It would have been nice if the tone of the opening credits sequence, with old postcards for visuals and a peppy pop-song parody by Lindsey Buckingham, could have been extended into the action. No such luck. The moviemakers show a little knowledge of what actually goes on, and goes wrong, on a cross-country family vacation, and little feeling for the places. It wouldn't have mattered anyway, however, once Chevy Chase was hired for the lead role. His idea of a satirical performance is to impress upon the viewer at all times that he himself, in his private life, is not a bit like the character he is supposed to portray. Eddie Bracken has much more the right idea in a small role as a Walt Disney-ish entertainment emperor, and he badly shows up such Chase-confederates as Eugene Levy, John Candy, and Brian Doyle-Murray. With Beverly D'Angelo, Imogene Coca, and Christie Brinkley; directed by Harold Ramis. (1983) — Duncan Shepherd