Each of the early Vacation movies nails a certain aspect of middle class family life, be it the cross-country road trip or a rare overseas adventure, and most of their laughs come from the lack of romanticism or glossy, nostalgic veneer. They dig straight into the dirty reality of awkward family dynamics, the unfulfilled promise of adulthood and the emptiness of the American dream; weighty subjects for a comedy, but the results are never all that serious. This time we're home for the holidays, with a busy household of nosy, noisy, overly dramatic relatives, in from out of town for a long, unpleasant visit. A Lampoon stay-cation, in other words, with a whole mess of awful family obligations.
John Hughes is in the writer's chair again, delivering his usual high-quality, relatable laughs with just a hint of sentiment. Clearly, he's lived this life and made these mistakes, and with the benefit of hindsight, he's all too happy to share and enjoy with the rest of us. Chevy Chase runs the show on-screen, his stress levels spiked as the maligned, tormented family man who's always on the verge of a nervous breakdown. He's picture perfect as the seemingly-jolly patriarch with a devilish glint in one eye, and his visibly mounting frustrations enhance almost every scene before the inevitable blow-up.
Spotted with legendary lines and fantastic scenes, the tale of the Griswolds' latest spectacular misfortune is a rumbling, tumbling wrecking ball of yule-tinted mayhem. A few of the jokes have grown dated (like most of neighboring Julia Louis-Dreyfuss's home décor), but the spirit remains rich and the broad, physical humor is timeless. I know it all by heart and I still laugh until my face hurts.
As funny and Christmassy as finding a bug in the Yule log you forget to flush.
This objectively unfunny slapstick bears the message that money may not be everything, but it is pretty much everything.
"Merry Christmas. Shitter was full."
Wow, this movie is full of memorable and classic quotes. I wish I had watched this as a kid because it would've been my favorite christmas movie growing up for sure. It is silly, but in a good way, and I can totally see why everyone loves this.
Chevy Chase MAKES this movie. I'm not a fan of physical comedy anymore but his face expressions are the best. This kind of comedic acting doesn't exist anymore. Even Will Ferrell grew out of it.
The previous vacation movies worked because of the Griswalds funny travelling adventures. This one involves no adventures, only staying at home and just doesn’t work. Nothing in this made me laugh & totally predictable, unlike the last two. I barely remembered this from the 80’s and watching it now just proves why I forgot. Just watch the first two movies and give this one a miss. A total cash in, both for Xmas and the first two classics. Totally forgettable. They should have made a proper third one about a holiday in Asia rather than this Xmas rubbish. No wonder they never followed this one up!
“Oh, Eddie... If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I am now.”
National Lampoons Christmas Vacation is my favorite Christmas movie of all time. To kick off the Christmas season I wanted to rewatch my favorite Christmas film. While there is a few Christmas films I like better than this film I’ve always considered this to be my absolute favorite film of the holiday season. I have a ton of nostalgia for this film and this is also one of the films I’ve watched most. To be completely honest I don’t think I’ll ever get tried with watching this film (usually multiple times) every year. The plot is great it’s a joyful and incredibly entertaining story. The story perfectly captures the frantic yet remarkable essence of the Christmas season. There is a lot of plot holes and unnecessary plot points/sub-plots but it’s easy to look past all of the plots flaws when the story is this fun and enduring. The pacing is great since it’s such an extremely engaging there really isn’t a single slow or boring moment.
The acting is great Chevy Chase gives a great comedic performance. Chase is a comedic genius and he definitely gives the best performance of his career. Randy Quaid gives a great performance he plays a truly hilarious character that never fails to make me laugh. Beverly D’Angelo, Juliette Lewis, Johnny Galecki, and Mae Questel give good performances as well. The whole cast all give good comedic performances and all of their characters have their own moments to shine. The direction is good from Jeremiah S. Chechik and the script is great from John Hughes. John Hughes is the master of writing enduring and iconic comedies he really wasn’t able to make a single bad or even mediocre script. The cinematography is fine but nothing special or memorable. The editing is fast and fits with the tone of the film very well. The humor is fantastic this film is full of hilarious jokes, gags, and one liners. The timing and delivery from the actors goes perfectly with Hughes fantastic comedy. The ending is an immensely joyful ending that leaves you satisfied with what you just watched. Overall while it has a few big flaws National Lampoons Christmas Vacation is such a surpassing and hilarious Christmas essential that is hard to not completely be enthralled with.
(8 out of 10)
What a stupid movie. Very disappointed.
My family watches this movie every year and it never fails to get everyone laughing and even puts our family scrooge (me) in the right frame of mind.
