How to Watch Holiday Movies in Order

National Lampoon’s Vacation is a vintage comedy franchise that began in the 1980s, although the lack of numerals makes it difficult to know in which order to view them. Chevy Chase is a comedy icon, which was clear from his appearances in the first season of Saturday night live. Chase has had a string of film successes, including Foul Play, Caddyshack, and Fletch. Unfortunately, Chase also has a reputation for being difficult to work with, so after a string of flops in the ’90s, he was largely relegated to supporting roles or cameos.

Still, his heyday as a movie star yielded some classics, including National Lampoon’s Vacation. Directed by Harold Ramis (Groundhog Day) and written by John Hughes (The Breakfast Club), the film detailed a disastrous family vacation led by Chase’s optimistic patriarch, Clark Griswold. THE Vacation the films became a reliable franchise for Chase and co-star Beverly D’Angelowith both returning in each subsequent installment – bar one saga entry.

4

Holiday Movies in Release Order

The films were released in chronological order

Based on John Hughes National Lampoon’s Vacation in a short story he wrote for the titular magazine, and the film proved to be a huge success upon release. For Chase,Vacation proved to be a franchise he could come and go from periodically throughout the ’80s and ’90s. Of the franchise’s six entries, the fourth and sixth exits Las Vegas Vacation and the 2015 reboot are notable for not having the National Lamp mark.

According to a 2015 article by SlateWarner Bros chose to remove the National Lamp title of Las Vegas Vacation due to a disagreement between the studio and the sequel’s producers. As for the 2015 film, National Lamp had nothing to do with its development. Like any long-running franchise, it has its share of weaker outings, though the quality is consistent for the most part.

3

Holiday Movies in Chronological Order of Events

National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983)

The first entry is the quintessential family road trip filmwhere Clark and Ellen take their children on a cross-country trip to visit the Disneyland-style Walley World theme park. Despite their best-laid plans, the family is beset by a series of disasters, which include the death of their Aunt Edna along the way and Clark having to force his way into Walley World at gunpoint.

This kind of antics became normal for the franchise and has become a staple of road trip films ever since. The Harold Ramis-directed film balances dark humor with some genuine sweetness, which made the Griswold family strangely endearing. It’s chronologically the first entry in the series, but this isn’t the kind of film that needs to be watched in a specific order for it to work.

National Lampoon’s European Vacation (1985)

Box office: US$49 million | Execution time: 1 hour and 34 minutes

Cast: Chevy Chase (Clark Griswold), Beverly D’Angelo (Ellen Griswold), Jason Lively (Rusty), Dana Hill (Audrey), William Zabka (Jack), John Astin (Kent), Paul Bartel (Mr. Froeger), Cynthia Szigeti (Mrs. Froeger), Eric Idle (The Bike Rider), Jeannette Charles (Queen Elizabeth II), Peter Hugo (Prince Charles), Julie Wooldridge (Princess Diana), Willy Millowitsch (Fritz Spritz), Erika Wackernagel (Helga Spritz)

The original was produced during a time when successful film sequels weren’t exactly guaranteed, but work quickly moved forward. National Lampoon’s European Vacation. This entry has the family winning a two-week trip to Europe on a game show and visiting London, Germany, and Italy. Neither Ramis nor Hughes returned for follow-up, with Fast times at Ridgemont High’s director Amy Heckerling taking over. National Lampoon’s European Vacation leans heavily on farce, but while it has some laughs, it’s not as funny as its predecessor.

The film also recast the Griswold children, which proved to be the case in all of the sequels. Dana Hill replaced Dana Barron as Audrey, while Jason Lively inherited “Rusty” from Anthony Michael Hall. The sequel was a success, but still grossed less than the original. European Vacation It’s now considered an average entry, but compared to some of the films in the series, it at least has some memorable jokes.

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation saw Hughes return to write the script, while Jeremiah S. Chechik took over the director’s chair. This third adventure for the Griswolds was originally supposed to be directed by Chris Columbus, who apparently begged out of the film due to issues with Chase; Hughes later gave Columbus the script for Alone at home instead of. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation sees Clark try to throw an amazing Christmas for his family, but as is the franchise’s formula, his plans go awry, leading to comical hijinks.

Although the first film is held in high regard Christmas Vacation Today it is considered the high point of the saga. It’s an entry where everything comes together, from the perfectly pitched comedic performances to the writing and capturing the feel of a classic Christmas movie. It also features the most star-studded duo to play the roles of the Griswold children, with Juliette Lewis (Cape Fear) and The Big Bang Theory’Johnny Galecki plays Audrey and Rusty, respectively.

