by Julian Spivey

John Frankenheimer's 1962 film The Manchurian Candidate is arguably the greatest thriller cinema has ever seen.

The film, written by George Axelrod, was based on a novel by Richard Condon. The script was a drastic change for Axelrod, who had previously written such romance films as Blake Edwards's Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) and Billy Wilder's Seven Year Itch (1955).

Raymond Shaw, played by Laurence Harvey, is a Korean War hero. As the movie unfolds, we quickly learn how and why Shaw became a war hero. Frank Sinatra plays Major Bennett Marco, who was under Shaw's command in the war. Marco has this feeling that what everybody – including him – keeps saying about Shaw is false. In one of the best-crafted scenes in film history, the camera revolves 360 degrees around the room, showing that a ladies garden club is actually a group of communist enemies, showing that the American war heroes have been brainwashed. It doesn't take Marco long to remember what truly took place, and he realizes that Shaw has been built as an assassin. Marco sets out to find who the mastermind behind the plan is.

Shaw's mother, Mrs. Iselin, played brilliantly by Angela Lansbury, is the wife of vice presidential candidate John Iselin, played by James Gregory. Iselin is a character loosely based on infamous Wisconsin senator, Joseph McCarthy. Mrs. Iselin is the mastermind behind her husband's campaign. It's clear from the beginning Shaw doesn't have a good relationship with his mother or stepfather. The hatred for his family stems from an incident that occurred before Shaw went off to war. He fell in love with a beautiful girl who happened to be the daughter of a political enemy of John Iselin's. Because of this, he was forced to end his relationship. After the war when Shaw is reunited with the love of his life, the film's tide begins to turn, and the mastermind becomes clear.

The movie culminates in what might be the single greatest ending in film history. It is an ending that should not be ruined by words and should remain unknown until seen. Frankenheimer's direction is one of the greatest jobs ever done by a director. He would, however, never match the success he found with The Manchurian Candidate. The acting by Sinatra, Harvey and Lansbury – who was robbed by the Academy Awards in the best supporting actress category – was absolutely superb.

The Manchurian Candidate is quite possibly the most Hitchcockian film ever made that was not directed by Alfred Hitchcock himself. Its suspense and ending rival the greatness in Hitchcock's 1960 classic Psycho.