When Barack Obama was President, some of his angriest opponents called him “The Manchurian Candidate.” Donald Trump didn’t escape the label either, especially after his meeting, this week, with Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin. But many people who reference the 1962 film have never seen “The Manchurian Candidate”, nor do they know of the film’s message. The movie follows Raymond Shaw (Laurence Harvey), a major in the Korean War, led a platoon in a fierce battle - or so he thought. In fact, it was an implanted memory. He was really a Soviet puppet, brainwashed to be an assassin. We’ll revisit “The Manchurian Candidate”, and talk about how the film illuminates today’s news, with film historian and critic Milos Stehlik. He’s WBEZ’s film contributor and director at Facets.
