Which movie starring Frank Sinatra is about a former Korean War prisoner who becomes a political assassin?

The movie starring Frank Sinatra about a former Korean War prisoner who becomes a political assassin is The Manchurian Candidate. Released in 1962, John Frankenheimer’s Cold War thriller stars Sinatra as Major Bennett Marco, a decorated officer troubled by recurring nightmares involving his platoon. Those dreams gradually reveal that Marco and his fellow soldiers were subjected to brainwashing while prisoners during the Korean War.

Laurence Harvey plays Raymond Shaw, another veteran who has been programmed to carry out an assassination when triggered. Angela Lansbury portrays Shaw’s manipulative mother, a performance that earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. The film was adapted from Richard Condon’s 1959 novel.

A common mix-up is with Suddenly, another Sinatra film involving an assassination plot. In Suddenly, Sinatra plays a would-be presidential assassin, whereas The Manchurian Candidate centers on psychological conditioning, political conspiracy, and Shaw’s programmed role. Sinatra’s performance helped establish the film as one of the defining political thrillers of the 1960s.