When we hit the road for vacation, I think everyone is reminded of this film. Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Dennis Quaid, great cast and a wonderful film. I think it is the definitive vacation comedy and also one of the best of its kind. So let's get to reviewing.
Plot summary:
We start with Clark Griswald, and his son, Rusty, going to a car dealership to get a car to rent for their vacation with his wife and daughter to Wally World, the beloved amusement park that isn't Disneyworld or Disneyland. Unfortunately they get the wrong car and can't take it back after the car they drove over is smashed.
The next day they take off, driving from Chicago to Los Angeles, which is crazy. They get to St. Louis and get lost, so after asking a group of blacks in a ghetto like alleyway, which cost him about ten bucks or so, they get nowhere else. But eventually they get back on the road and stop at Cousin Eddie's place.
When they get there, they learn that Aunt Edna, a nightmare of an old lady, is coming with them and being dropped off at Phoenix. So now the trip that is taking too long and costing too much is now including a new passenger. Along with Edna comes her dog. They stop at Kansas for a night at a tent-camp. The next day Clark gets everone ready, ties the dog to the bumper so he won't bite him, and loads everyone in the car. When a cop stops him for supposed speeding, he sees the collar on the bumper, but no dog.
The family ends up lost again. Now in the middle of the dessert in Colorado. They enter a closed road and launch the car "50 yards". Clark heads off to get help, but gets lost himself. He stumbles across his family at a gas station and surrenders all his money to two theif mechanics, who also happen to be the sheriff and deputy.
Now on their way to the Grand Canyon as a quick stop, Clark gets a check ready so he can get more money, but they won't accept it, so he steals some money. Now very close to Phoenix, Aunt Edna's nagging ends permanently with her death. The kids refuse to sit next to her corpse, so Clark straps her on the roof and drives her to her son's house in Phoenix. When he isn't there, they leave her with an umbrella.
The family stops at a hotel to calm down, and Clark and Ellen, the wife, argue quite a bit. Clark goes to the bar and meets a mysterious girl who has been following them throughout the trip driving a red Ferrari. The two skinny-dip in the hotel pool, and wake up the entire hotel. Ellen sees this and Clark worries for divorce. Ellen forgives him, and for fun, she goes into the pool herself.
The next day they finally arrive at Wally World, park in the last parking spot, strange since the rest of the parking lot is empty, and run to the front gate in victory slow motion, only to find a sign saying the park is closed for two weeks. In an act of lunacy, Clark punches the sign, grabs the family, and goes to a sporting goods store and buys a bee-bee gun, but not a Red Rider, obviously.
He goes back into the park and threatens the two guards there. One stays put while the other activates the rides, and even when closed, the Griswalds have fun. The other guard calls the SWAT team and they nearly arrest the family. The creator of the character Marty Moose, Roy Wally, decides not to press charges after Clark tells his story, and the SWAT team, Mr. Wally, the guards, and the family ride the biggest roller coaster in the park as the end credits begin.
Now for the grading scale:
Acting: 8 out of 10. Chase is great, the family's great, and John Candy as one of the guards is excellent.
Entertainment: 10 out of 10. Always funny all the time.
Screenplay: 9 out of 10. John Hughes does an excellent job.
Directing: 6 out of 10. Harold Ramis, who co-starred in Stripes and also directed Caddyshack, does standard to moderately good job directing.
Technical Credits: 6 out of 10. Pretty standard, but the songs are great.
Genre Fit: 10 out of 10. Pure comedy genius.
MPAA Rating: 7 out of 10. A pretty strong rated R film for the language and nudity, but at times it feels sort of like a PG film.
Stupid Scenes: 9 out of 10. Some moments here and there don't work.
Deeper Message: 6 out of 10. Like A Christmas Story, relates to real life vacations and does get some points back.
Beginning: 25 out of 30. A pretty good start.
Middle: 24 out of 30. Some great laughs.
Ending: 27 out of 30. The scenes at the park are classic.
Final Rating: 147/180 or 82%. Barely an A-, but still a classic film. One of the better comedies of the early 80's.
Replies
I agree this movie is hilarious. My favorite part is where they are with the big security guard and making him go on all of the crazy ride! This is also one of my dad's favorites because it is a clean funny movie.