Just watched the 1964 Frankenheimer film "Seven Days in May", any film with with both Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas has to be worth a punt. As I have discovered it came hot on the heels of "The Manchurian Candidate," thought by critics to be one of the most gripping political thrillers of its day, and would you believe it director John Frankenheimer managed to top it with a film that is widely regarded as the best political thriller ever made. The film is based on the novel by Fletcher Knebel, and is the story of an attempted coup of the U.S. government by members of the president's own joint chiefs of staff. Sadly you won't find it in your local Blockbuster...'tis a pity 'cos films this good should always be available to rent.