Search - M*A*S*H on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Adult Situations, Strong Sexual Content, Not For Children Movie Release: 1970 DVD Release: 01/08/2002 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Edition: Restored/Remastered,Special Collection Audio Tracks: English, French Subtitles: English SwapaDVD Credits: 2 Number of Discs: 2 Run Time: 1 hrs 56 mins Studio: 20th Century Fox Members Wishing: 3 Genres: Comedy Drama, War, Satire, Black Comedy, Military Comedy, Anti-War Film, Ensemble Film, Medical Comedy See Also: M*A*S*H, M*A*S*H [Collector's Edition], M*A*S*H [Blu-ray]

Although he was not the first choice to direct it, the hit black comedy MASH established Robert Altman as one of the leading figures of Hollywood's 1970s generation of innovative and irreverent young filmmakers. Scripted by Hollywood veteran Ring Lardner, Jr., this war comedy details the exploits of military doctors and nurses at a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in the Korean War. Between exceptionally gory hospital shifts and countless rounds of martinis, wisecracking surgeons Hawkeye Pierce (Donald Sutherland) and Trapper John McIntyre (Elliott Gould) make it their business to undercut the smug, moralistic pretensions of Bible-thumper Maj. Frank Burns (Robert Duvall) and Army true-believer Maj. "Hot Lips" Houlihan (Sally Kellerman). Abetted by such other hedonists as Duke Forrest (Tom Skerritt) and Painless Pole (John Schuck), as well as such (relative) innocents as Radar O'Reilly (Gary Burghoff), Hawkeye and Trapper John drive Burns and Houlihan crazy while engaging in such additional blasphemies as taking a medical trip to Japan to play golf, staging a mock Last Supper to cure Painless's momentary erectile dysfunction, and using any means necessary to win an inter-MASH football game. MASH creates a casual, chaotic atmosphere emphasizing the constant noise and activity of a surgical unit near battle lines; it marked the beginning of Altman's sustained formal experiments with widescreen photography, zoom lenses, and overlapping sound and dialogue, further enhancing the atmosphere with the improvisational ensemble acting for which Altman's films quickly became known. Although the on-screen war was not Vietnam, MASH's satiric target was obvious in 1970, and Vietnam War-weary and counter-culturally hip audiences responded to Altman's nose-thumbing attitude towards all kinds of authority and embraced the film's frankly tasteless yet evocative humor and its anti-war, anti-Establishment, anti-religion stance. MASH became the third most popular film of 1970 after Love Story and Airport, and it was nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. As further evidence of the changes in Hollywood's politics, blacklist survivor Lardner won the Oscar for his screenplay. MASH began Altman's systematic 1970s effort to revise classic Hollywood genres in light of contemporary American values, and it gave him the financial clout to make even more experimental and critical films like McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971), California Split (1974), and Nashville (1975). It also inspired the long-running TV series starring Alan Alda as Hawkeye and Burghoff as Radar. With its formal and attitudinal impudence, and its great popularity, MASH was one more confirmation in 1970 that a Hollywood "New Wave" had arrived. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide

Elliott Gould - Trapper John
Donald Sutherland - Hawkeye
Tom Skerritt - Duke
Sally Kellerman - Maj. Hot Lips
Jo Ann Pflug - Lt. Dish
Robert Duvall - Maj. Frank Burns
Roger Bowen - Col. Henry Blake
Gary Burghoff - Radar O'Reilly

Robert Altman's irreverent dark comedy about military surgeons comes to DVD with this fabulous two-disc set from 20th Century Fox. The film is presented in a widescreen anamorphic transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1. For anyone who has only seen the film pan-and-scan on video and television, this transfer is a revelation. Closed-captioned English soundtracks are rendered in both Dolby Digital Stereo and Dolby Digital Mono, while a French soundtrack has also been recorded in Dolby Digital Mono. English and Spanish subtitles are accessible. The superb supplemental materials include a commentary track recorded by Altman. The track is informative, but Altman does stay quiet for long stretches of time. Also included are four different documentaries. The best is "Enlisted: The Story of MASH," which features new interviews with the cast members reminiscing about the shoot. Although much of the information is covered in the commentary track, it is great to hear other people's interpretations of the events. Another documentary shows a reunion of the cast members which comes about when Altman is given a lifetime achievement award. The least essential extra is the AMC "Backstory" on the film. The "Enlisted" documentary covers all of the same information in much greater depth. Finally, there is an excellent before and after display that showcases the work that went into the visual and audio restoration. This is a superb disc that gives MASH the respect it deserves as one of the great comedies in movie history. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide