Stripes (1981) * * *

Directed by:  Ivan Reitman

Starring:  Bill Murray, Warren Oates, Harold Ramis, John Candy, John Larroquette, Judge Reinhold, Sean Young, P.J. Soles, John Diehl

John Winger (Murray) is having such a bad day that joining the army seems like the cure to what ails him.    In a two-hour window, he loses his job, his girlfriend walks out on him because of his immaturity, his car is repossessed, and he won't have anywhere to live.    He talks his level-headed buddy Russell (Ramis) into joining the army with him, framing it as if they were going away to camp together.   John doesn't take one minute of basic training seriously, much to the rising agitation of his drill sergeant (Oates), an army lifer who doesn't take guff from anyone.

Stripes shows us how John matures (somewhat) during his time in the army and becomes the de facto leader of his ragtag unit, especially when the drill sergeant is put out of a commission by an errant bomb.    The story is reminiscent of Private Benjamin (1980), but it never makes the mistake of making its main character boring.    Murray had a few movies under his belt by the time Stripes was released and had the dry wit down pat, which is all he needs to turn the army into his personal playground.

The unit itself contains some memorable characters as well, including Ox (Candy), a nice fat guy who sees the army as a way to lose weight, Psycho (Conrad Dunn) who doesn't like anyone calling him by his birth name, and Cruiser (Diehl), a dimwit who takes poker advice from Ox while he's playing him.    The first half of Stripes is funnier than the second half, which involves the unit being sent to Italy to watch after the army's latest urban assault vehicle, which is like an RV with built-in flamethrower and ammunition.    The ending involves gunfire, chases, and explosions, with John and Russell as unlikely heroes even though they steal the vehicle to visit their girlfriends in Germany.  

Despite the weaker second half, Stripes follows a successful formula which Bill Murray employed often in his comedies.   It's difficult for the army or even the ghosts in Ghostbusters to break him because his wall of sarcasm is impregnable, and in these cases even necessary in order for him to maintain his sanity.   How can you rattle a guy who finds everything amusing in the first place?