Christmas Vacation (1989)

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Christmas is coming and Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) is determined to have the best old-time family holiday gathering ever, complete with an amazing house lighting display, the biggest Christmas tree ever, and extended family filling the house with Christmas spirit. Of course, nothing goes according to plan. That’s the point of the Vacation movies — to watch things blow up in Chevy Chase’s face and to watch him go crazy with frustration. Usually by the third movie in a comedy series, the schtick gets stale, but writer John Hughes (Home Alone, The Breakfast Club) pulls a rabbit out of a hat with Christmas Vacation. It’s as funny as the original Vacation movie, perhaps gaining fresh momentum by tapping into everyone’s reservations about the holidays.

There’s also a wealth of supporting talent to surround Chase. Beverly D’Angelo is back as Clark’s long-suffering wife. The children are played by Juliette Lewis (Cape Fear) and Johnny Galecki (Roseanne) this time around. But it’s the older family members that add an extra dash of outrageousness to the proceedings — look for William Hickey and Mae Questel to steal a few scenes. The incredible Diane Ladd is sadly underutilized as Clark’s mother, but the star on top of this Christmas tree of a movie is Randy Quaid. Quaid plays cousin Eddie, a sloppy hillbilly who crashes the family gathering and does a great deal to expedite the unraveling of Chase’s character. 

With E.G. Marshall (Creepshow), Doris Roberts, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Seinfeld). Directorial debut of Jeremiah Chechik.