Beverly D’Angelo

Christmas Vacation 1989

This is the one Christmas movie that I don’t think anyone can ever get tired of. Chevy Chase returns in the third installment of the Vacation series as Clarke W. Griswold as he tries desperately to maintain his sanity during the holidays with all of his relatives coming to stay under his roof and enduring all the mishaps along the way.

The movie, released in 1989, is always a ritual in our household to watch every Christmas , and the laughs are just as loud each time we watch it.

To kick off the festive season, where he decides to stay at home rather than go on a road trip, he takes Ellen (Beverly D’Angelo) and the kids, Audrey (Juliette Lewis) and Rusty (Johnny Galecki) to the mountains to find the perfect Griswold family Christmas tree. And it’s only the first of one hilarious scene after another, as we follow Clark and clan through one long laugh-fest, filled with surprises and fun.

The highlight of the movie for me (as I’m sure others) is the effort, the pain, and the sheer amount of lights that Clark puts up on the house. When they finally work (and blind the beegeezus out of the neighbours), there is a little bit of magic that all that effort has finally paid off. And, who hasn’t called people ‘Griswolds’ when you see over the top Christmas light displays that people have put up?

Enjoy the trailer:

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