Catch-22
Directed by Mike Nichols
Written by Buck Henry based on a novel by Joseph Heller
1970/USA
IMDb page
Repeat viewing/Amazon Prime
Yossarian: Ok, let me see if I’ve got this straight. In order to be grounded, I’ve got to be crazy. And I must be crazy to keep flying. But if I ask to be grounded, that means I’m not crazy anymore, and I have to keep flying.
Dr. ‘Doc’ Daneeka: You got it, that’s Catch-22.
Yossarian: Whoo… That’s some catch, that Catch-22.
Dr. ‘Doc’ Daneeka: It’s the best there is.
A good movie for when the whole world seems crazy. Also features an unbeatable ensemble cast.
The setting is a U.S. Army Air Force base on an island in WWII Italy. Capt. Yossarian (Alan Arkin) is a bombadier. He flies nightly bombing missions to the mainland. But his commander Col. Cathcart (Martin Balsam) keeps raising the number of missions that must be completed before crew rotate out. The one thing Yossarian knows for certain is that people are trying to kill him. His outrageous antics bring him no closer to his rescue. He has many nightmares, frightening fantasies, and real life encounters involving the death of airmen.
In the meantime, Lt. Milo Minderbinder (Jon Voight) has vast plans to build an empire through trading army supplies for gourmet foodstuffs etc. He enlists Col. Cathcart in this enterprise and the gap between the men profiting from the violence and the men dying from it continues to grow. This is a very superficial plot summary. There are many zany characters in the story. They are played by Richard Benjamin, Art Garfunkel, Jack Gilford, Anthony Perkins, Buck Henry, Bob Newhart, Paula Prentiss, Martin Sheen, Orson Welles, Bob Balaban, Norman Fell, and Charles Groden.
I saw this on original release. Nichols really let loose on this one as did his cast. Sometimes it’s a bit over-the-top but all in all it’s enjoyable as both comedy and morality tale. I’m glad I gave it another chance.
