In his column “How About Now,” Mason Barrett ’28 reviews classic films through a modern lens.
Editor’s Note: This article is a review and includes subjective thoughts, opinions and critiques.
This review contains spoilers.
In 1970, America was in the midst of the Vietnam War. Protests were blazing across the country as countless Americans became disillusioned with their government. The decade prior was one of immense social change with the passing of the Civil Rights Act — and countless social movements continued to fight. The nation was entering a new decade and grappling with issues of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion and the war. It was at this time that “M*A*S*H” (1970), a film about the staff of a Korean War field hospital, dealt with all of these issues and more. Were they handled well? No.
“M*A*S*H” was directed by Robert Altman and tells the story of Hawkeye Pierce (Donald Sutherland) and Trapper John McIntyre (Elliott Gould), two military surgeons who are stationed at a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital near the frontlines of the Korean War. They lead the hospital staff in chaotic, ridiculous escapades that typically involve challenging authority in search of a good time. This infuriates some of the hospital’s officers, including Maj. Margaret “Hot Lips” O’Houlihan (Sally Kellerman) and Maj. Frank Burns (Robert Duvall).
The movie doesn’t have a singular plot. Rather, it is a series of smaller misadventures, weaving together the tale of Hawkeye’s time at the hospital. The lack of a unified plot is quite unsatisfying, even if it does give way to some fun moments and story threads.
In 1972, a television show of the same name was created based on the movie. This film is as if somebody stitched together a couple of those episodes from the show and called it a day. Based on the pilot episode, the disjointed, sitcom-esque moments from “M*A*S*H” work better as a show than a movie.
The film’s main problem is that it has aged very poorly. It’s a film from 1970 doing an impression of 1950s bigotry — and the impression is accurate. Homosexuality is called a psychiatric disease, a Black doctor is invited to the hospital just to be a ringer on the hospital’s football team and a woman rarely enters the frame without being sexually harassed. One could argue that all of this was done in mockery of the environment the film was set in and doesn’t reflect the beliefs of the film; however, I can’t make this argument in good conscience.
The film repeatedly glorifies terrible behavior and expects the audience to find it charming. A film can have unlikeable characters do unlikeable things, but the tone of the film suggests that’s not what the writer was going for. The film is a meditation on humorously challenging authority in the midst of war — and that’s all well and good — but it too often becomes unbearably offensive.
The film does have many great jokes and visual gags. Surgeons play golf on helicopter pads, drink martinis in cutoff shorts and wise crack in the middle of surgery. For as many problems as it has, the film still manages to pull off moments of grade A, timeless comedy. The characters themselves are hilarious, largely thanks to excellent performances from the cast.
The film has a unique and sometimes off-putting style of editing, often utilizing cutaways or abrupt endings to scenes. To steal some words from the film’s outro, it’s a film “cut and stitch[ed] along the frontlines,” not dissimilar to the cutting and stitching performed by the surgeons — when they were actually working.
This film is a hilarious comedy with terrific performances. However, its merits are overshadowed by its prejudice. If you can stomach the bigotry, I recommend giving the film a watch.
While working on this review, Loretta Swit tragically died at the age of 87. Swit, who played Maj. Margaret “Hot Lips” O’Houlihan on the “M*A*S*H” television show from 1972 to 1983, won two Emmys for her performance.
Her co-star, Alan Alda, paid tribute to her on X, sharing, “Loretta was a supremely talented actor. She deserved all her 10 EMMY nominations and her 2 wins. But more than acting her part, she created it. She worked hard In showing the writing staff how they could turn the character from a one joke sexist stereotype into a real person — with real feelings and ambitions. We celebrated the day the script came out listing her character not as Hot Lips, but as Margaret. Loretta made the most of her time here.”
I’ve only seen the pilot, so I cannot give an opinion on how it relates to the movie in terms of its offensiveness. However, Alda’s message gives me hope that improvements were made, in large part due to Swit. I hope this review has not made anyone unwilling to watch “M*A*S*H,” the movie or the show. I hope everyone gives the show a chance to honor Swit, her efforts and the impression she left on television. My prayers go out to those close to her. May she rest in peace.