National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (Special Edition)
 
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National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (Special Edition) (1989)

Chevy Chase , Beverly D'angelo , Jeremiah S. Chechik  |  PG-13 |  DVD
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (561 customer reviews)

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National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (Special Edition) + National Lampoon's Vacation (20th Anniversary Special Edition) + National Lampoon's European Vacation
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Product Details

  • Actors: Chevy Chase, Beverly D'angelo, Randy Quaid, Diane Ladd, John Randolph
  • Directors: Jeremiah S. Chechik
  • Writers: John Hughes
  • Producers: John Hughes, Tom Jacobson, Matty Simmons
  • Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen
  • Language: English
  • Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
  • Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
  • Studio: Warner Home Video
  • DVD Release Date: September 30, 2008
  • Run Time: 97 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (561 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B000VBIGD6
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,290 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
  • Learn more about "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (Special Edition)" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The third installment of the Griswold family saga is a significant improvement over their previous vacation (National Lampoon's European Vacation). Disaster-prone dad (Chevy Chase) discovers just how dangerous the Christmas season really is, as the Griswolds' old-fashioned holiday celebration turns out to be more "Bah! Humbug!" than Christmas cheer. Chase is right at home with the outrageous slapstick and often cheerfully tasteless humor, and John Hughes's script is stuffed full of classic Christmas movie references, but Randy Quaid practically steals the film as the unemployed relative with his malicious grin and mooching lifestyle. Not exactly a holiday classic and a bit spotty, but this gag-filled comedy is just obnoxious enough for the Scrooge lurking inside everyone. And fear not, a happy ending awaits all. Watch for future star Juliette Lewis as Chase's teenage daughter. --Sean Axmaker

Product Description

Cousin Eddie's arrival in his beat-up RV dashes the Griswold family's hopes for a quiet Christmas. Yule crack up!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
66 of 70 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
With apologies to Jimmy Stewart and Ralphie Parker, this is my favorite Christmas movie of all time. If you are reading this because you have never seen "Christmas Vacation", stop right now and go to the video store and rent it. Then come back here and order your own copy because you'll want to watch it over and over again each holiday season.

The undisputed gem of the National Lampoon 'Vacation' series, the plot can be summed up very simply: idealistic family man Clark Griswold wants to host the perfect old-fashioned fun family Christmas. As all of us idealistic family men have discovered, there is no such thing as a perfect holiday, and that just about sums it up. The appeal of this film is that we can all relate to the disasters that holidays can become, regardless of how well-meaning we are and how hard we work to achieve them.

The cast is terrific. Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo (Ellen) are back as the Griswolds, with Juliette Lewis and Johnny Galecki assuming the roles of Audrey and Rusty. John Randolph and Diane Ladd are Clark's parents, while E.G. Marshall and the ultimate mother-in-law, Doris Roberts are Ellen's parents. Nicholas Guest and Julia Louis-Dreyfuss are Todd and Margo, the yuppie neighbors. William Hickey and Mae Questel (the voice of Betty Boop and Olive Oyl) nearly steal the show as Uncle Lewis and senile Aunt Bethany. Randy Quaid does steal the show - his "cousin-in-law" Eddie is one of the all-time great characters in recent comedy history.

The self-inflicted situations that befall Clark in his holiday quest are peppered with memorable dialogue and slapstick, yet believable enough to bring flickers of recognition to most viewers. Witness his mishaps on the roof putting up the lights; getting trapped in the attic; spending his Christmas bonus before he gets it; dealing with his snooty neighbors; and getting hilariously tongue-tied at the lingerie counter and being remarkably eloquent when he gets his "bonus". Admit it. We've all been there.

A holiday movie should be one that holds up to repeated viewings, and this one does. Besides the excellent cast and the familiar situations, there is a great score by Angelo Badalamenti (Twin Peaks), the animated opening credits sequence, and some fine tunes such as "Hey Santa Claus" by the Moonglows! There are numerous little touches that you might not catch the first several times - check out the shape of the packages in Mr. Shirley's office when Clark gives him his gift, and see what happens to the light bulbs Clark puts in the cart at the Wal-Mart.

