National Lampoon’s Vacation poster
National Lampoon’s Vacation

What’s Aged the Best?

Opening credits;1980 s looseness; good-talk line; Brinkley; D’Angelo; Krakowski; travel details; Dinky; marijuana; marital antics; Chase physical comedy; I’m So Excited

In the discussion (17)
Approx. transcript time · 00:48:10Read transcript
  • The opening postcards with Lindsey Buckingham’s Holiday Road immediately create a happy mood.
  • The early 1980 s comedy-production atmosphere is celebrated as loose, fast, and willing to move past strange incidents without overthinking.
  • Good talk, son remains a reusable parent–child line.
  • Brinkley’s 1983 appeal is celebrated in the lineage of Cheryl Tiegs and Farrah Fawcett.
  • Beverly D’Angelo is nominated for what aged best.
  • Young Jane Krakowski is nominated.
  • Brief exchanges such as the St. Louis arch joke are nominated.
  • Period travel details such as Kamp Komfort and the station wagon are enjoyed, with minivans seen as the wagon’s later replacement.
  • Dinky is praised as excellent dog casting.
  • “Roll them up” and the vibrating bed are also nominated.
  • The daughter’s marijuana-growing operation and attempt to hand Edna her bag when police arrive are enjoyed.
  • The marital sexual antics remain funny, including increased desire on vacation, the panties on Clark’s finger, and his persistence despite the supposed wolf.
  • Clark drying dirty dishes and returning them to the cabinet is praised as uniquely funny Chase business.
  • Accidentally throwing the license plate while searching for the fuel cap is another admired Chase gesture.
  • “It’s living history, Ellen” is considered uniquely funny in Chase’s delivery.
  • Walking through the desert with jeans on his head is another distinctly funny Chase image.
  • I’m So Excited is praised for spanning Vacation, Beverly Hills Cop, Miami Vice, an NBA commercial, and Saved by the Bell within several years.