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By Chris Snellgrove | Published
What if there was a solid sequel to one of the most beloved franchises of the ’80s and you didn’t even know it? Decades ago, Chevy Chase led National Lampoon’s Vacation and its aftermath, including my personal favorite, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. If you want to see the latest entry in this killer comedy franchise, you’re in luck: the raunchy and underrated Vacation (2015) is now streaming on Netflix.
the premise of Vacation is that Rusty Griswold has grown up with a family of his own and decides to participate in a family tradition by taking them all to Wally World like his father once took him. Unfortunately, like his father before him, Rusty keeps getting his family into trouble while taking an insane detour, all in the name of having a fun road trip. The trials and tribulations of this journey could bring the family closer together…assuming, of course, it doesn’t tear them apart completely!
Meet the Griswolds, again
the cast of Vacation includes some big names in the Griswold family: Ed Helms (best known for The Hangover) plays Rusty Griswold, the patriarch who wants to take his family on the trip of a lifetime. Christina Applegate (best known for Don’t tell mom that the babysitter is dead and Married… With Children) plays his wife, a bored mother who secretly has a partying past. Their oldest son is played by Skyler Gisondo, whose career recently rose, rose, and disappeared when he played Jimmy Olsen in Superman (2025).
VacationThe supporting cast includes It’s always sunny in Philadelphia alumni Charlie Day (as a rafting guide who doesn’t care if he lives or dies) and Kaitlin Olsen (playing a nervous cop). Norman Reedus, best known for The living deadHe memorably plays a creepy trucker who can be the Griswolds’ best friend or their worst nightmare, and Chris Hemsworth (best known for playing Thor in the MCU) plays Rusty’s brother-in-law who can’t stop showing off his body. Rounding out the film are original National Lampoon stars Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo, who make the most of their limited screen time.
Vacations, has everyone ever wanted them?
At the box office, Vacation was a modest success, earning $107.2 million against a budget of only $31 million. While that was not as profitable as other Ed Helms features, such as The HangoverVacation’s box office was proof that there’s still a market for the kind of off-kilter comedy that made Chevy Chase’s original Vacation movies so memorable. Unfortunately, while moviegoers generally enjoyed this film, critics hated watching Vacation as much as Clark Griswold enjoyed watching Cousin Eddie on his front lawn.
to call Vacation Underrated is an understatement: On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rather dismal 27 percent. Critics mostly complained that this film borrowed the road trip structure of the previous National Lampoon’s Vacation films without being as charming or fun. Generally speaking, they complained that the film was a bout of nostalgia that did nothing to really improve on the previous films.
Don’t call it a comeback
Nonetheless, the film is experiencing something of a cult renaissance more than a decade since its theatrical release. It’s been in Netflix’s Top 10 since it was recently added, beating out more popular comedies like Despicable Me 3 and The secret life of pets down in the rankings. Plus, you can’t throw a stone online without finding a social media post from a new enthusiastic fan talking about how Vacation is criminally underrated.
Aside from the movie that’s now making waves on Netflix, why do I recommend you watch Vacation, a movie with such abysmal critical reception? Basically, if you can discard your expectations of this movie being like a carbon copy of the ’80s National Lampoon movies, then you’ll probably have a good time. That’s because this new movie is almost nothing like the Chevy Chase movies: it’s bawdy instead of suggestive, vulgar instead of witty, and over-the-top instead of subtle.
A surprisingly fun sequel
It may seem like I’m condemning the film with faint praise, but these qualities make Vacation Surprisingly funny and funny – the movie constantly subverted my expectations in ways that made me laugh out loud. While the supporting cast occasionally disappoints (I was particularly bored by Charlie Day and Kaitlin Olsen, who are much better in It’s always sunny), the main cast has so much chemistry that they truly feel like a strange but loving family. By the time the credits roll, you’ll probably find yourself singing “Kiss From a Rose” along with them (it’s, uh, a long story).
Will you agree that Vacation is both hilarious and underrated, or is this one road trip you’d like to see destroyed in a horrific Wally World roller coaster accident? You won’t know until your fingers take a road trip to the nearest remote control and stream this quirky classic on Netflix. It’s not exactly fun for the whole family, but if you’re looking for a raunchy and wild escape from your family, you can’t go wrong with this vulgar comedy.
