MOVIE REVIEW: NATIONAL LAMPOON’S CHRISTMAS VACATION (1989)

I grew up watching portions of this movie on TV for many years, but I never sat down to watch it start to finish until two or three years ago. Having this level of familiarity with portions of a film makes rating it a unique experience. First, a story about family Christmas chaos lands differently when you’re approaching middle age. Second, watching a copy of the theatrical version always reveals how much language gets cut out for broadcast TV. Taking in this film in its entirety was like watching a completely different film from what I had stitched together in my mind.

Christmas is coming, and Clark Griswold is hosting his parents, and his in-laws for the holidays. Determined to make it the best Christmas ever, Clark goes to great lengths to maximize the Christmas experience. From searching for the perfect tree, to setting up a light display that can’t be beat, to hosting a Norman Rockwell-worthy Christmas Eve dinner, Clark pushes himself to provide all the best. As things start to go gradually and then spectacularly wrong, the tension and frustration threaten to turn the Christmas of Clark’s dreams into the stuff of nightmares.

Confession time- I’ve got a little bit of Clark Griswold in me. My holiday vice is trying to set up awesome Christmas lights every year. It helps me relate to both the heart and the absurdity behind Clark’s vision for a grand masterpiece. I think everyone can relate to one or more aspects to the exaggerated holiday preparations on display in this movie, which is why it’s so endearing. This is also why it recaptures more of the magic of the first Vacation movie than the second installment did. Just like a family road trip, a Christmas gathering is intimate and familiar for most people. It creates a tighter focus allowing the audience to let their guard down as we see a bit of our own lives in the shenanigans unfolding on screen.

Familiarity, however, breeds contempt. The supporting cast of visiting relatives do a great job playing their respective archetypes. Clark’s parents serve as wisdom-givers, cautioning about their past mistakes in similar situations. Clark’s in-laws antagonize him, driving him further to prove himself. Late arrivals in Clark’s aging and possibly senile aunt and uncle add a little tragicomedy into the mix. And then there’s the unexpected arrival of Ellen’s cousin Eddie, who’s train wreck of a life is in a league of its own. Everyone can relate to at least one of these kinds of family members in (hopefully) a watered-down form.

Clark’s secret plan to use his Christmas bonus to cover the deposit on a swimming pool provides the scantest of plots that lingers in the background throughout what otherwise play out like a series of vignettes. Luckily, most of the skits (for lack of a better word) stand on their own, even if the order of events blurs in one’s memory. It’s ludicrous to think that all of these escalating events could actually happen to one family, but that’s the nature of this brand of comedy. Combining and amplifying the familiar little absurdities of life into a grand comedy-of-errors spectacle entertains and also comforts us to know that- whatever we may face each holiday season- at least our lot isn’t this bad.

For my money, this is still just the second-best Vacation movie. The original is superior because the cast is smaller and the film is more focused on the Griswold family dynamics. It’s impressive that this film never feels spread to thin with all the personalities crammed into one house, but that’s because some of the extended family is kept fairly flat or left in the background save for a few shining moments. It creates a loud and colorful tapestry of people and events (much like Christmas), but the end result is just decent seasonal entertainment rather than timeless all-purpose entertainment.

FINAL RATING: 3.25 out of 5