film: ... The following are a list of Saturn Award winners for Best Supporting Actor (in a film): ... Liev Schreiber (born October 4, 1967) is a Tony Award-winning American actor. ... The following are a list of Saturn Award winners for Best Supporting Actress (in a film): Categories: | ... Mary Louise Streep, mostly known as Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an Academy Award-winning American actress who has worked in theatre, television, and film. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organization that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ...

• Nominated - Best Actress in a Supporting Role — Meryl Streep

2005 Black Reel Awards Mary Louise Streep, mostly known as Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an Academy Award-winning American actress who has worked in theatre, television, and film. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Black Reel Awards began in 2000 and were designed to annually recognize and celebrate the achievements of African-Americans in feature, independent and television films. ...

• Nominated - Best Supporting Actor — Jeffrey Wright
• Nominated - Best Supporting Actress — Kimberly Elise

2005 Golden Globe Awards Jeffrey Wright (born December 7, 1965) is a Tony Award-, Emmy Award-, and Golden Globe Award-winning American film and stage actor. ... Kimberly Elise (born Kimberly Elise Trammel on April 17, 1967) is an African-American actress. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and television programs, given out each year during a formal dinner. ...

• Nominated - Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture — Meryl Streep

The Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association in 1944 for a performance in a motion picture released in the previous year. ... Mary Louise Streep, mostly known as Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an Academy Award-winning American actress who has worked in theatre, television, and film. ...

Trivia

Cup noodles, and Dell Inc. paid for product placements in this movie. This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article is about the corporation Dell, Inc. ...

A English Rock/Metal band also uses Manchurian Candidate as their band name and has also lightly based a concept album on similar themes. The album is about the government controlling society through manipulation, deception and corruption in which society rebels and a war breaks out between them and government-controlled robots. For other uses, see Rock music (disambiguation). ... This article is about metallic materials. ... The Manchurian Candidate is a 1959 novel by Richard Condon. ...

There seems to be a subliminal message that runs through the film that culminates at the end where Shaw's mother appears to begin a maternal act of incest. During the film Shaw looks at her in a ball gown that is cut low and he offers a knowing smile. The more subliminal messages are in body language.

External links

• Official Site
• The Manchurian Candidate at the Internet Movie Database
• The Manchurian Candidate at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Manchurian Candidate at Box Office Mojo