Vacation in Las Vegas (1997)

Box office: US$36 million | Execution time: 1 hour and 33 minutes

Cast: Chevy Chase (Clark Griswold), Beverly D’Angelo (Ellen Griswold), Ethan Embry (Rusty), Marisol Nichols (Audrey), Randy Quaid (Cousin Eddie), Wayne Newton (Self), Wallace Shawn (Marty), Miriam Flynn ( Cousin Catherine), Sid Caesar (Mr. Ellis), Christie Brinkley (Girl in the Red Ferrari), Juliette Brewer (Ruby Sue Johnson), Jerry Weintraub (Jilly of Philadelphia)

This fourth installment marked the end of the Chevy Chase-led era and the first to fall National Lamp of the title. As the title implies, the Griswolds head to Las Vegas and become embroiled in a grueling series of events. Hughes had no involvement in the development of this sequel and only found out about what was happening when reading about it in the negotiations.

Las Vegas Vacation cast Marisol Nichols and Ethan Embry as Audrey and Rusty, while Christie Brinkley returned as “Girl in the Red Ferrari” from the original film. Arriving nearly a decade after the third film and at the end of Chase’s movie star career Las Vegas Vacation was a box office disappointment that received largely poor reviews. It also largely marked the end of the franchise, as only a direct-to-video sequel arrived a few years later and a requel in 2015.

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation 2 (2003)

Box office: N/A | Execution time: 1 hour and 23 minutes

Cast: Randy Quaid (Cousin Eddie), Miriam Flynn (Cousin Catherine), Jake Thomas (Clark), Dana Barron (Audrey), Ed Asner (Uncle Nick), Beverly Garland (Aunt Jessica), Fred Willard (Professor Doornitz), Sung Hi Lee (Muka Luka Miki), Eric Idle (English victim)

The black sheep of the franchise in more ways than one, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie’s Island Adventure is a spin-off of a TV movie from the third film. As the title suggests, Randy Quaid’s cousin Eddie is the main character, while neither Chase nor D’Angelo return as Clark or Ellen; That said, Dana Barron returns as Audrey for the first time since the original.

Cousin Eddie’s Island Adventure it’s a cheap affair with almost no laughs and some terrible green screen effects. Eddie works best as a supporting character, which his promotion to main character only underlines. No matter how disappointing some of the top entries may be, none of them have sunk as low as National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation 2. It also remains, to date, the last tour with National Lamp in the title.

Vacation (2015)

As has been the case with many 80s classics, Vacation was remade in the 2010s. This star-studded revival of Vacation series see The office Ed Helms plays the adult Rusty, who is taking his own family on a trip to Walley World. Leslie Mann plays Audrey this time with a hilarious cameo from Chris Hemsworth as her husband Stone, while Chase and D’Angelo make cameos as Clark and Ellen.

Christina Applegate plays Rusty’s wife, Debbie, and she gets some of the film’s best moments. While Vacation It did solid business, its strangely mean-spirited tone and lack of humor caused it to be met with mixed reviews, and it has yet to receive a sequel. For now, it marks the end of this iconic franchise and this 2015 iteration doesn’t seem to have the consistent replay value that the originals manage.

2

1

Which holiday movie is the best?

Fans seem to agree on the franchise’s biggest installment

With many long-running franchises, fans typically consider the first entry to be the best, as is the case with The Matrix, Jurassic Parkand Scream. The second film is also often seen as the best, as in Star Wars, The Dark Knight, and Shrek. However, this is a rare series because most fans agree that the third entry, Christmas Vacationis the best. The Christmas film is considered a classic and is usually watched annually by fans.

It helps that it’s perfect for such a beloved time of year, but it also holds up remarkably well decades later and has some hilarious jokes. The original film is the most cited as it is also in contention for the top of the list, while the direct-to-video film Christmas Vacation 2 is seen as the worst in the franchise. The middle three films are a little harder to locate.

European Vacation, Vegas Vacationand 2015 Vacation They all have their merits, but they also have many flaws that keep them at the top. They’re all pretty close together on places like IMDb, while Rotten Tomatoes scores show them as European, 2015 Vacation, and Vacation in Las Vegas, in that order. Regardless of where specific fans rank these three, the consensus seems to be that 1989’s Christmas Vacation It’s the pinnacle of this franchise.

Source: Slate