National Lampoon's Vacation (1983)

Vaction is about the Griswold family traveling across the USA to visit wally world only to encounter unfortunate hilarious events at every turn. Based on the magazine lampoon by John Huges it starred snl alumni Chevy Chase as the lead man and was a box office success.For good reason as the scenes are very thought out from the psycho reference when Helen takes a shower to Clark wandering the desert to find a mechanic and finds his family had been picked up and worried about him.There's a lot of heart in the script from good natured Clark who only wants his family to enjoy themselves and has little moments to share with each member recalling stories from his youth. Angela D'Angelo (Helen) plays the head strong supportive wife who stands by her man and builds up his confidence. Anthony Michael Hall and Dana Barron (Audrey and Rusty) are surprisingly talented for young stars not once over reacting or obnoxious. Each character felt fleshed out and served a purpose without being filler.The music always got the scene, sometimes adding to the humor, and was catchy.Wallyworld a play on Disneyland was a fantastic ending full of magic, rides and even an appearance from Toy Disney as Roy Wally, lol.Vacation is a treat for the while family.

NATIONAL LAMPOON'S VACATION is the first and undoubtedly the best of the NATIONAL LAMPOON series, a genuinely funny road movie with strong performances and first-rate direction from GHOSTBUSTERS star Harold Ramis. The plot adopts a simple journey narrative and one which would be repeated for the sequel European VACATION; the long-suffering Griswold family go from place to place, wreaking havoc all the while.There's a strong mixture of different types of humour here, from end-of-their-tether character laughs to slapstick gags and plenty of wisecracks and innuendo. Much of the humour is witty and it also has a fairly dark edge that makes it stand out from the usual John Hughes-scripted family fare, particularly the bits with Randy Quaid, the dog, and the aunt. The movie belongs to Chevy Chase, who is very entertaining in the lead role, but there are a handful of supporting performers who don't disappoint either. Beverly D'Angelo, in a MUCH racier role than she played in the sequels, sparks off Chase very well, and there's a late-stage cameo from John Candy which continues to delight. In fact, there's very little to dislike overall about this popular '80s comedy.

.This movie is silly and some elitists deplore it. But it consists of one great scene after another, with lots of good gags, good pacing, and good performances, especially by Michael Anthony Hall. Supporting players Imogene Coca and John Candy also turn in good performances, and Chevy Chase is better than usual. Some reviewers take issue with a scene here or an off-color joke there, but fail to judge the movie as a whole. Don't fall into that trap. If you liked Caddy Shack or Airplane or even Married With Children, you will like Vacation. If you've never seen it, then look for it (it's often on TV), and enjoy. .

I recently watched this movie again after not having seen it for some twenty-odd years and I was somewhat disappointed. It wasn't as good as I had remembered it being. It wasn't bad, just not that great. Like many people, I first saw it back in the 80's when it first came out. I was in my early teens then and thought it was decent. Now in my forties, I have a much better appreciation for it when I watch it because I have two children of my own and I see much (perhaps a little too much) of myself in the Clark W. Griswold character. I laughed out loud several times at Chevy Chase's portrayal of Clark being "such a dad." I don't know whether or not he had children of his own prior to making this movie, but he really nailed the "typical dad" character. Also, Beverly D'Angelo is the perfect combination of sexy and motherly in her role, and Anthony Michael Hall and Dana Barron are also terrific in their roles. Randy Quaid, back in his more stable days, gives a rather sane performance as the inimitable Cousin Eddie. There are many outstanding supporting performances in this movie. Having written that, however, I must state that the movie plays out as episodic, like one childhood memory after another strung together. Also, the movie is often silly; it contains elements that would have better left as ideas. For instance, it doesn't really make sense that Clark's old car would be driven straight from him trading it in to being compacted within minutes. It makes for a fairly funny sight gag, but doesn't come across as something that would actually happen. When it comes to ratings, the movie really deserves no more than six out of ten; however, there are so many funny moments and Chevy Chase is so good as Clark, I bump up my rating to seven out of ten.