Before we get to the above clip, for those who grew up in the 1980s, you know it was a pretty awesome decade. There was a certain free-range magic to it. A time before smartphones, social media, and streaming services, when Saturday mornings meant cartoons and Friday nights were reserved for trips to the local video rental store. Movies weren’t just background noise; they were events. And the comedies?
They hit different. They were rowdy, rebellious, often ridiculous, and never afraid to be a little weird.
The movies of the ’80s weren’t just entertainment—they were formative. They shaped humor, slang, and even friendships. Whether quoting Ferris Bueller’s Day Off at school or staying up late to catch Ghostbusters on TV, the culture of ’80s comedy was everywhere. It was a time when irreverence ruled, and no one embodied that spirit more than Bill Murray.
Comedians in that decade were bona fide movie stars. Saturday Night Live alumni took over the box office, with Murray, Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, and Eddie Murphy leading the charge. Murray, in particular, became a defining voice with his deadpan delivery and unpredictable energy, making him the face of a new kind of American comedy.
Above, you will see a great example of that in the above ‘Razzle Dazzle’ scene from the movie Stripes, which was released in 1981. To watch the ‘Razzle Dazzle’ scene, simply click the play button in the top left corner of the feature image above.
The scene, which is played out during the graduation parade, is one of the most iconic and hilarious moments in Stripes. After weeks of goofing off and clashing with authority, Murray’s character, known as John Winger, and his ragtag platoon are expected to flop in front of top brass at their final inspection. But instead of disaster, they deliver a wild, choreographed military drill like no one’s ever seen before.
Led by Winger, the platoon trades traditional marching for a funky, irreverent routine that includes high kicks, hip thrusts, and shouted lines like: “That’s the fact, Jack!” It’s comedy gold.
Before Stripes, Murray had already made waves in Meatballs (1979) and Caddyshack (1980). But it was Stripes that truly launched him into leading-man status. While Ghostbusters (1984) would later become his biggest hit, Stripes was the movie that gave Murray the freedom to fully unleash his comedic instincts.
Directed by Ivan Reitman, Stripes tells the story of Winger, a New York cab driver who loses everything—his job, his apartment, and his girlfriend—in the span of a day. Fed up and aimless, he convinces his friend Russell Ziskey (played by Harold Ramis) to join the U.S. Army on a whim.
What follows is a chaotic, irreverent, and surprisingly heartfelt romp through boot camp and beyond.
In movies like Stripes, the underdogs could win, where silliness was celebrated, and where the world didn’t need to make perfect sense. It was about fun first, message second.
The film also stars John Candy as the lovable Dewey “Ox” Oxberger, Judge Reinhold as a spaced-out recruit, and Sean Young as an army MP and Winger’s love interest. Bill Paxton also has a small, uncredited role as a soldier—one of his earliest on-screen appearances.
Despite being released in a crowded movie year, Stripes was a major success. With a modest budget of around $10 million, the film grossed over $85 million domestically—a big number for a comedy at the time. See another scene from Stripes below.