I wouldn't go so far as to say that this is the equal of "National Lampoon's Vacation" but it comes close. There are a lot of funny gags here but the last 30 minutes really pay off mostly because of the wonderful performance of Randy Quaid as Cousin Eddie. Chevy Chase may be the lead but he finishes second whenever he's paired with Quaid. Eddie is totally lovable but disturbingly inappropriate at the same time. The supporting cast is fantastic especially the elderly relatives that visit on Christmas Day.
As silly as this sounds "Christmas Vacation" is easily my favorite holiday movie. It's got a sack full of laughs and a big heart which is what everyone needs to get through the season.
Watched this just the other day.
Still one of my favorite christmas movies. This, and trapped in paradise.
Merry Christmas. Shitter was full.
John Hughes has an insane amount of holiday bangers
Has to be the best Christmas movie made,with great performances by Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo,Randy Quaid, Juliette lewis and a very young Johnny Galecki from The Big Bang theory,try to watch every Christmas,end up laughing so hard,worth watching more than once...
Just when you think it can't get any funnier...enter Aunt Bethany (voice of Betty Boop/Olive Oyl) to say "grace". This movie is so good that my kids are now in their 20's and they still come home on Christmas Eve just to watch this with us.
Randy Quaid! The only reason I may watch this again, though written by John Hughes. I like it, I swear. The poor kids! This is the first one with Chevy Chase who I think refused to be in a sequel and Quaid got the male lead role.
Help! The protagonist of the film Chevy Chase
Theme- 9/10
Rewatchibility- 9/10
Acting- 8.5/10
Kinematography- 9/10
Time- 10/10
Total - 45.5/5 = 9.1
I guess the comedy didn't age well. A few one liners and a few laughs but old and tired besides that...
You must give it to Clark Griswold, he did everything to make the perfect Christmas for his family, despite having the worst luck of all time.
Just Christmas vibes in the ol Chicago suburbs. Imagine a boss realizing he fucked up cutting Christmas bonuses
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is the ultimate Christmas classic that never fails to bring a smile to my face. This movie is filled with memorable characters, hilarious moments, and multiple one-liners that are still quoted to this day. It's a great addition to the Vacation series and stands out as one of the best movies in the franchise. The cast is excellent and the film perfectly captures the ups and downs of the holiday season.
Arguably the greatest Christmas movie of all time! It’s easily my favorite Chevy Chase movie, and I’m not sure it’s particularly close. Maybe there’s some nostalgia bias, but this it’s truly a rock solid classic. Every year must watch from now til the year I die.
Rating: 5/5 :star: - 10/10 - Must See
My favorite Christmas movie I traditionally watch every year on Christmas. Chevy Chase is hilariously good and no matter how many times I watch it the jokes are still funny. Favorite moments are the Christmas lights and the crazy carpet and the turkey and the cat and the squirrel and..... I could go on and on, i'll just say the whole movie is my favorite part. Merry Christmas, shitter was full!
My favorite Christmas movie, still holds up after so many years and so many viewings.
I HAVE TO watch this movie around Christmas or it's not Christmas. It has become a tradition and although I've watched it so many times already, I'm still in tears of laughter every damn time.
NEVER gets old. So many practical falls and comedy, so many one-liners. Also, really funny to see Elaine from Seinfeld, Mom from Everybody Loves Raymond, and Leonard from Big Bang Theory.
A true classic.
Again... Not as funny as I remember... Only mildly better than Vacation
Without a doubt, the funniest family Christmas film of all time, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is a modern classic. When Clark Giswold decides to have a traditional family Christmas with his parents and in-laws hilarity ensues. Writer John Hughes brilliantly captures the American family, and creates fun, authentic characters that are relatable. And it features an all-star cast that includes Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Randy Quaid; all of whom give great performances. A wonderful film that’s sure to brighten up the holidays, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation delivers a ton of laughs and a positive message about the magic of the season.
It’s great. The funniest Christmas movie ever not boring even for a minute. A must watch every year
(8 out of 10)
It’s unfortunate that this movie is starting to be overplayed (like many holiday favorites). Either way, this is an iconic Christmas movie!
This movie is hilarious, just everything going wrong is always funny in the vacation movies that just isn't copied well.
My favorite of the series, and a total Christmas classic. There's not quite enough material with the immediate family though...
It's not Thanksgiving without Uncle Eddie
Shout by Ninja PoonBlockedParent2016-12-19T21:10:56Z
"Oh, Eddie... If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I am now."....bahahahaha could very well be the funniest Christmas movie ever made... A ton of one liners and quotes... Chevy Chase at his best when he stomps a mudhole in the xmas display and walks it dry