Robert Altman

[AKA]

Has Robert Altman made any public comments about the series? What did or didn't he like about it?

Likewise, have any actors from the film thrown in their two cents regarding the show?

[TJL]

Originally posted by AKA
Has Robert Altman made any public comments about the series? What did or didn't he like about it?

"The television version of M*A*S*H is the most insidious kind of propaganda. I think it's terrible. It says - no matter what platitiudes they use - that the guys with the slanted eyes are the bad guys. They don't show the blood, the horror. They don't make you pay for a laugh. It's done for commercial reasons. That isn't the reason I did the movie; it isn't the reason the artists involved did it. There was a point to be made, and we made it."

- Robert Altman

So my guess is he wasn't a big fan of the series.

[AKA]

Originally posted by TJL
"The television version of M*A*S*H is the most insidious kind of propaganda. I think it's terrible. It says - no matter what platitiudes they use - that the guys with the slanted eyes are the bad guys. They don't show the blood, the horror. They don't make you pay for a laugh. It's done for commercial reasons. That isn't the reason I did the movie; it isn't the reason the artists involved did it. There was a point to be made, and we made it."

- Robert Altman

So my guess is he wasn't a big fan of the series.

Yeah, I watched the "M*A*S*H" movie cast reunion on the DVD last night after I posted this, and he said basically the same thing.

Man. I'm going to have to wholeheartedly disagree with Bob. The TV series had the same message as the movie; it was just toned down a bit for '70s and early '80s television.

And not once have I gotten the message from the TV series that the "guys with the slanted eyes" are the bad guys. Quite the opposite, actually.

For someone who made such a great film in "M*A*S*H," he sure doesn't understand the series, and that bums me out.

Love your movies, Mr. Altman, but you're very, very wrong here. You should be proud that your great film spawned and equally great and more successful TV series. I know I would be.

[TJL]

In all of the interviews/profiles Ive read about Robert Altman, the word "Curmudgeon" comes up alot.

And for good reason. He has issues with everything.

Lighten up Bob!

I'm sure there are a lot of M*A*S*H fans out there like myself who believe your movie would probably have been forgotten about if it weren't for the incredible success of the spinoff series.

[AKA]

I agree. I think he's also bitter that the series sort of overshadows the movie (more people are familiar with the show than the film).

[Screenwriter]

First of all, I'd like to say to Altman... "the guys with the slanted eys" were the bad guys... who were we fighting over there? Sodomon Gomora?

[AKA]

Originally posted by Screenwriter
First of all, I'd like to say to Altman... "the guys with the slanted eys" were the bad guys... who were we fighting over there? Sodomon Gomora?

Actually, the guys with the slanted eyes weren't necessarily the bad guys. I think the biggest message that the show and movie conveyed through Hawkeye is that everyone, America, allies, and enemies, is a human being.

[TV Guy]

Keep in mind that Robert Altman didn't get any money from the series (although he feels he should have, even though he didn't create the characters), and that has colored his views of it, I'm sure. He's also known to be not a particularly nice guy, and that may contribute to his comments as well.

[AKA]

Originally posted by TV Guy
Keep in mind that Robert Altman didn't get any money from the series (although he feels he should have, even though he didn't create the characters), and that has colored his views of it, I'm sure. He's also known to be not a particularly nice guy, and that may contribute to his comments as well.

That's true. I was watching a special on him on the Fox Movie Channel this past week, and it mentioned something about how he was offered royalties from the series, but forfeited them, because he felt that Twentieth Century Fox was going the way of the do-do.