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Stripes

  • 19811981
  • RR
  • 1h 46m
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
73K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,773
811
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Stripes (1981)
Two friends who are dissatisfied with their jobs decide to join the army for a bit of fun.
Play trailer2:58
3 Videos
99+ Photos
  • Comedy
  • War

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

IMDb RATING
6.8/10
73K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,773
811
  • Director
    • Ivan Reitman
  • Writers
    • Len Blum
    • Daniel Goldberg
    • Harold Ramis
  • Stars
    • Bill Murray
    • John Candy
    • Harold Ramis
Top credits
  • Director
    • Ivan Reitman
  • Writers
    • Len Blum
    • Daniel Goldberg
    • Harold Ramis
  • Stars
    • Bill Murray
    • John Candy
    • Harold Ramis
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 191User reviews
    • 70Critic reviews
    • 68Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos3

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 2:58
    Official Trailer
    Stripes: Extended Cut
    Trailer 1:39
    Stripes: Extended Cut
    Sneak Previews Season 3 Episode 34
    Video 28:35
    Sneak Previews Season 3 Episode 34

    Photos127

    Bill Murray and Harold Ramis in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray and P.J. Soles in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray and P.J. Soles in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, and Warren Oates in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray and Warren Oates in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray and P.J. Soles in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray and Harold Ramis in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, John Candy, Antone Pagán, and Warren Oates in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray and Warren Oates in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Sean Young, and P.J. Soles in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray and Harold Ramis in Stripes (1981)
    Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Sean Young, and P.J. Soles in Stripes (1981)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Bill Murray
    Bill Murray
    • Johnas John
    John Candy
    John Candy
    • Oxas Ox
    Harold Ramis
    Harold Ramis
    • Russellas Russell
    Warren Oates
    Warren Oates
    • Sgt. Hulkaas Sgt. Hulka
    P.J. Soles
    P.J. Soles
    • Stellaas Stella
    Sean Young
    Sean Young
    • Louiseas Louise
    John Larroquette
    John Larroquette
    • Capt. Stillmanas Capt. Stillman
    John Voldstad
    John Voldstad
    • Stillman's Aideas Stillman's Aide
    John Diehl
    John Diehl
    • Cruiseras Cruiser
    Lance LeGault
    Lance LeGault
    • Col. Glassas Col. Glass
    Roberta Leighton
    • Anitaas Anita
    Conrad Dunn
    • Psychoas Psycho
    Judge Reinhold
    Judge Reinhold
    • Elmoas Elmo
    Antone Pagán
    Antone Pagán
    • Hectoras Hector
    • (as Antone Pagan)
    Glenn-Michael Jones
    • Leonas Leon
    William Lucking
    William Lucking
    • Recruiteras Recruiter
    • (as Bill Lucking)
    Fran Ryan
    Fran Ryan
    • Dowager in Cabas Dowager in Cab
    Joe Flaherty
    Joe Flaherty
    • Border Guardas Border Guard
    • (as Joseph P. Flaherty)
    • Director
      • Ivan Reitman
    • Writers
      • Len Blum
      • Daniel Goldberg
      • Harold Ramis
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit
    At the end of a very bad day when he realizes his life has gone and is going nowhere, John Winger is able to convince his best friend, Russell Ziskey, whose life is not much better, to enlist in the army, despite they not being obvious soldier material. In basic training, they are only two of a bunch of misfits that comprise their platoon. However, it is still John that is constantly butting heads with their drill sergeant, Sergeant Hulka. Two of their saving graces are Stella and Louise, two MPs who get them out of one scrape after another. Their entire platoon is in jeopardy of not graduating. But what happens during basic leads to their entire platoon being assigned to an overseas mission in Italy, to test a new urban assault vehicle, the EM-50 project. John and Russell decide to take the EM-50 for an unauthorized test drive to visit Stella and Louise who have been reassigned to West Germany. In the process, the rest of the platoon, Hulka, and Hulka's immediate superior, self-absorbed Captain Stillman, get caught unofficially behind enemy Communist lines in Czechoslovakia. John and Russell, with Stella and Louise's help, will have to show their true mettle as US army soldiers and in the process test the capabilities of the EM-50 to rescue their platoon without the rest of the US army knowing what's going on, and thus without any assistance beyond themselves. —Huggo
    • u.s. soldier
    • u.s. army
    • misfit
    • incompetence
    • female frontal nudity
    • 113 more
    • Plot summary
    • Plot synopsis
    • Taglines
      • Today's army needs men of courage... honesty... integrity... ambition. Instead, they got John Winger.
    • Genres
      • Comedy
      • War
    • Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
      • Rated R for sexuality/nudity, language and some drug use
    • Parents guide

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      According to Ivan Reitman, Bill Murray insisted that Harold Ramis be cast as his friend for two reasons: 1. They were long-time friends in real life. 2. So Ramis could help Murray re-write his dialogue or help him improvise.
    • Goofs
      Neither John nor Russell have their hair cut short enough for Army recruits.
    • Quotes

      John Winger: Cut it out! Cut it out! Cut it out! The hell's the matter with you? Stupid! We're all very different people. We're not Watusi. We're not Spartans. We're Americans, with a capital 'A', huh? You know what that means? Do ya? That means that our forefathers were kicked out of every decent country in the world. We are the wretched refuse. We're the underdog. We're mutts! Here's proof: his nose is cold! But there's no animal that's more faithful, that's more loyal, more loveable than the mutt. Who saw "Old Yeller?" Who cried when Old Yeller got shot at the end?

