Not the book, but still a great movie...

Rating: 6/10 (9 March 2008)

Sometimes an unfilmable novel has to be removed as far as possible from its source & considered on its own merits. CATCH-22 falls into this category. Director Mike Nichols and writer Buck Henry take Joseph Heller's mind-trip of a book and create a film that, while not nearly as all out funny as it's contemporary M*A*S*H, is still a very worthwhile movie. Nichols biggest triumph is his choice of Alan Arkin as Yossarian, a GI in WWII Italy who'll do whatever it takes to get discharged. Of course claiming to be crazy means he's not...but everyone else surrounding him is. Arkin is great for this type of role...exasperated beyond belief, knowing full well that he's the only sane person around. Nichol's isn't always successful blending the comedy with the horrors of war and there are a few really jarring scenes, but on the whole he's made a great movie. There are scenes of outright comedy (crusty general Orson Welles and his inept son-in-law giving the troops an idiotic pep talk is a real highlight and any scene with Bob Newhart is priceless). In addition to Arkin, Welles and Newhart, the large cast includes Jon Voight, Martin Balsam, Martin Sheen, Anthony Perkins and, making his acting debut, Art Garfunkel. They're all dead on. Paula Prentiss has the only prominent female role.