A Bit Disappointing, But Overall A Good Comedy (Just Not Great)

Rating: Null/10 (24 January 2003)

The story of a man who wanted to keep the world safe for democracy...and meet girls
Bill Murray and Harold Ramis star in `Stripes,' a military satire which went on to spawn many copies, including the horrible `Police Academy' series.
John Winger (Murray) is a down-on-his-luck cabbie. Russel Ziskey (Ramis) is an equally unfortunate friend of Winger's. After finally losing his cabbie job, Winger decided that the military is the best place to go, so he coaxes Ziskey into signing up as well.
I remember hearing a lot about `Stripes.' It was supposed to be a really hilarious movie. So, you could say I had high expectations for the film. I was more than pleased when it finally played on TV not too long ago, and after all these years I finally got to view it for the first time.
Bill Murray uses his smart-aleck persona to a great advantage in this film. This was one of his first post-SNL films, and it's no wonder this film spawned a film career for him. Harold Ramis is funny as his complete opposite of a friend. In the film, Murray is a big pain for Warren Oates (great as Sgt. Hulka). If you've never noticed, Steve Guttenberg completely ripped Murray's character off in `Police Academy,' but I already mentioned that.
There are some big laughs in this film, and I'd give it four stars, however, I felt that the end was thrown together a bit crudely. The plot kind of went haywire.
`Stripes' was a bit disappointing for me; however, it is a good comedy, and a clever satire on the army/military. Plus, there are some excellent actors and co-stars in this film, including the hilarious John Candy as Ox. Overall, I'd give the film a 3.5/5 stars. Not great, but worth watching for sure.