M*A*S*H is a 1970 American satirical black comedy war film directed by Robert Altman and written by Ring Lardner, Jr…..which was based on Richard Hooker’s novel MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors….as this picture is the only feature film in the M*A*S*H franchise and became one of the biggest films of the early 1970’s for 20th Century Fox.
The film depicts a unit of medical personnel stationed at a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) during the Korean War….albeit the subtext is about the Vietnam War….which stars Donald Sutherland, Tom Skerritt, and Elliott Gould….with Sally Kellerman, Robert Duvall, René Auberjonois, Gary Burghoff, Roger Bowen, Michael Murphy….and in his film debut….professional football player Fred “”The Hammer” Williamson.
The film won Grand Prix du Festival International du Film….was later named Palme d’Or, at 1970 Cannes Film Festival…..and went on to receive five Academy Award nominations….including Best Picture….and won for Best Adapted Screenplay…..and was eventually deemed “culturally significant” by the Library of Congress and was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. The Academy Film Archive preserved MASH in 2000….as the film inspired the one of the most popular and critically acclaimed television series of all time under the same name M*A*S*H….which ran live from 1972 to 1983….and still today in 2017 is one of the most watched re-run series still on cable television today.
This is a great movie….with great humor….and a football game for the ages….which makes this a video well worth watching on any occasion.
