I’m not strictly of the philosophy that old classics should never be reattempted. I do retain excitement over 21 Jump Street, Ghostbusters III and even Spike Lee’s Red Hook Summer, but there is one ’80s classic that looks to suffer an unsatisfactory reimagining; they’re back on track in developing a new installment in National Lampoon’s Vacation series. Horrible Bosses writers Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley are working on a script for New Line.
Now, a movie that already has thirty-five sequels (with sixty-three different actors cast as the Griswold children) might not seem so sacred as to warrant such dread of another incarnation. But here’s the problem: the main character of this new film will be an adult Rusty Griswold, the son of Clark, who, as played by Chevy Chase, was the real reason we’ve all seen every single Vacation movie.
Chase and Beverly D’Angelo are hopeful to reprise their characters, but only in a cameo. The plot will focus on Rusty and his own wife and children visiting Wallyworld, as did the original Griswolds in the first Vacation film. An adult Rusty and Audrey Griswold taking to the road again would be a fine premise, as long as their parents were in tow (or, more applicably, the ones doing the towing) throughout the film. What’s more, this film is suggested to harbor a palpable absence of Cousin Eddie, played ceremoniously by Randy Quaid.
Sure… the Vacation movies are not exactly holy ground. But if you’re going to attempt another one in this post-post-modern world of outstandingly self-aware pieces of work, you should do it the right way, with the entire original cast of characters deconstructing the roles with which we are so familiar. Or at least just Chevy Chase falling down a lot. He can still do that, you know!
Source: AVClub