I suspect, like in our home, "Christmas Vacation" has become a sort of institution in many homes each holiday season. We like to get together with friends to watch it, with everyone dressing as a character from the movie. We eat green jello with "cat food" in it, stand and join in the Pledge of Allegiance and the Star Spangled Banner, recite the lines along with the characters, and give thanks that our holidays are at least a little better than the Griswolds'.

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67 of 78 people found the following review helpful
At Long Last!!!!!!!!!! July 23, 2003
Format:DVD
Finally, after all this time, Warner Brothers have come to their senses. On October 7th, we will be treated to a heftly helping of one of the greatest Christmas films to ever grace the silver screen............in WIDESCREEN.

I was extremely disappointed with the previous DVD release of this film which contained a pan & scan presentation and nothing more than a theatrical trailer in the extras department.

What we have here is a special edition of this great movie, which will contain audio commentary from both Beverly D'Angelo and Chevy Chase, a "making of" featurette, as well as other stocking stuffers which have yet to be disclosed at this present time.

Being a huge fan of this movie, I honestly can't wait for this release. "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" has become a holiday tradition in my home, and to be able to see it the way it was intended to be seen is truly a treat for me.

Aside from the features of the disk, the film itself is the true gift. One of the funniest movies today which still withstands the test of time even 15 years later. The premise is simple. Clark W. Griswold (Chevy Chase) is hell bent on having an old-fashioned family Christmas in his home, relatives and all. Of course, the hilarity kicks in when things start to go awry. There are so many hilarious scenes in this movie, it would be difficult to list them all. You have everything from an electrocuted cat, to a house with the brightest Christmas light display known to man. Let's not forget the dried up turkey, the saucer sled and the dog/squirrel chase! There's so much more I could say to praise this movie, but if you haven't already seen it, [I won't say more]

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73 of 91 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
You really take your life in your hands every time you sit down with a Chevy Chase film. Let's face reality here: Chevy Chase is responsible for several of the worst movies ever made. Does it take more than a few minutes of viewing to see the mind numbing folly of "Nothing But Trouble," "The Three Amigos," and "Spies Like Us"? Chase has sure had his truly embarrassing moments on the big screen. What redeems the guy, at least in my eyes, are several films that play up to the comedian's smart alecky, deadpan delivery. "Fletch," of course, is the gold standard of Chevy Chase films, but other movies showcase his talents just as well. I always thought "Deal of the Century" a classic Chase film, as well as "Foul Play" (although the latter was more of an ensemble picture). But we need look no further than the four National Lampoon Vacation films to truly judge the merits of this comedian turned actor. Actually, I should say three Vacation films since the second installment, where the Griswold family went on a tour of Europe, ranks as one of the most dreadful stories ever put on film. Of the three successful entries, "Christmas Vacation" is the best, perhaps even eclipsing the first movie that started it all.

You won't hear the familiar strains of Lindsey Buckingham's "Holiday Road" in "Christmas Vacation," and there are no corpses strapped to the top of a station wagon either. Instead, the film invites us into the Griswold home for an old fashioned Christmas celebration the likes of which soon reach catastrophic levels. Clark (Chevy Chase) and Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo) Griswold, along with their disinterested kids Audrey (Juliette Lewis) and Russ (Johnny Galecki), invite the whole family over for a season filled with happiness. Clark's parents Clark Sr. (John Randolph) and Nora (Diane Ladd) show up, as does Ellen's folks Art (E.G. Marshall) and Frances (Doris Roberts). And yes, even Cousin Eddie (Randy Quaid) makes an appearance to save the day. Of course, along with the family comes the inevitable frustrations and stresses everyone who has ever dealt with a reunion dreads. Clark Griswold refuses, at least initially, to fall into a morass of cynicism and despair amidst the bickering and insults. His invention of a new milk preservative has our hero hoping his Christmas bonus will be extra big this year, big enough so he can install an in ground swimming pool in the backyard. Unfortunately, his boss Frank Shirley (Brian Doyle-Murray) is a scrooge with plans to make the company more fiscally conservative.

