On Football Games and America

 MASH was one of the more interesting movies I've watched over the course of this class although, it wasn't exactly the best movie I've seen. The biggest problem I had with this movie was the plot, it was practically nonexistent, and the humor felt specific to the era in which it was made. The major themes that I was able to associate with this movie was communication, the lack thereof and the lack of power those in authority actually had. From the opening scene to the end credits, the main characters walk all over every person that outranked them or was outside of their “clique”. This was humorous because it plays with the power structure and highlights how poorly things are communicated between practically everyone. The main characters, in turn, have figured out how to play that in their favor which lets them do practically whatever they want.

Overall, this movie seemed to bring a lighthearted approach to different aspects of the military, giving people a way to vent frustrations they may have had, especially those that have been in the military. The situations and archetypes presented were made to be relatable so people can identify with them. As we've discussed in class, the way this movie portrayed the military and its various facets is a way that we can bring it into the realm of humanity and strip away some of its power.

The theme of communication is prevalent in this film in nearly every scene, when the movie opened and the head of the MASH camp is giving what seems to be orders to the character, Radar, they're just talking over each other and Radar runs off before the commander finishes talking. Another example of communication is with the dentist, when he reads some sort of article that leads him to believe that he's turning into a “fairy”, and he believes it without the slightest hesitation, even when the others know that it's a ridiculous notion to believe wholeheartedly, he still believes it. The announcements that come on over the camp's speakers throughout the movie are also quite misleading, even the speaker steps over his speech, fails to read some announcements and immediately retracts other statements he makes, which again lends to this theme of miscommunication. These different scenes also show how communication can break the chain of command, when people don't really understand what's being told to them, the order falls through the cracks in the floor.

One thing that confused me was the Japanese radio station that played over the speakers in the camp. I was under the impression this movie takes place in Korea, so I'm not really sure what this has to do with anything, other than foreshadow two of the main characters short visit to Japan. The characters trip to Japan was a turning point in the movie that signaled the rapid dissolving of what little plot line this movie actually had. As a symbol, the football game symbolizes the characters complete triumph over the military entity. Other than this symbolism, the football game at the end of the film really didn't seem to serve much purpose besides adding length to the film and a way for the characters to make a quick buck.