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(More customer reviews)Finally ...... one of those DVD re-releases I've been practically holding my breath for, and was not disappointed. This criminally overlooked gem was trashed by critics upon its release in 1970, and never enjoyed a video transfer worthy of the filmmaker's effort, not even on laserdisc! And as you can see from the varying reviews, the controversy rages on. Which just proves how alive and well and timely a film Catch-22 truly is.
Mike Nichols captures the essence of Joseph Heller's defining anti-war classic quite admirably, with a faithful adaptation by Buck Henry (who can be seen along with a veritable Who's Who period ensemble cast), with an eye as removed and objective as Kubrick, yet at times very visually subjective ..... an approach used to great advantage in his previous hit film The Graduate. All the verbal and ethical contradictions of the book bring its dark humor to demented life, through a kaleidoscopic cavalcade of archtypical characters who make up the living nightmare of one Captain Yossarian, who has decided he can no longer bear to fly the combat missions his superiors have made it impossible to get out of. To get out of flying, he has to be officially diagnosed as "crazy", and must request to be grounded ..... but if he requests to be grounded, then he's not really crazy, and is therefore eligible to keep flying missions. That's some catch, that Catch-22.
This film, like the book on which it's based, is not so much an indictment of the insanity of war as it is a look at how the corporate mentality can find its way into the noblest of causes, and how beurocratic manipulations devaluate basic human principles, which take a back seat to merely "looking good". A timeless theme indeed. This skewed logic is cheerfully accepted by all the story's characters ..... until our Yossarian's eyes are opened to the product of that logic literally disemboweled at his fingertips (yes, that scene was put back in!), and suddenly he is the outsider whose prime mission is to avoid any more missions. Which is not an easy thing to do when Brass keeps adding more after you've completed your tour of duty.
As far as the transfer itself: It has probably never looked better since the original theatrical release over 30 years ago, especially being the first widescreen release of this title, which is the only way to experience it as intended. The transfer team did the best they could with the mono soundtrack, I'm sure, which does get compressed and distorted at times, something we enthusiasts of early films live with.
Mike Nichols' Catch-22 may only enjoy cult status, but it is DVD releases like this (and that other oddball, star-studded 60's curiosity Candy) that make one truly appreciate what is being done with this revolutionary medium. Hey, not all movies can be for everybody. Long live the Anti-Blockbusters!
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