Stripes (Special Edition) (DVD)

How a slacker (Bill Murray as John Winger) and a teacher (Harold Ramis as Russell Zitzsky) decide to change their lives by joining the US Army, we follow their induction training (watching them should give hope to anyone wanting to join the armed forces, if they can do it anyone can) and their first foray into Army life and its mishaps and outcomes. A simple idea but an extremely great film that people seem to forget about due to Murrays performances ...
...for several reasons. Bill Murray at his best (just for the way he says the line "Uncle Hulka?"), Harold Ramis who gets without a doubt the BEST line in the entire movie ("I once got the shit kicked out of me in Wisconsin!") & also acts his posterior off, this is most likely his best performance in anything he's ever been in, the man just shines. John Candy - the legend, the big man making a little part very huge, again he is excellent ... more

How a slacker (Bill Murray as John Winger) and a teacher (Harold Ramis as Russell Zitzsky) decide to change their lives by joining the US Army, we follow their induction training (watching them should give hope to anyone wanting to join the armed forces, if they can do it anyone can) and their first foray into Army life and its mishaps and outcomes. A simple idea but an extremely great film that people seem to forget about due to Murrays performances in Ghostbusters or Groundhog Day.

Worth 10/10 for several reasons. Bill Murray at his best (just for the way he says the line "Uncle Hulka?"), Harold Ramis who gets without a doubt the BEST line in the entire movie ("I once got the shit kicked out of me in Wisconsin!") & also acts his posterior off, this is most likely his best performance in anything he's ever been in, the man just shines. John Candy - the legend, the big man making a little part very huge, again he is excellent (especially in poker sequence). He steals every scene he's in, gotta love the guy.

The sadly recently deceased Elmer Berstein creates an excellent & hugely memorable score, my favorite has to be the tune behind John's girlfriend leaving. Looking across all the tunes Elmer created, his legacy is most definitely them. The chap playing Sgt Hulka is also excellent. He really makes a lot of his character. Drill Instructors are definitely like this guy. I should know! I can watch this until the cows come home, well worth a look if you like early Saturday Night Live, Candy, Ramis or Murray.

I've now seen the extended cut or special edition, whatever you want to call it. And that is a very different (and much better!) movie. The whole extra scene in John's girlfriends apartment about the Winnibago which adds more to John's motivation to actually join The Army (And steal the EM-50 in Germany). Every time I watch this I totally fail to notice Sean Young (Rachel in Bladerunner) as one of the female MP's but she looks amazing!

There's also an extra scene of dialogue in the barracks between John & Russell which leads to a huge previously deleted segment of John & Russell aboard a plane with Special Ops guys, jumping out, getting captured by bandits & almost getting killed (I assume this was cut for pacing) but saving themselves by getting the bandits high on acid and singing "Quando".

Having seen exactly where the scene was cut from, I understand why it went (it spoiled the flow of the film, it didn't make any sense and it took up too much time). It does upset the following scene where Hulka asks about men leaving the base but at least explains why that happened where you'd previously been left confused at what he was talking about.

Stillwell (their inept Commading Officer) briefing the men about Hulka's accident is another newly restored scene which explains their reason to go to the mud wrestling bar much better. There are also a few extra small insert shots inside the bar as well. The rifle drill sequence (worth the price of the movie JUST for that scene alone!) for graduation is longer with more moves than the normal cut.

I'm still annoyed that they take Hulka to Italy with them. That wouldn't happen as he was training staff. The likelihood of them posting him with that squad would be very low indeed. The fact that the female MP's (Stella & Louise) were posted to Germany at the same time John's Platoon had been sent to Italy is too contrived a plot device as well.

The scene loading the EM-50 (An armoured Winnebago!) with shells is another new scene which explains why John & Russell are guarding it alone before they borrow it. Combine that extra scene with the Winnebago scene near the start & this scene now makes even more sense to the plot!

There are extra scenes of John in the bedroom with Stella & Russell in the bathtub with Louise, cutting out quite a bit of nudity from both women! The shots of the tanks blocking the road into Czechoslovakia has also been added. The conversation about Russells sister is new too. I did notice once in the Czechoslovakian base the soldiers stopped speaking Russian & some of them were speaking German? Good goof!

The bits that were added on the whole do improve the movie & make the scenes that follow them make a lot more sense. I prefer this version I think. I am annoyed about the press cutting they use for Louise in front of the EM-50, it's supposed to be Top Secret but it's appearing on the front cover of a magazine?

Russell's headline is also wrong "Zitzsky rates The Russians", they were Czechoslovakian! In general the whole "welcome home" ending is wrong, this was supposed to be a deniable mission, no-one back home would have even know it had happened. Also Hulka shouldn't be saluting John (& vice-versa) as neither of them are Officers. Watching the end credits I saw Bill Paxton played a soldier but never in my many viewings of the movie have I ever seen his face.

My final words? Gentlemen, It's Party time - Italian style!

(this review also appears on dooyoo) 

...less