From New Line Cinema and Horrible Bosses writers Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley comes the brand new Vacation film starring Ed Helms, Christina Applegate, Chevy Chase, Leslie Mann, Skyler Gisondo, Steele Stebbins and Chris Hemsworth. The film is available on Blu-ray now!
Following in the footsteps of his father Clark (Chevy Chase) and hoping for some much-needed family bonding, a grown-up Rusty Griswold (Ed Helms) surprises his wife, Debbie (Christina Applegate), and their two sons, James (Skyler Gisondo) and Kevin (Steele Stebbins), with a cross-country trip back to America’s favorite family fun park: Walley World, as it will be closing forever.
Review
I have not laughed as hard or as frequent during any other film this year. Vacation is easily the funniest movie of 2015 and more than a worthy successor to the classic National Lampoon franchise. Ed Helms as Rusty Griswold was one of the most spot-on casting decisions they could have made and his leading performance is perfect. His portrayal hearkens back to Chevy Chase but much like Rusty actually says during the film, “The new Vacation will stand on it’s own.” And my does it ever.
Directors John Francis Daley (I forgot this was Sweets from that show Bones — damn he’s talented) and Jonathan Goldstein are such a powerful force behind the camera. If you were unsure of the upcoming Spider-Man reboot being in their hands, then fret no more. They know what the shit they are doing and they do it well. The infamous red-band trailer that came out months before the release, doesn’t even give everything away and that trailer is non-stop laughs. Vacation was jampacked with memorable moments – that kid who plays the youngest Griswold – Kevin – is an asshole prodigy. Give him all the money.
Memorable cameos from other stars are all pitch perfect – see Chris Hemsworth’s enormous bulge. But it’s the core performances of the family here that make the movie stand on it’s own. There is not one wasted opportunity for a laugh and even the gross-out gags were all done tastelessly tasteful. If that makes any sense… I haven’t been blown away by a restricted comedy in quite some time and Vacation was my saviour. I’m sure they’ll do a sequel and you know what, let them, just as long as they get Daley and Goldstein back on board to steer this crazy train in the right direction.
Special Features
Return to Walley World: Cast and crew interviews along with some great behind-the-scenes moments make this a stellar ‘making-of’ featurette. They have everyone in here – including Chevy himself and Beverly D’Angelo.
The Griswold Odyssey: If you wanted a closer look at that insane rental vehicle ‘the tartan prancer’ or whatever the hell it’s called, check this out for an in-depth look at how the directors crafted some of their sets and sequences. I love how the remote for that car had a swastika button.
Gag Reel: Typical gags cut from the film because of line screw-ups and off-the-cuff one-liners. It was short but pretty funny.
Deleted Scenes: The one worth noting would be Chris Hemsworth and his weather channel debut. You can’t go wrong with bonus Hemsworth.
Georgia: The fact that they shot the entire film in the state of Georgia is astounding to me considering this is a cross-country road trip film. I was shocked honestly and it’s a fascinating look into how they found the various sets to give the look of other states.
Rating: [star rating=”4.5″]