War is hell.

But it's also great comedy. Just ask director Robert Altman and writer Ring Lardner Jr. After loosely translating Richard Hooker's novel M*A*S*H to the big screen and hiring then virtually unknown Donald Sutherland. they created a gem of anti-war comedy that still generates bust a gut laughs today.

Donald (Invasion of the Body Snatchers) Sutherland. As Benjamin Franklin Pierce. No not that Ben Franklin, and to keep from having to explain that to everyone he tells them to call him Hawkeye. You would almost never think of Donald Sutherland. to be a comedic actor, I sure didn't. Because of the huge number of sci-fi and horror movies he would do after this he totally blew me away with his understated comedy. He can deliver lines that make me laugh just think of them ("I'm Dr. Jeckle actually, this is my friend, Mr. Hyde.") with a totally strait face. He's perfect as Hawkeye.

Hawkeye's strange looking friend is John Francis Xavier "Trapper John" McIntyre and is played in style by Elliott Gould. Gould is almost as understated as Sutherland. and almost as funny. The two are great together and get great play off each other through the entire 116 minuets of the movie.

Also catching the eye of Psy is Sally Kellerman as Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan. She is probably the closest thing to a villain there is in this movie. Her character is a though as nails woman whom the rest of the cast refers to as "regular army". She's the straight arrow of the M*A*S*H (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) camp and as such she becomes the butt of several hilariously funny practical jokes. Dig that shower scene.

You trekies in the audience will get a pleasant surprise, too. Rene Aber Jonis, better know as Odo from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine makes and appearance. See if you can recognize him without his Odo make-up.

So, movie man, you say, if the movie is so darn good what keeps if from get 5 G's?

Simple: it has no plot.

Huh? you say.

I mean it. Most movies (99.9% of the one's I've seen) you have a conflict that the main character's must overcome called a central conflict that runs through the entire movie. M*A*S*H on the other hand has no central conflict, but instead has lots of small plots and conflicts that each consume about 20 minuets and tells the story of 5 months in the lives of the M*A*S*H 4077.. The entire movie is constructed like a T.V show, and, in fact M*A*S*H did become a highly successful show, much to the dislike of Robert Altman.

After watching the movie I can see why Altman never like the T.V show.  This movie is an anti-war movie and the series severally toned down all those elements.

But that anti-war down is very strange. It isn't the kind high satire that made movies like Good Morning,Vietnam funny. Instead this movie goes to great lengths to show huge contrasts between man. Witness Hawkeye and Trapper John joke while performing open heart surgery.

Plus those operation scene are nice and gruesome and that's just the way I like 'em. That's another thing about this movie, it will make you laugh and almost disgusts you at the same time. But regardless of your tolerance for gore (it isn't that gory) this movie is 116 minutes of good war movie fun. If you have a pulse you should run out and see this movie right now.

RATING(OUT OF A POSSIBLE FIVE)

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