It's hard to find festive movies that are actually good. The majority of them tend to be more annoying than enjoyable, with little substance to make them stand out, especially in recent years.
Unfortunately, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is not one of the few that stands out. It's not amazing, but it does a great job at reviving some Christmas spirit through its themes and optimistic nature.
It follows a young Chevy Chase as Clark Griswold, a loving family man with warm heart for all things festive. He's accident-prone and trying his best to ensure Christmas goes as planned this year, although things just aren't working out. The tree is too big, the lights won't turn on, and his neighbours are dull and pretentious.
Dedicated to follow the festive tradition his parents followed before him, he remains optimistic and dedicated to provide the best Christmas for everyone, and after Christmas, he plans on building a large swimming pool in the garden; he just has to get that Christmas bonus from his 'Scrooge-like' boss.
This is no wonderfully written, choreographed, and well-acted film, but it's one that brings out the holiday spirit. Its characters are lovable despite being strange and definitely annoying in reality, but it shows the connection between different people around the holiday.
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is wholesome, yet riddled with little hiccups that test Clark's patience and holiday spirit up until the very day of Christmas. Such hiccups never fully discourage them, but they do display Clark's wholesome nature during his attempts of anger and stress. He's a happy person, and I guess the message of the film is to be like Clark: just try to enjoy the holiday. It comes once a year, so why not go all-out? Enjoy Christmas, regardless of what happens.
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Chevy Chase today