55 Best World War II Movies Of All Time Ranked

Adapted from the 1961 satirical anti-war novel by Joseph Heller, "Catch-22" is a black comedy set during World War II at a fictional military base in Pianosa, Italy. The film provides a darkly comical critique of war through the eyes of U.S. Army Air Force B-25 bombardier John Yossarian (Alan Arkin), whose commanding officer continues to move the goalpost of how many missions an airman needs to complete before rotating home. After experiencing a mental breakdown from watching his friends die again and again but receiving no respite, Yossarian learns of the Army policy "Catch-22," which states that if airmen are sane enough to know they don't want to fly more missions, they are not unwell enough to go home, but if they continue to fly, they are crazy. The term for the policy, which essentially makes it impossible for airmen to leave, has come into common usage to indicate a paradox where someone is unable to escape a situation or rule situation due to a logical problem with the rule itself. 

• Starring: Alan Arkin, Martin Balsam, Richard Benjamin
• Director: Mike Nichols
• Year: 1970
• Runtime: 122 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 80%