Tootsie (1982)

Dustin Hoffman is brilliant as actor Michael Dorsey and actress Dorothy Michaels, and the cross-dressing never turns into a gimmick. A pro-feminist satire of acting, the film is also lots of fun, with supporting roles by Jessica Lange, Dabney Coleman and Bill Murray.

d: Sydney Pollack | imdb.com | trailer | No one will hire you.

Night Shift (1982)

Fast-talking idea man Michael Keaton and down-trodden straight man Henry Winkler turn their night shift at the city morgue into home base for a prostitution ring, and they make a good comedy team. Shelley Long adds smarts and heart as a prostitute.

d: Ron Howard | imdb.com | trailer | Prostitution

They All Laughed (1981)

Three detectives (Ben Gazzara, John Ritter, Blaine Novak) follow two women (Audrey Hepburn, Dorothy Stratten) in a throwback to the double-talk, screwball comedies of the 1930s. There’s sweetness to the love stories, and the country soundtrack informs them.

d: Peter Bogdanovich | imdb.com | soundtrack | interview

Stripes (1981)

Bill Murray and straight man Harold Ramis join the Army in a Marx Brothers-style farce, outlasting Sgt. Hulka, seducing beautiful MPOs, surviving basic training and making a rescue mission to Czechoslovakia. One more thing: John Candy mud-wrestles strippers.

d: Ivan Reitman | imdb.com | trailer | Introductions | Graduation
Interview: Bill Murray | Interview: Ivan Reitman | deleted scene

Scanners (1981)

The first 15 minutes include a wonderful head explosion, but that’s when the excitement ends. David Cronenberg’s story of mind control and its misuse devolves into a science-fiction murder mystery, which finally reveals all in the penultimate face-off scene.

d: David Cronenberg | imdb.com | trailer | head explosion

Caddyshack (1980)

Four knockout comedic performances by Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight and Bill Murray carry a Marx brothers-style farce set at a snobby golf country club. Chase and Murray improvised most of their dialogue, including their only scene together — ever.

d: Harold Ramis | imdb.com | trailer | Chase vs. Murray
Be the ball. | Cinderella story | A little poem | Dinner at Bushwood