We don’t get the Vacation movie in the UK for a good couple of weeks, but the film opens across America this week, and the early reviews aren’t good, which is somewhat of a disappointment for fans of the 80s built franchise.
The film stars Ed Helms and Christina Applegate as a couple of parents who try to recreate an old family tradition of travelling across the country to the legendary Walley World theme park. The original 1983 movie starred Chevy Chase (who makes a small cameo here), was written by John Hughes and directed by Harold Ramis. A lot to live up to.
The first reviews are in, and they’re less than favourable.
Variety were first to chime in with their review late yesterday with critic Scott Foundas branding it ‘miserably unfunny.’
Here’s more of their review:
[quote_box_center]Midway through “Vacation,” the intrepid Griswold clan unwittingly takes a dip in a lake filled with human excrement, which is roughly how most viewers will feel after enduring 90-odd minutes of this miserably unfunny, mean-spirited and just plain wrong reboot of the much-loved 1980s and ’90s National Lampoon comedy series.[/quote_box_center]
Blimey.
Stephen Farber at The Hollywood Reporter agreed:
[quote_box_center]Probably everyone has had the discomfiting experience of sitting stone-faced at a comedy while others in the theater are whooping with laughter. And so it was for me at Vacation, the gross follow-up to the Chevy Chase comedy from 1983…[/quote_box_center]
Twitter was also awash with similar.
the worst films of 2015 so far: 5. Kill Me Three Times 4. Entourage 3. Hot Girls Wanted 2. Vacation 1. The Cobbler 0. The Cobbler -1. The C
— david ehrlich (@davidehrlich) July 28, 2015
VACATION is the kind of movie that makes me wish i’d become a banker or an accountant instead of “pursuing what i love” like a total moron.
— david ehrlich (@davidehrlich) July 27, 2015
There were, of course exceptions.
I thought VACATION was fine. I laughed a bunch.
— Devin Faraci (@devincf) July 28, 2015
In ‘Vacation’, Rusty is no Clark, but it’s still a great trip with the Griswolds [REVIEW] http://t.co/LzPooiTw5l
— Mashable (@mashable) July 27, 2015
The new “Vacation” movie just made my face hurt from laughing.
— Thomas Lennon (@thomaslennon) July 28, 2015
Vacation opens across the U.S. from Wednesday, which puts it up against the mighty Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation. See how they fared Sunday when we post our weekend box-office analysis.
The film gets its UK premiere August 21.
Tim
Jul 28, 2015 at 3:53 pm
Do these reviews rely surprise anyone? Come on! If you make a belated reboot sequel film, the odds are pretty high that it’ll bomb. Hard. You’re better off buying a lottery ticket.
Kevin Feige, you may have made a very bad decision in your hiring process. Come Sunday, I guess we’ll all know for sure.