posted
After watching Christmas Vacation the other day....there is one thing that always drives me crazy about the Vacation movies!!! The kids???!!!!
Does anyone know the real reason why there were different actors in every film? How come they never even aged? Cousin Eddie talks about his kids "growing up" in Christmas Vacation?
It is only me that this bothers?
Now I do want to know, who were your favorite Audrey and Rusty? and why?
Here's some screenshots to help refresh your memory from a site I found talking about The Griswold kids then and now:
posted
there were different kids in the vegas vacay too....I always thought it was a little weird. Like Clark and Ellen obviously aged throughout the years, but the kids stayed the same age?? Very strange.
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I would have to say that the original Audrey is my favorite and I know the purists are going to hate me but Jason Lively from European is my favorite Rusty. Mostly because of the fantastic train scene and the "He's gonna pork her dad" parts. Mr. Hall you are a very close second but your dialogue is a little bit weaker.
Also I hated more that the ages of the kids didn't progress correctly. I could deal with certain characters. But the ages drove me nuts.
We are DEVO
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posted
I love Anthony Micahel Hall obviously but yeah Jason Lively was the best I reckon.
First of all. I only consider Vacation, European Vacation and Christmas Vacation to be the true movies. Anything after that I am not willing to acknowledge.
Reasons why Jason Lively was the best Rusty:
1. His fantasy of the nightclub scene in Europe - Rusty's European Tour.
2. He is always cruising the chicks. None of the other Rustys are chasing girls.
3. He gets that hot German chick.
4. He goes to that Burlesque show with Sheree 'the slut'.
5. And as Devo has already mentioned, he's gonna pork her comment.
Audrey from the first one was the best. I guess cos she was the cutest and smoked pot.
Yeah using different kids all the time did annoy me and the ages also.
If they could have got the same kids for every movie (I am sure there were probably reasons why they couldn't) it would have ended up looking pretty cool cos the first one was 83 and Christmas Vacation was 89 so it would have been doable.
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aTomiK
.... has green eyes as well....
Member # 6575
posted
Wow, Muffy, your thread is totally freaking me out! I watched Christmas Vacation the other night and had the exact same thought about the kids! I really think using differnt actors diminished the authenticity of the films.
I loved Dana Barron and while I'm sticking to my guns that they should have kept her & Anthony Michael Hall in the sequels, Jason Lively is the only other "new kid," I could accept. His European club scene is fantastic! The use of The Power Station was perfect!!
Dana Hill & Juliette Lewis?!?! Who in their right mind thought these girls would make good "Audrey's"?!? I have never liked Juliette Lewis & her drone-like voice. Sorry .
And as much as I'm a fan of Johnny Galecki thanks to Big Bang Theory, Rusty he was not...
[ 28. December 2010, 06:10: Message edited by: cindymancini ]
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posted
i loved the original cast in the first one. in fact, i tend to forget that anthony michael hall is in it. but they were great. i do like european vacation just as much as the first, and i like the casting of those kids as well. but i still wish they had kept the original kids.
i know christmas vacation is such a classic for you rewinders, but i am not that big of a fan... and i am not crazy about vegas vacation either.
and i agree with cindy about juliette lewis as audrey, but i do like her as an actress. Posts: 4807 | Registered: Oct 2002 | Site Updates: 39
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Muffy Tepperman
Leopard-print Leotard Wearer.....
Member # 1551
posted
Oh I completely disregarded Vegas for a reason it's 90's and AWFUL! I saw it in the theater and haven't seen it since.
I'm with you guys I loved Jason Lively! He had this dorky obliviousness that Clark has and he delivered the lines perfect! I've always wondered though.....would have Hall been as great?? probaly.
I think i'd go with Dana Barron also.......Cindy is right Dana Hill and Juliette Lewis were so blah.........."Jack Jack Jack Jack" it was funny but something about her wasn't funny........
I looooooooooooooooooove Rusty's European Vacation, the jacket....his face! cracks me up every time........."some like it hot"
What if they'd changed Beverly and Chevy??? no way would they be as classic as they are??
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posted
It never bothered me, but I just assumed it was a joke.
Posts: 929 | From: Deb to Tone | Registered: Dec 2004 | Site Updates: 37
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pettyfan
Livin' next door to the Klopeks
Member # 2260
posted
It's never much mattered to me I guess. However, I didn't like the Russ and Audrey characters in European vacation at all. Matter of fact, I didn't care much for European Vacation in general. And I also don't include Vegas Vacation...it sucked. I like the original and Christmas Vacation.
