Stripes (1981)

Directed by Ivan Reitman

Released June 26, 1981

Written by Len Blum, Daniel Goldberg, & Harold Ramis

Movie Synopsis Courtesy of IMDB

"Two friends who are dissatisfied with their jobs decide to join the army for a bit of fun."

We are back with another Bill Murray movie. Didn't take too long to find another one because Bill was one of the staples of the 80s, especially for 80s comedies. You know who else is an 80s comedian staple? John Candy! Which we find him in this film as well. Alright, let's get right down to it. 

A-tten-tion!

The first thing that should be talked about is the genre that is military movies. This has been popular over many decades because there is always a new war or a new type of military to showcase. Also, Americans tend to be drawn to violence, so military movies are a given in the U.S. What's different about this one, though, is that it is making fun of the U.S. Army. Often, when you see military movies, they are about war or are noble movies depicting the Army as heroes. So, it is rare to see a movie of this nature that is a bunch of goons goofing off and making fun of the Army. In fact, the director was surprised by the real U.S. Army's help in the making of this movie. They were cooperative and helpful while filming even though the movie was making fun of them. I find that hard to believe myself, but then again if you can't laugh at yourself once in a while then you are taking things too seriously. That's probably why they were so willing to help out. They wanted the information to be correct, so that when the Army was getting made fun of, they were getting made fun of for the right reasons and in an accurate way. 

Speaking of the Army, this scene was rather interesting to me.

All joking aside, this scene shows a very important part of U.S. Army history. The Army officer openly asks the men if they are gay. Up until 1994 this was perfectly ok because that was before the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy was created within the U.S. Military. This policy denied military personal from asking service members or applicants if they are homosexual or bisexual. So while they turned this question into a joke, it was a reason for concern and debate in later years because it prevented people from being able to join the military due to their sexual orientation. 

Now, in typical Bill Murray fashion, he is a giant goof and trouble maker in this film. So it should come as no surprise that throughout this film he acts as the "class clown." In reality, I don't think he had any idea what he was getting himself into. Which I find is the case with a lot of people. They think they know what they are getting themselves into based on their own perceived knowledge of something or how the media/movies portray it. Then, they get there and realize what they are about to do is nothing like how it is portrayed. Which is why, I think, Bill becomes a "class clown" figure. He doesn't know any other way to deal with his problems than to make a joke of it. Since he got himself into a bigger hole than he was expecting, he is making as many jokes as he can just to keep his head above ground.

When he finally goes AWOL, more than once, it is no surprise. What is a surprise is that he isn't reprimanded worse. Now, this could be me stereotyping the military based on what I know about them, but I would think if a solider tries to leave multiple times without permission, then a larger punishment should follow. This is because you made a commitment to the U.S. Army and you are basically throwing that commitment in their face by attempting to runaway.

Which brings me to the ending of the movie. They are getting rewarded for saving people that they put in danger by stealing a piece of military equipment! How are they getting rewarded when they are the ones that put the other men of the platoon in that situation. Yes, they saved them and all, but they wouldn't have been in that situation if it wasn't for John and Russell stealing the Winnebago in the first place! Which, speaking of that...

I reference Back to the Future for this statement. They made a military weapon...out of a Winnebago!? What! How does that make sense?

Anyways. Fun fact, Bill Murray agreed to be in this movie about two weeks before the filming began. Then, like his character, he was late. He didn't show up until the third day of filming because he was at Chicago Cubs baseball games. I mean I am a Cubs fan myself, so I understand the dedication, but this was his job. You would think he would just watch the games on TV and go to his job then skip out on his commitment. I guess his character doesn't fall far from his own personality. 

What Bill is good at is improvising. That is the thing that I have learned most about Bill Murray over the course of doing these blogs. He often is asked by the director and out of his own freewill to improvise most of his lines. In fact, the scene where all the men are giving their back stories is mostly all improvised. Not just from Bill, but from all the characters. 

Finally, I see no other way to end this blog then with one of the most famous scenes from this movie. The graduation. It is more of a choreographed dance than a military graduation, but that is exactly what they were going for. 

Cruiser: "I joined the army 'cause my father and my brother were in the army. I thought I'd better join before I got drafted."

Sergeant Hulka: "Son, there ain't no draft no more."

Cruiser: "There was one?"