Stripes (1981)

Directed by: Ivan Reitman | 106 minutes | comedy, war | Actors: Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Warren Oates, PJ Soles, Sean Young, John Candy, John Larroquette, John Volstad, John Diehl, Lance LeGault, Roberta Leighton, Conrad Dunn, Judge Reinhold, Antone Pagán, Glenn-Michael Jones, William lucky

‘Stripes’ is one of the films from the early, but already successful career of Bill Murray, who shows here that he can work well with Ivan Reitman and Harold Ramis. Previous collaborations ‘Meatballs’ (1979) and ‘Caddyshack’ (1980) along with ‘Stripes’ formed the prelude to the all-record-breaking ‘Ghostbusters’ in 1984.

Bill Murray plays John Winger in Stripes. John has had better days. His work as a taxi driver only brings him annoying passengers, with whom he cannot deal or who do not pay him. After an altercation with a haughty female customer, he decides to throw in the towel: he resigns. Not a wise choice, because it is not as if John is warm. When he returns home, his car appears to have just been towed away, because he is behind with the repayments. In his attempt to stop the bailiff, his pizza falls to the floor and his girlfriend’s dress, which he just picked up from the dry cleaner, gets smeared. That’s the last straw that urges his girlfriend to punch him. Unemployed and homeless in one day and with a broken relationship (and a bad physical condition), John sees only one way out: to enlist in the army. He quickly persuades friend Russell Ziskey (Harold Ramis) to do the same. Together, this duo embarks on a new adventure.

Once in the army, John and Russell are grouped into a group of possibly even bigger losers than themselves. Their leader, Sergeant Hulka (a great Warren Oates), has a hard time keeping the rags in check. You can already feel that this is going wrong. John clashes with Hulka the most. In a funny thread, we see the number of push-ups he has to do as punishment for doing something rash or insulting Hulka, growing steadily.

The story of ‘Stripes’ may be predictable, but the course of the film as a whole is less so, especially the last act. The film actually consists of three separate parts: John’s life before his big decision, his time in the army, and the rescue mission in enemy territory in which John and his army friends have to show their worth in action. A fragment that is undoubtedly left over from the screenplay when Cheech & Chong were still involved in the project stands out the most.

‘Stripes’ relies mainly on the humor that arises from the situations and the character of John, an unambitious thirty-something who mainly enjoys making sarcastic remarks. Murray seems to push little boundaries in ‘Stripes’ to shape his character, so natural is his acting. Ramis is the perfect contrast and the two have an infectious chemistry. However, Stripes has many more famous names in the cast: Judge Reinhold, John Larroquette, John Candy and Sean Young. This also makes the film a feast of recognition for lovers of these actors, who created a furore, especially in the years that followed.

‘Stripes’ is too long, too bland, too boring and messy. This seems to be due to the production process: the screenplay was rewritten when it turned out that the aforementioned stoner couple Cheech & Chong could not participate in the project due to financial requirements. In addition, this anti-propaganda film for the army (although it is said that registrations for the US army increased by 10% after this film) is a typical eighties product, in which misogyny is normal (the female roles have little depth). There are certainly nice moments in it, but the film eventually collapses after an excellent start and a fairly funny middle part. Nevertheless, ‘Stripes’ is a must, if only for the quotes and the legendary scene in which John and his team successfully conclude their time in the army.