M*A*S*H* (1970) (R, 1970)

Robert Altman's rollicking war satire gets rolling when newly drafted surgeon "Hawkeye" Pierce (Donald Sutherland) arrives in Korea and immediately sets out to prove he's no military man. He steals a Jeep, kids around with Duke Forrest (Tom Skerritt), and joins forces with fellow surgeon and rebel "Trapper" John McIntyre (Elliott Gould). They make short work of by-the-book officers like Frank Burns (Robert Duvall) and head nurse Margaret "Hot Lips" Hoolihan (Sally Kellerman), mostly by forms of humiliation that would today be considered sexual harassment. In short, they don't let being located in a war zone stop them from having fun.

It's easy to see why this blockbuster film became such a great TV show. Its series of wacky antics – including the pseudo suicide of a well-endowed dentist and golfing in Japan -- resemble nothing so much as a series of TV shows. There's no plot other than undoing the rigidness on which the military depends.

While this is all fun, it's also likely to be offensive to many viewers. The extreme sexism and sexualization of the female nurses, the homophobic comments about a man who thinks he might be gay, and the condescending attitudes about people of color may be accurate for their time, but are likely to mar some people's enjoyment of the film.

Studio: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
Director: Robert Altman
Cast: Donald Sutherland, Elliott Gould, Robert Duvall, Sally Kellerman, Tom Skerritt
Genre: Drama
Run time: 116 minutes
Theatrical release: November 20, 1970
DVD release: September 7, 2004
MPAA Rating: R