Spotlight

Spotlight Date: 2-May-10
Spoiler Rating: Low

Catch-22 (1970)

The movie version of Catch-22 makes me wonder why Joseph Heller's tartly comical novel is considered a classic. Is it because a few influential people admire(d) it, or does it actually strike a chord with a lot of readers? It did not impress me when I read it 15 years ago, and now I find that the movie consists of a one-note punchline that lasts for two hours. The joke amounts to "war (or perhaps society) is stupid." Such narrow humor does not seem capable of capturing many minds and hearts. The general rule of literary adaptations suggests that whatever insight or wit the story holds is more potent in its original form, so I leave Catch-22 to those who would approach it in print. I certainly cannot recommend the movie as an overview or introduction.

The book came out in 1961, and with the Vietnam War still dragging on nine years later the time must have felt ripe for the film. A loosely bound series of episodes follows U.S. soldiers based in the Mediterranean during World War II. Every occurrence is off-kilter to emphasize the theme of craziness and the futility behind the famous title. Officers are named Major Major and Chaplain Tappman; conversations are fraught with contradictions (one can only get an appointment with the major when he's not available); a naked bombardier receives a medal for dropping his payload into the sea; an old man in a whorehouse argues that the weakest countries are the strongest. The wackiness extends to the way the movie is made. Background noises drown out dialogue and flashbacks attempt (clumsily) to mimic the novel's non-chronological style. Neither the comedy nor the drama is trenchant enough to impart real meaning or satisfaction. A flatness permeates the film within the first few minutes and persists until it is done.

Only two elements manage to spark a bit of interest. The first is a notable cast that includes Alan Arkin, Martin Balsam, Anthony Perkins, Jon Voight, Art Garfunkel, Martin Sheen, Bob Newhart, and Orson Welles, among others. The second is a sendup of capitalism. Perhaps because of the difference between the current era and the '60s, this angle grabs me more than war or the morality of madness. Voight's character uses his position as quartermaster to start a business, and his single-minded pursuit of money ignores all considerations of life, death, or decency. This slice of Catch-22 hits home, but not the rest. Perhaps this is the quandary for an artist who views the trappings of civilization as irrational: the only way to express this craziness is through crazy scenes, yet crazy scenes deflate the power of expression. Catch-22 indeed.

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