Vacation (2015) [4K Ultra HD]

Directors: John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein

Cast: Ed Helms, Christina Applegate, Leslie Mann

Release Date: October 22, 2024

A Review By: Kevin Lovell

Disc Rating: 7.5/10

Synopsis:

The next generation of Griswolds is at it again — and on the road for another ill-fated adventure. Following in his father’s footsteps, a grown-up Rusty Griswold (Ed Helms) surprises his wife, Debbie (Christina Applegate), and their sons with a cross-country road trip back to America’s “favorite family fun park,” Walley World.

‘Vacation’ invites viewers to join the next generation of the Griswolds for another hilarious misadventure. Now grown and with a family of his own, Rusty Griswold along with his wife and two sons are determined to find something notable to do with their vacation and fondly remembering the childhood trip he took with his parents, Rusty takes the family on a road trip to Walley World and in true Griswold fashion nothing goes quite the way they might hope. On the road they must deal with everything from a strange, backwards racist car that never cooperates, while also visiting family and friends and perhaps even making a few along the way, but as things continue going the opposite of what the family expects it soon causes some rifts within, but just like his father before him, Rusty isn’t about to rest until they reach their intended destination, no matter what might go wrong along the way.

‘Vacation’ is directed by John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein who do a splendid job at the helm guiding along the twisted humor and laughs. The film’s cast includes Ed Helms, Christina Applegate, Leslie Mann, Chris Hemsworth, Skyler Gisondo, Steele Stebbins, Beverly D’Angelo, and Chevy Chase, along with more (including numerous noteworthy cameos and guest appearances) and each offer solid, humorous and fitting performances in their roles for the most part.

‘Vacation’ is a wildly vulgar, hilarious and over the top ride that keeps the fun and laughs coming at breakneck speed. It borrows familiar elements and ideas from the original ‘National Lampoon’s Vacation’ and then changes things up or pokes fun at them and therefore keeps much of the tale extremely familiar yet with more than a few twisted changes and moments to keep things from ever becoming a direct copy of its predecessor.

Almost surely the most offensive and profane of the franchise, ‘Vacation’ never pulls its punches in the slightest, and instead often goes all in and takes things to shockingly twisted and vile places in the most humorous manner possible. Tackling everything from college secrets revealed, confusion about sexual terms that come back in the most painfully hilarious way imaginable and a whole lot of other chaos and unexpected challenges around every turn that keep the journey from ever becoming dull or unamusing.

While ‘Vacation’ was met with mediocre reviews and feedback at best, this is one of those films that I strongly disagree with the general consensus and I can honestly say that very few films from the last decade or so elicit even half as many laughs as this one did, even on repeat viewings. If you’re a fan of the classic ‘Vacation’ films starring Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo (who both also make appearances here as Clark and Ellen Griswold) but have never given this new film a chance, I would strongly encourage doing so whenever possible, especially if you don’t mind a wildly vulgar comedy that never holds back in the slightest when it comes to the offensive content and gags.

VIDEO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Vacation’ features a full 2160p Ultra High Definition presentation with Dolby Vision and HDR-10 presented in the film’s original 2.39:1 Aspect Ratio. The video presentation looks spectacular as a whole and offers a sharp, clean and splendidly detailed presentation from start to finish that’s rich with color and clarity. Detail is outstanding on everything from the character specifics and faces to the various locations and roads travelled along the way which all shine impressively. The Dolby Vision HDR complements much of it by offering more lifelike coloring noticeable on vehicles, clothing and scenery, along with plenty more which sees the already quite colorful film look that much more stunning, all boosted even more by capable black levels and shadowing throughout. Overall, this is a tremendous Ultra High Definition presentation that dazzles throughout and should easily thrill fans of the comedy.

AUDIO:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release features a 5.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. This multichannel soundtrack delivers a crisp, clean and often fairly immersive audio presentation throughout that contributes nicely to the fun and chaos onscreen. It takes advantage of all five available channels on multiple occasions in order to send music, vehicle, crowd and nature effects, along with various other tidbits moving throughout the various speakers whenever fitting, while never resulting in any dialogue or other audio elements that might be occurring simultaneously with one another becoming distorted or rendered inaudible in the process. Overall, this is a very nice 5.1 DTS-HD MA soundtrack that holds up well throughout and shouldn’t disappoint.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of ‘Vacation’ offers some fun, previously released extras including a collection of ‘Deleted Scenes’ from the movie (running approximately 12 minutes in length altogether), along with a ‘Gag Reel’ (running approximately 2 minutes) and a few Behind the Scenes Featurettes including ‘Return to Walley World’ (approximately 10 minutes), ‘The Griswold Odyssey’ (18 minutes) and ‘Georgia’ (2 minutes).

*Please note: The above images are taken from the film’s Trailer and are not reflective of the actual 4K Ultra HD release or its quality. A standard Blu-ray copy of the film was not included in the release that could be used for screenshots therefore the above images were utilized. All content and images from the film are the property of their respective owners.

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Disc Rating: 7.5/10

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‘Vacation’ is Now Available to Own on 4K Ultra HD from Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment

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You can Purchase ‘Vacation’ on 4K UHD at Amazon HERE!

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