Le sapin a les boules

It mayn't be one of my favourite Christmas movies, but it is one of the funnier ones for me. I agree some of it is silly, and when I say silly I mean silly, and the story is really quite predictable. But it at least looks good with some nice cinematography and scenery, and the music is fine too. The script has many funny moments and the sight gags while silly are respectable. The direction is competent and the performances from Chevy Chase and Beverley D'Angelo are likable while Randy Quaid gives some great relief as a decidedly obnoxious relative. So in conclusion, no masterpiece but it is entertaining, that's what matters to me. 8/10 Bethany Cox

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)

*** (out of 4)

The third film in the series has Clark (Chevy Chase) deciding to stay home and instead of going anywhere he invites all the family over for the holidays and sure enough nothing goes right. I must admit that I enjoyed the previous two films more than this one but there's still enough laughs here to make this one well worth seeing. I think the film certainly has some flaws in it but when there are so many laughs you really can't complain too much. I think Chase is in fine form as he goes more over-the-top here than in the previous installments. He's so wild here that at times he seems like he's playing a cartoon character. This certainly isn't a bad thing as Chase can handle this type of comedy but there were a few too many slapstick scenes early on. I think what really makes this film so memorable is the terrific supporting cast. Beverly D'Angelo is just fine as the supporting wife but we get terrific work from Diane Ladd, E.G. Marshall, Juliette Lewis, John Randolph, William Hickey, Brian Doyle-Murray, Julia Louis-Dreyfuss and Mae Questel. The stand out however has to be Randy Quaid returning as Cousin Eddie. The actor really does a terrific job bringing this character to life and the comic timing is just flawless no matter what he's doing. There are so many classic scenes here that it's hard to pick out the best but some of the highlights include the cat sequence, the walk through Wal Mart, the hilarious dog-under-the-table and of course the first appearance of Eddie.

... crazy? At least at the brink of madness at times. Chevy Chase as Mr. Griswold .. not few will remember those names. I reckon some might have wanted to be in the extended and already big Griswold family alltogether. Now I might have rewatched this out of season, but I do think it works no matter what time of the year it is.

And that is what makes this a great comedy. Also the actors and the script involved! Some jokes may be a bit .. well don't be too woke about certain things or too PC. Also yes some are just plain silly and there is a lot of don't try this at home stuff. It's a movie, try to accept it (like when Chevy is in the attic and sets his chair in the one spot where it makes no sense at all, other than to get a laugh out of the audience).

So great cast and good natured humor. What else do you need?

"National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" is probably one of the funniest christmas comedies i've ever seen in all these years, and definitely worth watching every holiday season.

This is probably the best Vacation film to come from the National Lampoon series. There are so many laughs to go around (thanks to writer John Hughes) that it boggles the mind (and it might be the final time Checy Chase brings belly laughs). Here, the Griswalds don't go on a vacation, but instead the family stays in Chicago where there relatives come to town and hell will come too. Randy Quaid makes this film a treat by having just laugh out loud moments on the screen. Great fun for the whole family (I think). A+