Ernest in the Army 1998

Overview

Role: Meticulous television and film archivist.
Task: Write a factual, original 150-190 word overview of "Ernest in the Army" (1998).
Constraints:
Use ONLY verifiable facts from provided SYNOPSIS and SOURCES.
No invented titles, names, dates, counts, awards, ratings, etc.
Original, neutral, encyclopedic prose.
Plain text only (no markdown, no asterisks, no headings, no bullet points).
First sentence must not contain spoilers.
Word count: 150-190 words.
Title: Ernest in the Army
Year: 1998
Genre: American comedy film, Comedy and Family
Director: John Cherry / John R. Cherry III
Starring: Jim Varney
Cast: Jim Varney, Hayley Tyson, David Müller, Christo Davids
Series Info: Tenth film to feature Ernest P. Worrell; ninth and final film in the Ernest series before Varney's death in February 2000.
Release Date: 02/24/1998 (US)
Runtime: 1h 25m
Rating: PG
Plot: Ernest P. Worrell is in the military as a soldier. He joins the Army reserves to drive bigrigs but ends up being sent into combat. He and his team investigate a dictator responsible for wars in a nearby village. Ernest finds a lost boy and must keep him safe until his father recovers.