STRIPES And The Insidious Nature Of Terrible Endings

Is there anything worse than a movie that starts off strong and falls to pieces at the end? And does any movie fall to pieces as badly as STRIPES yet remain as completely amazing?

By Apr. 01, 2011

Thinking on this led me to ponder what would be the best film with the worst ending, and one movie immediately came to mind: Stripes. I feel like this movie is the ultimate example of terrible endings, but what makes Stripes special is that the first two acts are so good that you can kind of shrug off the turgid, unfunny and directionless third act. The film is filled with incredible talent, and they make the first two acts of the movie a complete work of comedic brilliance, but not even the combined might of Warren Oates and Bill Murray could save the film once it heads to Europe and introduces the assault vehicle disguised as an RV.

When you think of Stripes do you think about any of that stuff at all? Or, like me, do your memories of Stripes seem to stop when Winger gets that misfit platoon into shape and does their drill at graduation?

Are there other films that have endings as terrible as Stripes but remain beloved and great?

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