While he waits for the check to arrive at the house, Clark embarks on several hilarious projects that haul in the belly laughs. His attempts to cover every square inch of his house with Christmas lights is a chore requiring several falls off a ladder, pointed verbal repartees with his snotty neighbors Margo and Todd Chester (Julia-Louis Dreyfus and Nicholas Guest), and repeated failures to get the strands to light up. The acquisition and installment of the Griswold family Christmas tree is another chore handled in Clark's inimitable style. Imagine the pine they string up in Rockefeller Square every year, subtract roughly five feet from its height, and you have the tree Clark insists on setting up in the house. This thing is so huge that the branches knock out the windows when Griswold cuts the rope holding the branches together. No Yuletide season, however, would be complete without a trip to the slopes for a sledding excursion, an event filled with disastrous implications when Griswold comes up with the bright idea to cover the bottom of his sled with a Teflon based substance. My favorite scenario involves Clark trapped in his attic for a few hours. He spends his time dressed up in women's clothing (to stay warm) watching old home movies of his childhood. His abrupt fall through the trap door had me laughing for hours afterwards.

The cast of "Christmas Vacation" gels fantastically, far better than any cast in the other three films. Kudos as always go to Randy Quaid as the squirrelly moocher Eddie; a film in this series just wouldn't be the same without this character driving Clark to fits of distraction. Beverly D'Angelo is one of those actresses who get hotter and hotter with age. The linchpin of the film is, as always, Chevy Chase as the disaster prone Clark Griswold. This is a role tailor made for his brand of clumsy, caustic humor. I don't know about you, but Chase's depiction reminds me in many ways of my own father--he won't listen to the advice of anyone else, his ideas are the best ideas, he tosses safety to the wind when working on dangerous projects, etc. But like my Dad--and probably countless other fathers--Clark is sincere and wants his loved ones to have wonderful family memories. The film works so well, I suspect, because most of us instantly recognize his character traits in our own beloved family patriarchs. Especially when Clark can't stand the pressure anymore and launches into one of his over the top tirades, again a trademark of our own fed up fathers.

Although the DVD carries the "Special Edition" tag, the extras are surprisingly sparse. A trailer and a commentary constitute the sum total of goodies available on the disc. Moreover, the commentary doesn't include Chevy Chase. At least you hear Randy Quaid, Beverly D'Angelo, Johnny Galecki, Miriam Flynn (Eddie's wife Catherine), director Jeremiah Chechik, and producer Marty Simmons, but why no Clark W. Griswold? Perhaps he wanted too much money. His absence is unfortunate and mars what is otherwise a great commentary track. I don't even wait until Christmas to watch this movie; it's fun works year round. If you haven't seen it yet, you ought to immediately. You'll love it.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Surprisingly Good Transition to Blu-Ray
It's always mildly worrisome to purchase an older film in a newer, more detailed format but Christmas Vacation was restored very beautifully. Read more
Published 2 months ago by ashbwell
fun for all
everyone who has ever had there family crowed in for christmas or was look to for making christmas merry will love this its funny warm and a must see for the holidays
Published 2 months ago by the old crone
Great Movie
I really enjoyed watching this movie because it is such a funny movie to watch. I had to get it to go along with the rest of the movies. Overall it is a great movie!
Published 2 months ago by Matthew T. Shoneff
Best movie EVER
Best Christmas movie of all time! Had to own it! Every year we do a Christmas movie night all through the month of December and this one is the first and last movie we watch each... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Keith Oatman
Arrived in great condition and like always is a great movie!
Over Christmas I didn't get a chance to see this movie on TV, so I purchased it myself. It arrived in great condition, plays good, and no complaints.
Published 3 months ago by Samantha
Yule Crack Up !!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is THE comedy Christmas movie to watch !!! Chevy Chase at his best !!! Also has hilarious scenes from Randy Quaid as Clark Griswold's (Chevy Chase) redneck cousin Eddie. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Nelson
Classic movie. Great in Blu-ray!
The movie speaks for itself. It's a classic Christmas film. A must see during the holidays. I'm glad to have it in Blu-ray at a great price from Amazon.com. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Karpaasi
Christmas Eve Tradition
I recently purchased National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (Special Edition) after my original VHS was unplayable. This movie has become a Christmas Tradition in our family. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Rhonda
Very Pleased
We loved the moved and was very pleased with our
purchase. I order from amazon often am always pleased
with the quality of my purchase.
Published 3 months ago by Diane Lanier
Christmas Vacation
Besides The Christmas Story this is a must have movie for the Christmas season. It along with The Christmas Story are the icon movies of the past.
Published 3 months ago by SgtWolfe
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