      [raises his hand]

      John Winger: [Sarcastically] Nobody cried when Old Yeller got shot? I'm sure.

      [hands are reluctantly raised]

      John Winger: I cried my eyes out. So we're all dogfaces, we're all very, very different, but there is one thing that we all have in common: we were all stupid enough to enlist in the Army. We're mutants. There's something wrong with us, something very, very wrong with us. Something seriously wrong with us - we're soldiers. But we're American soldiers! We've been kicking ass for 200 years! We're ten and one! Now we don't have to worry about whether or not we practiced. We don't have to worry about whether Captain Stillman wants to have us hung. All we have to do is to be the great American fighting soldier that is inside each one of us. Now do what I do, and say what I say. And make me proud.

    • Crazy credits
      As the entire end credits are playing, Ox and the soldiers are marching while leaving the airport
    • Alternate versions
      The "Extended Cut" DVD includes 18 minutes' worth of deleted scenes re-edited back into the film (and most available separately in the menu):
      • A longer discussion between John and Russell before they drive to the recruiting office
      • A short addition to the training montage where Russell and Ox deal with a heavy trash can (not available separately, see below)
      • A nine-minute scene in which John and Russell take LSD and accidentally end up on a mission in the Colombian jungle. They meet with rebels whom they smoke marijuana and take more LSD with. The rebels want to kill them but they escape by leading the rebels in a rendition of "Quando, Quando, Quando"
      • After Hulka's injury, a false account by Stillman of how it happened (though John knows that Stillman was at fault)
      • An extra minute in the EM-50 introduction scene where John and Russell are "volunteered" to watch it for the weekend (instead of just suddenly on guard for no reason)
      • Love scenes between the two couples during their Germany vacation in which the women are nude
      • A longer discussion between John and Russell before Russell agrees to save the men in Czechoslovakia
      However, the DVD suffers from several flaws:
      • The "Theatrical" version retains the trash can segment (about 12 seconds) and skips past the Germany vacation romp about 10 seconds too soon, cutting after "special exercises" and leaving out the mention of the suitcase John's brought
      • The "Theatrical" version also executes the branching very poorly, with a noticeable pause for each of the six major deleted scenes and occasional brief hiccup in content at those points (including about 2 seconds at the end of the training montage)
      • Only the 5.1 remix is available, not the original mono track
      • The Extended Cut identifies the extra scenes with subtitles that cannot be disabled, and the disc provides no way to switch between versions without reinsertion
    • Connections
      Featured in Sneak Previews: Stripes/Eyes of a Stranger/The Cannonball Run/Superman II (1981)
    • Soundtracks
      Rubberband Man
      Written by Thom Bell (uncredited) and Linda Creed (uncredited)

      Performed by The Spinners

      Courtesy of Atlantic Records

    User reviews191

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Funny as hell!
    Stripes is a raunchy, adult comedy from critically acclaimed producer/director Ivan Reitman (Evolution, Kindergarten Cop). And it stars Bill Murray (The Royal Tenenbaums), Harold Ramis (As Good as it Gets), John Candy (Uncle Buck), Warren Oates (True Grit).

    Low life cab driver John Winger (Bill Murray) loses a lot in 2 hours. That is his job, his apartment, his girlfriend, his car. So, he decides that he's had enough of his pathetic life in New York, so he decides to join the army. He also talks his friend Russel Ziskey (Harold Ramis) into joining with him.

    When they finally do join, they are both put into a platoon drilled by Sgt. Hulka (Warren Oates) who has his eye on John. They both go through weeks and weeks of hell by doing basic training and putting up with Sgt. Hulka. But, they full fill their goal by meeting Stella (P.J. Soles) and Louise (Sean Young), two beautiful MP's who have their eys on Russel and John.

    As the story moves on, they go to battle in Germany and end up in more hilarious confilcts.

    I must say, I think that Warren Oates was a perfect choice for Sgt. Hulka, and that he was so brilliant and funny with the character. I give him graditude. 1921-1982

    This is not a movie for kids, but teens may enjoy it if they are looking for a hilarious comedy. STRIPES is 100% classic and comedy!
    helpful•30
    16
    • superboy478
    • Mar 5, 2002

    FAQ1

    • What are the differences between the Theatrical Version and the Extended Cut?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • June 26, 1981 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Russian
      • Polish
    • Also known as
      • Cheech and Chong Join the Army
    • Filming locations
      • James B. Beam Distilling Co. - 149 Happy Hollow Road, Clermont, Kentucky, USA
    • Production company
      • Columbia Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $10,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $85,297,000
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $6,130,197
      • Jun 28, 1981
    • Gross worldwide
      • $85,297,000
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 46 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Stereo
      • Dolby Atmos
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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