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posted
Did you guys know that Dana Hill died of complications of diabetes some years ago? It was very sad - she was young but apparently had struggled with the disease her entire life.
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posted
Audrey # 1 was the best. Rusty # 2 made the biggest impression on me.
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posted
Can't argue with the logic everyone's put forth.
I think they tried to make a brief joke early in Vegas Vacation about this, with Clark remarking he could barely recognize his kids anymore; with almost everything else in the picture apart from (for me at least) the Hoover Dam scene, it doesn't quite work. To be honest, Chevy wasn't too thrilled about the film either, stating in his biography that Warners essentially tricked him into the picture, baiting it to him as an unrelated film, then revealing it as another Vacation film after he'd signed on.
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posted
Additionally, although it would have been interesting to keep the original kids together all the way, consider how some of our favorite viewing memories of the decade might have been if Anthony Michael Hall had been tied down for much of it; would Gary and Brian have worked nearly as well with someone else playing them? I personally think not, in which case it's probably better things did work the way they did.
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Valley Dated Julie From 'Valley Girl' (allegedly!)
Member # 1322
posted
Wow Warrior.. I didn't know that about Dana Hill.. sad stuff.. she was only 32 years old.
For Audrey it is actually a simple answer for me.. Dana Barron was the original and by far the best. For Rusty it isn't quite as easy a choice, but I have to go with Anthony Michael Hall ever so slightly over Jason Lively.
Back to Dana Barron.. did anyone see "Christmas Vacation 2"? I know it was a disaster of a flick, but thought it was interesting that only Griswold to make it on the trip was Dana Barron reprising her role as Audrey.
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posted
I thought Vegas Vacation was as great as the the other, I really don't understand why so many fans of the series have such a problem with this one???
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posted
It has its moments--as mentioned, the entire Hoover Dam sequence is pretty good, and it was good to hear Holiday Road again--but when viewed in whole, it comes off basically autopiloted by pretty much everybody involved--as mentioned above, Chevy probably felt it wasn't worth supreme effort when he'd been deceived into signing up.
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posted
I agree with most points, most prominantly my dislike for Juliette Lewis. Maybe a future installment to revive the series after Vegas, would have the kids actually older...hmmm....maybe Jack Black as Rusty....flunked out of school...no job...still living at home with Mom and Dad. Kristen Wiig as Audrey, featured prominantely with her new husband Jack McBrayer. Of course, filming would have to happen in Canada, given poor cousin Eddie's recent predicament!
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posted
Watched european vacation last nite didnt like either of the kids prefer the ones in the first or vegas which i love
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posted
"I think you're all $%!@$# in the head. We're ten hours from the $#%@en fun park and you guys wanna bail out."
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posted
First off my favorite is Christmas and so they end up being my favorite kids. Even though Julliete is not very good in it.
I do enjoy Vegas Vacation but have not seen it for a long time.
My leas favorite kids are the European ones. That's probably my least favorite film of the series.
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aTomiK
.... has green eyes as well....
Member # 6575
posted
Just rewatched European Vacation and i have to take back my words a little bit. The original definitely has the best kids.
Jason Lively is ok and i like the fact that he chases girls but his lines aren´t Hughes caliber if you know what i mean.
The film includes few fun scenes but the original is way better. We will see what kind of effect Christmas Vacation gives this time but i´ve yet to see few more films before that one.
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posted
European Vacation was the last one that I watched actually and though it's not a patch on the original there are some really funny gags in there,i liked the whole Germany segment where they turn up at the wrong address and mistake the elderly couple for there relatives!
The kids weren't to bad overall just I agree maybe not up to Anthony Michael Hall's and Danna Barron's standards.
Can't bring myself to watch the Vacation remake and normally I'm willing to give any movie a try!
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posted
I just watched Christmas Vacation again a couple days ago. While I do like Johnny Galecki & Juliet Lewis for the most part in other films or TV Shows, I always felt they were a terrible choice to play the parts of the Griswold kids. Therefore they are my least favorite. As for my favorite Rusty & Audrey's, I think I'd have to lean toward Dana Hill & Jason Lively from European Vacation as my favorites. They just seemed the most believable to me like they could be brother and sister in real life, though of course they're not. And also because they were by far the funniest.
[ 30. November 2016, 20:44: Message edited by: Pyro ]
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