This 4th adventure is not one too much as there is some fun moments but there is indubitably no new ideas since the first movie and that's a pity: Clark is blind, the kids are daredevils, Ellen is strong and the cousins gentle jerks… Going on the road again offers more surprises than staying at home but going to Vegas is boring as this is not a sight-seeing location. However the feel of this sin city is perfectly done as i stayed also in one of this big hotel and that i saw again all things i did (games inside the hotel, buffet meals, labyrinth corridors). The only exterior visit to Hoover Dam is also really funny as well as well as the mile- high club try! This new pair of kids is cool and we have also a Chevy at top of his form! In itself, the movie could be expandable but when you look for genuine comedy, you come to the conclusion that this Griswold family has something the others have not!

I'm way biased here. This is now my favorite Vacation movie after binge watching all 4 from a BluRay box set. I'm biased because I'm a Vegas fanatic and it's hard to watch how they get Vegas wrong in so many movies. Here, they actually shot in so many of the locations and the views from their rooms made sense. Too many times, including the most recent Paul Blart Mall Cop 2, do they just make up sh|t as they go along and hope no one's ever been to Sin City. I digress. I know this isn't everyone's favorite, and some scenes made me cringe, like Clark climbing the Hoover Dam, but I found myself laughing more in this installment than the previous three. Mostly with Cousin Eddie, again, the gambling – specifically the off-strip casino and Marty the Devil Dealer and the luck of Rusty. Am not ashamed, despite my obsession with Vegas, to say, this is my favorite Vacation…so far.

Sometimes there are dumb comedies and sometimes there are smart comedies and sometimes there are comedies without comedy. Unfortunately this is one of those films. There is not even the slightest hint of humour in the 93 minutes. From Clark's gambling problems and feud with a croupier to his adventures on the Hoover Dam, none of the usual Griswald charm is there.National Lampoon took their name off the title of this film; I'm surprised the city of Las Vegas didn't attempt to get their name removed as well. Taking a trip to that fine town has never been made look so unappealing.I would like to say something positive about this film since it came from a great line of comedies but I can't. Avoid this film at all costs. If you are looking for a Las Vegas based comedies try Swingers, Ocean's 11, The Hangover or even Casino.Featured on Episode 52 of The Emerald Reprobates Podcast

This installment of the comedy classic Vacation series is often regarded as "the worst in the series". That couldn't be further from the truth. This is my second favorite in the entire franchise next to the original film. Vegas Vacation was watched by me countless times in the late nineties when I was very young, and really didn't know what the characters were discussing, or even saying for that matter. Along with Fools Rush In, this was my favorite film in my childhood.I recently ran into the National Lampoon's Vacation Collection on Amazon for about $25. What the hell? I'll pay that. I had already watched the first two, and really wanted to dive into the third and rewatch this (keep in mind, at the time, it had been around nine years since I had seen the film). I recently ran into it on Comedy Central, and there was the question again; "what the hell?" The Griswold Family returns to the screen, this time taking a family vacation to Las Vegas. While it isn't much of a family-friendly place, Clark (Chase) and Rusty (Embry) are more than happy to head there and have a damn good time. They even stop at Cousin Eddie's house (Quaid) for more fun, but soon enough, they wind up taking him to Vegas unexpectedly. Let the crazy, nonstop, unrealistic, comedy antics begin. Clark gambles away their money, the wife Ellen (D'Angelo) falls in love with Wayne Newton, Rusty gets a fake ID and wins big, and Audrey (played by the stunning and gorgeous Marisol Nichols) loosens up to become a dancer.It's nothing special, but back in the day, to a five year old, it was colorful, vibrant, jumpy, loud, and off it's own medicine. I loved it. I saw love at first sight when I saw Marisol Nichols play Audrey. Then when I grew older, I questioned if continuity was even brought up when making this sequel. The children look nothing like they did in the first three films. Rusty was an average looking guy, but in this one his a very handsome, grown individual. Audrey has the biggest change of all. She was the homely child in the first three, but in this one she's got black hair and is amazingly gorgeous. Puberty did her well.But who cares? The jokes are somewhat fresh, the scenes are classic (my favorite being the dam boring tour), and the characters return to give it their all once more. Hard to believe that this would be the last time we see these characters in the flesh until thirteen years later when Chevy and Beverly would appear in the short Hotel Hell Vacation. I suspected something like National Lampoon's Australian Vacation, But it was still nice to see them back at it one more time.Vegas Vacation isn't perfect. You could almost think of it has a hopelessly lost spin off that doesn't take too many new routes, or even has appropriately placed characters. It doesn't even have the National Lampoon's name in the title. My only theory is that Warner Bros. (the company that distributed every other Vacation film) wanted to make another film in the franchise. They probably suggested the idea of Vegas with high hopes, National Lampoon maybe scrapped it, and WB went on to do it by themselves with no endorsement of National Lampoon. After all, they do own a part of the name, might as well milk it.No matter, Vegas Vacation is a film I'm proud to call one of my favorite comedies, and my second favorite in the Vacation franchise.Starring: Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Ethan Embry, Marisol Nichols, and Randy Quaid. Directed by: Stephen Kessler.