Justin's Rating: 2:3 for
Justin's Review: A fun thing to do in Vegas that I actually did: strut (not walk) into the fanciest casino you can find, strut right up to a pit boss, ask loudly where the nickel slots are, and then strut boldly toward them. Okay, so it's not incredibly fun unless you're as sad, pathetic, and addicted to bright shiny lights as me and my friend Lance are. I was pleasantly surprised with Vegas when I visited - it's not the cesspool of human slime and greed and decadence that I first thought (although they do have slots right in the airport). Of course, I stuck largely just to two city blocks. I was also pleasantly surprised with Vegas Vacation, the fourth installment of the National Lampoon series. I know Chevy Chase needed the work.

At this point, the series' makers are not dumb enough to mess with the formula. You've got bumbling dad, Clark (Chase), who manages to screw up every vacation through well-intentioned clumsiness; his somewhat air-headed wife Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo); lucky teenage son Rusty (Ethan Embry); and blossoming teenage daughter Audrey (Marisol Nichols). I must say, Vegas Vacation has the best looking Audrey of the series, and not just because she winds up as a dancer at one of "those" clubs. There's the typical plot: the vacation starts out well, spirals downward fast, and only a miracle can pull them out at the end. This time, the scenery of choice is (obviously) Las Vegas, as the Griswalds attempt to enjoy family closeness in the nurturing environment of the casinos and Hoover Dam.

The film splits up between each family member and their (mis)adventures. Clark has a blood feud with Vizzini the Blackjack Dealer. Ellen flirts with the idea of an affair with Wayne Newton. Audrey discovers her wild side with the help of cousin Vicki (not seen since the first Vacation). And Rusty discovers his natural talent at winning... everything. All of these stories are pretty funny, except with the Wayne Newton subplot. Newton just constantly irks me, and he doesn't do himself any favors by playing a schmuck in every film he's been in (see Adventures of Ford Fairlane). Blah, blah, blah, Wayne Newton needs to have a close encounter with a putz-o-matic and have done with it.

Of course, it wouldn't be a good Vacation film if Cousin Eddie (Randy Quaid) didn't pop in for an extended stay, and fortunately he does 15 minutes into the movie. His crude and tactless persona are the leech to Clark's arteries, and Clark is stuck as Eddie shows him the cheapskate's guide to Vegas (my favorite is a rundown casino where they have games like "Guess A Number Between 1 and 10" and "War").

Even though the Griswald children should be around 30 by now, it was gratifying to see Rusty back as a pre-freshman. Ethan Embry is picking his comedic roles right (Empire Records, Can't Hardly Wait). He's got a sincere weird eye thing he does that quickly convinces you that he's from another planet, albeit a close one. Rusty goes from being banned from all casinos to Papa Gorgio, the gambling master.

So what to say about Vegas Vacation overall? Well, certainly it's not as risque as the eighties films, nor as outrageous, but it still has a plethora of smart laughs and, of course, Eddie. Lose the lame Chevy slapstick and Wayne Newton, and you have a movie worthy of a couple solid viewings, followed by some weaker viewings, followed by syphilis and death.

Kyle's Rating: My own tortured vacations with my own twisted family are better than this!
Kyle's Review: The Vacation series has played an interesting part in my life. My parents, who abhor censorship and ignore adults-only labels, let me watch pretty much anything when I was a wee lad and that included the original National Lampoon’s Vacation. And to this day, Chevy Chase’s Clark Griswold remains a perfect big screen adaptation of my father. It’s uncanny, it’s disturbing, and it’s a good way for me to get around the big relationship talk with girlfriends.

HER: Why can’t you express your feelings more openly? It’s like you bottle everything up inside.
ME: It’s because of my dad. He’s exactly like Clark Griswald. As a result, I’m emotionally shattered.
HER: Oh, baby! I’m so sorry! I forgive you for anything and everything!
ME: Give me some sugar, baby.

So the first Vacation movies doubles as personal footage of any of my family’s vacation (especially that time at Disneyland. My eyebrows still haven’t grown back!). European Vacation has a lot of great moments (that part where Clark gets stuck in the circle and keeps pointing out Big Ben and Parliament never fails to get me crying with laughter, despite a monstrous incarnation of Audrey) as well as gratuitous female nudity (which I desperately needed during my formative years!), and Christmas Vacation is, of course, simply one of the top 5 holiday films of all time. Pretty lofty standards were set by the first three Vacation installments, which is why Vegas Vacation, by being merely average and watchable, seems like such a colossal disappointment.

The biggest problem here is that there is so much set-up and so little pay-off. The Griswalds in Vegas! Eddie (Randy Quaid, we love you!) and his brood stuck in a trailer in the middle of sun-blasted desert! Wayne Newton going for Ellen! The hottest Audrey of all! The set-up is great! But the writing team must have lacked a “closer” because the jokes are “lame” and while the situations are funny and get your hopes up, the resolutions are either nonexistent or so painfully unfunny you can’t even muster pity laughs. And Chevy looks so old and worn down that you get tired looking at him. I used to pray for Fletch Part 3, but now I also add on a heavenly request for miracle make-up and lots of long shots.

The best compliment I can pay Vegas Vacation is that it’s the best film to get a glance at the glitz of modern, non-mob-ruled (ha!) Vegas without having to endure a depressing film about some drunk and his Oscar-winning antics. If you ever watch any of those made-for-tv films and feel even vaguely entertained, then the level of sophisticated humor this film has to offer is probably right up your alley! Otherwise, avoid this unless you’re a Vacation die-hard that has to see just how much money Clark can blow through in Vegas (answer: a lot! Just like dad! Sniff) and how the new set of Griswald kids looks. There are worst ways to spend an hour and a half, but it would probably be better to get some sun or go play some slots yourself than watch this. Just look out for that Wayne Newton! He makes those tiger dudes look normal and well adjusted!