1.    'Catch 22'
    2.    M*A*S*H
    3.    Carry on up the Khyber
    4.    Stripes
    5.    Hot Shots Part Deux
    6.    Kelly's Heroes
    7.    Mister Roberts 1955
    8.    The Mouse that Roared 1959

I'm sad to say that British efforts did not feature so highly in this list as they did in the TV Comedies version. But does that mean that Americans just seem to find war more funny that the British do?

The very best American war films (and I mean films and not mere 'movies'), to their credit, seem to be those which are, in fact, anti-war films; like 'Catch 22' and 'M*A*S*H'. These movies are neither jingoistic nor seek in any way to make fun of the serious matter of war...

Left: Alan Arkin as Capt. John Yossarian in 'Catch 22'.

However, you could say that it is a consistent theme running through all military comedy that writers focus their attention on the absurdities of war.

The only two British representative in this review, likewise, are intended to be ironic; 'Carry On up the Khyber' pokes fun at the legendary British 'stiff upper lip' and colonialism, while 'The Mouse that Roared' is – largely – some Peter Sellers genius mocking the Cold War politics of the super-powers (this theme is taken one step further is the less successful follow-up 'The Mouse on the Moon').

'Hot Shots Part Deux' and 'Stripes' are perhaps the closest to care free slap-stick and aren't trying to be ironic. Instead they replace irony with absurdity with plot lines so incredulous that one cannot in any way see that they might be glorifying war!

'Mister Roberts' is the dark horse, and I'm sure you have never heard of this movie. But it is a superb ensemble comedy with Herry Fonda, James Cagney and Jack Lemmon, which is almost a comic take on 'The Mutiny on the Bounty'. Cagney plays a wonderful part as a 'Captain Bligh' type personality, who drives his crew to the brink of mutiny in his quest for 'efficiency'.

If I had to pick the 'best' among this list of excellent movies, I would have to suggest that it is 'Catch 22'. I quote Wikipedia (as I admire it's accuracy for once, when it says): “Catch-22 is a satirical, historical novel by the American author Joseph Heller, first published in 1961. The novel, set during the later stages of World War II from 1943 onwards, is frequently cited as one of the great literary works of the Twentieth century.“

Right: Scene from 'Kelly's Heroes', featuring 'Pvt. Kelly' (Clint Eastwood) and the amazing 'Sgt. Oddball' (Donald Sutherland), who - frankly - stole the show. 'Kelly's Heros' is a classic hybrid genre, being part war movie and part heist capper, with a fabulous scene where Eastwood parodies his own Spaghetti Western pedigree.

It can, I admit, make hard watching – the scene where the 'hero' opens the wounded airman's jacket literally haunted me for years! But in many ways, 'Catch 22' rolls up many of the funniest concepts from all the other movies listed into one 'tour de force'.

Useful links:

> IMDB entry for 'Catch 22'
> Wikipedia enry for 'Catch 22', the novel