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Starring Chevy Chase, Randy Quaid. We've all been there. It's Christmas Day, the relatives are all over, someone asks your elderly aunt to say grace, and she begins to sing The Star Spangled Banner, ending with an emphatic, "Play Ball!". It was this sense of humor and wackiness that made John Hughes' Christmas Vacation such an absolute blast of fun to watch.Hughes rose to prominence in Hollywood based on the hilarious success of National Lampoon's Vacation, Mr. Mom, and Sixteen Candles. Hughes seemed to have a sixth sense about what people would, and would not, find funny. He created memorable characters and funny situations. This is most evident in Christmas Vacation, one of Hughes approximately 706 entries into the Christmas genre. Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo return to the silver screen as Clark and Ellen Griswold, two suburban Chicagoans who have an amazing propensity to attempt to do great things with their two children, played here by Juliette Lewis and Oak Park's Johnny Galecki, and fail in a most miserable and comical fashion. In Christmas Vacation, the Griswolds have decided to have an old-fashioned Christmas at their home, with both sets of grandparents and Randy Quaid's off-balance family arriving at the Griswold Estate for the week before Christmas. What made this movie so particularly enjoyable and fun to watch was the way in which Hughes wrote his screenplay with 'the little things' in mind Most movies, especially those of the action or adventure variety, have a plot that will, even if we are most lucky, never, ever happen to anyone of us. Let's face it, even if you're a gung-ho member of the Miami SWAT team, chances are good that you're never dodged bullets at the grocery store, dived out of the way of a would-be hit-and-run driver, or broken a pool cue over your knee so that you can 1) defend yourself and 2) shove one of the broken halves through a bad guys neck, muttering some insipid one line like, "Next time stick with it,". Hughes recognizes this and has obviously taken pains (not quite like the pain of having a pool cue jammed through your jugular) to include vents in Christmas Vacation that have taken place in the lives of most, if not all, of the non-Jewish audience members--picking out a Christmas tree, going sledding with the family, putting up Christmas lights. Hughes uses some slight hyperbole, adds several inventive twists to the mix, to make the Griswold traditions funnier and more dynamic than our own, but therein lies the early Hughes genius; events to which everyone can relate, that are more charismatic and humorous than normal. Chase and Quaid again deliver strong performances, Chase as the proverbial straight man, Clark Griswold, Quaid, expanding on his role as the borderline psychotic that he played with such a deadpan comedic style in Vacation, Cousin Eddie. However, what makes Christmas Vacation such an excellent Christmas movie to see, other than the fact the entire film is set at Christmas, is the way in which the Griswolds attempt to have a family Christmas, capturing the true meaning and spirit of Christmas, which, despite blowing up a sewer, wrapping cats as presents, and nearly setting the house on fire, the Griswolds ultimately end up doing. First time director, Jeremiah S. Checik, has a good sense of timing with the physical pratfalls and a good command of the actors, always knowing what he wanted to accomplish, and striving toward that goal. Modern Hollywood has produced some real dogs when it comes to Christmas films--just the mention of The Santa Clause sends me crawling back to my therapist--but Christmas Vacation isn't one of those movies. This is one Christmas film that has it all: a family oriented plot, the sense of a traditional and classical Christmas, and a dog named Snots. Who could ask for more?
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