National Lampoon's Vacation (1983)
Average Rating: 7.5/10
Reviews Counted: 41
Fresh: 39 | Rotten: 2
Blessed by a brilliantly befuddled star turn from Chevy Chase, National Lampoon's Vacation is one of the more consistent -- and thoroughly quotable -- screwball comedies of the 1980s.
Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 4
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 1
Blessed by a brilliantly befuddled star turn from Chevy Chase, National Lampoon's Vacation is one of the more consistent -- and thoroughly quotable -- screwball comedies of the 1980s.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.5/5
User Ratings: 110,767
Movie Info
The first film in the Vacation comedy franchise stars Chevy Chase as Clark Griswold, an ad exec who becomes consumed with taking his family cross-country to Wally World, a California amusement park. Less a vacation than a descent into a peculiarly American kind of hell, the Griswolds suffer through an endless series of catastrophes, culminating in a run-in with the law. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi
Jul 29, 1983 Wide
Aug 27, 1997
Warner Bros. Pictures
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Cast
-
Chevy Chase
Clark Griswold -
Beverly D'Angelo
Ellen Griswold -
Anthony Michael Hall
Rusty Griswold -
Imogene Coca
Aunt Edna -
Randy Quaid
Cousin Eddie -
Dana Barron
Audrey Griswold -
John Candy
Lasky -
Eddie Bracken
Walley -
Christie Brinkley
Girl -
Gerry Black
Davenport -
Nathan Cook
Man Giving Direction... -
John Diehl
Assistant Mechanic -
Randolph Dreyfuss
Wyatt Earp -
Miriam Flynn
Cousin Katherine -
Fritz Ford
Neighbor -
Mickey Jones
Mechanic -
Jane Krakowski
Cousin Vicki -
Frank McRae
Grover -
John P. Navin Jr.
Cousin Dale -
Scott Perry
Swat Leader -
Tessa Richarde
Motel Guest -
James Staley
Motel Desk Clerk -
Michael Talbott
Cowboy -
Brian Doyle-Murray
Kamp Komfort Clerk -
Denny Freeman
Policeman -
James Keach
Motorcycle Cop -
Eugene Levy
Car salesman -
Jeannie Dimter Barto...
Dodge City Cashier -
Christopher Jackson
Pimp -
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All Critics (41) | Top Critics (4) | Fresh (39) | Rotten (2) | DVD (20)
National Lampoon's Vacation is an enjoyable trip through familiar comedy landscapes.
Despite plenty of gross-out gags and dumb slapstick bits, the careful viewer can occasionally detect some acrid and original satire in this 1983 film.
The result is not so much a comedy about American values as a 2,500 mile skid on a banana skin. The visual gags come thick and fast, and are about as subtly signposted as the exit markers on a freeway.
Top CriticThe result is a confident humor and throwaway style that helps sustain the laughs -- of which there are quite a few.
Thanks largely to Chevy Chase's zaniness and comic timing this is a very funny movie.
The humor in Vacation also taps into something beyond the trials and travails of a road trip gone wrong.
National Lampoon's Vacation is a comedic cross-country adventure like no other, thanks to Chevy Chase and the rest of the Griswold family.
The Griswolds are a national treasure.
A timeless comedy. Hysterical.
A perfect marriage of collaborators on both sides of the camera.
Funny family comedy, but dated and risque.
Though lacking in narrative and comic sophistication, National Lampoon's Vacation has something arguably more important: built-in, instant audience identification. [Blu-ray]
...a zany, lighthearted look at numbskull American tourism at its most chaotic.
Funny, though often obvious.
This boasts a great cast from start to finish, but the funniest moments in this film for me invariably come from Randy Quaid, who plays Chase's dumb country cousin.
Chevy Chase is hilarious once again.
There are plenty of funny moments in this comedy that introduced the world to bumbling everyman Clark Griswold. The second best in the series after Christmas Vacation.
Relive some of your own dreadful family vacation moments with National Lampoon's comedy classic, Vacation.
sublimely silly
Funny Griswold adventures. Don't forget Aunt Edna's dog!
Audience Reviews for National Lampoon's Vacation
Super Reviewer
Clark Griswold is your typical all-American whose just trying to be a good husband and loving father. He and his family set out from Chicago to L.A. for what should be a great vacation, with their ultimate destination being a theme park called Wally World.
The trip ends up being anything but paradise as they family encounter a number of oddball problems and colorful events that just keeping piling on top of one another.
Chase is great, and so is Beverly D'Angelo as his wife Ellen. Their kids Rusty and Audrey are played by Anthony Michael Hall and Dana Barron, and, they're decent, but nothing amazing. The real scene stealer though is Randy Quaid as Clark's redneck cousin-in-law Eddie, who is really obnoxious and a big leech, yet still lovable, and definitely memorable. Eugene Levy also appears in a fun cameo early on. And of course, who can forget Christie Brinkley as a mysterious woman who becomes the object of Clark's desire?
There's good location shooting, decent music, hilarious one-liners, and some truly outrageous moments here, all of which add up to an American comedy classic. Bottom line: don't miss it.
Super Reviewer
Movies Like National Lampoon's Vacation
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- Clark Griswold: Sure, how much you need?
- Cousin Eddie: $52,000.
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- Clark Griswold: Excuse me, Holmes?
-
- Clark Griswold: Excuse me, holmes.
Discussion Forum
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Latest News on National Lampoon's Vacation
April 24, 2013:
New Line Puts New Vacation Movie on HoldThose pesky creative differences are afoot.
March 28, 2013:
Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo in Talks for New VacationTheir roles are described as being "on the cameo level."
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Foreign Titles
- National Lampoon's Vacation (DE)
- National Lampoon's Vacation (UK)
