They don't make them like this anymore and movies are all the worse for it. A fun story, a good cast and most of all a real sense of FUN. Something truly missing from comedies made today. Now it's like a sitcom with dirty jokes. I almost expect a laugh track. Bill Murray was on his game in this film, and his manic energy propels the entire production. There have seen many who have imitated it, but this remains the original classic.

"Meatballs" does pretty well at milking laughs out of a rite of passage for many American people, the summer camp experience. True that the script isn't anything great, this functions on an often juvenile level, and not all of the jokes are terribly funny, but it works because of a basic likability. This viewer thought it was pretty harmless. Maybe in the scenes between Tripper and Rudy does it get too maudlin, but these scenes are effective at humanizing the Tripper character. Overall, it's a solid vehicle for SNL star Bill Murray, making the most of his first lead role. It's hard not to laugh at some of his morning announcements, the TV interview, and his big show stopping "It just doesn't matter!" speech.Murray plays Tripper, the head counselor at Camp North Star, a man with a wacky approach to life. There's not much of a story here (screenplay credit goes to Len Blum, Daniel Goldberg, Janis Allen, and Harold Ramis), but among the antics are the pranks Tripper and his fellow counselors (among them, Jack Blum ("Happy Birthday to Me"), Keith Knight ("My Bloody Valentine"), and Matt Craven ("Crimson Tide")) play on camp director Morty (Harvey Atkin), Tripper reaching out to a shy and lonely young camper, Rudy (Chris Makepeace, "My Bodyguard") who just wants to make friends, and the final Olympiad where Camp North Star competes with the more macho and aggressive Camp Mohawk youngsters.It's not too hard to identify with many of these characters, especially during their more awkward moments. By the end you really are rooting for them, and are enjoying the big finale involving a race through the woods.In addition to Murray, the rest of the cast does well, with Kate Lynch able to hold her own opposite the comedy star, playing the object of his affections. The lovely Kristine De Bell also appears as one of the counselors.Best of all, director Ivan Reitman keeps the gags coming right through the end credits.Overall, this is good natured fun and something that I can't believe anybody would hate.Eight out of 10.

I'm pleased to see so many good comments on this movie here. What I don't get is that Meatballs is always advertised as this kind of bawdy, teen sex comedy when you see a write up on it. Even IMDb in it's description goes there.Meatballs is really not that kind of movie. It is a very sweet little film about a bunch of misfits who find that they are not so bad after all. It also is the story of how one boy goes from outcast to hero after he is taken under the wing of a caring counselor.Sure there are jokes and highjinks, and a few teenage sexual references, but nothing over the top and they are all characteristic and true to form for summer camps.I love this movie. I loved when I was a kid, and I love it still today, and think it should almost be mandatory viewing for any young kid who feels like an outsider.

I watched Meatball several times in preteen years shortly after it was released, and remember loving it. Finally got the chance to see it again and became depressed. Found it cheesy and not funny. I know many of the movies from that time were cheesy, but they were genuinely funny, e.g., Stripes, Revenge of the Nerds, Strange Brew. I love Bill Murray but hated "Tripper". The movie did do a good job in defining the "summer camp movie". I hear about people recalling this fondly. It has developed a cult following. I thought about watching this with my kids (once they are 17 of course . . .), but after seeing it again I am glad that I didn't. Would of lost all my street cred. Lame jokes, lame characters, lame movie.