The Attic scene always bugged me as a kid and it still bugs me now - National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989) Discussion

[–] lilcharmer 9 years ago

What bothers me about that scene is the very fact that the whole family left, his wife included without checking the whole house for him. I would never do that! I mean where did they think he went?

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[–] justinr1496 9 years ago

What bugged my about the scene is when his wife came home Clark was sitting on the door/stairs! Of all the places there were to sit in the attic he chooses to sit there! Of course the scene wouldn't have been as funny without that.

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[–] GingerVitus 9 years ago

What bugs me is the abrupt change in tone that happens in that attic sequence. All of a sudden it takes a sad and wistful turn, and it's sorely out of place with the rest of the movie.

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[–] Rupert__Pupkin 9 years ago

I love the sad and wistful turn, and I think watching the home movies gives us a glimpse of why Clark loves family so much and why Christmas is so important to him.

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[–] GingerVitus 9 years ago

It's nice, it's just kind of abrupt is all. Now that you pointed it out though, he seems to be remembering his past Christmases quite fondly, but doesn't Clark say to his Dad at some point how Christmas was always such a disaster at their house? I know, I'm probably over-thinking it, but that's a little bit inconsistent.

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[–] Rupert__Pupkin 9 years ago

Even in the disaster holidays, there are moments of genuine love and beauty.

Besides, we always get nostalgic for the past, even if the past wasn't that great.

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[–] LadyDi4476 8 years ago

The sad and wistful moment is what saves that scene! It's the most heartfelt scene of the entire movie....and any vacation movie.

-Di

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[–] SeanJoyce 9 years ago

Can you please change your username to ageneticallychallengedperson?

http://jmoneyyourhoney.filmaf.com/owned

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[–] TwoThousandOneMark 9 years ago

The attic scene is one of my fav of the whole movie.

It's Clark on his own doing exactly what he wants- & lets us peer into his ideal Christmas vision.

If there was no such pause in the chaos, it'd just be Vegas Vacation.

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[–] RickterScale 9 years ago

This scene is the pits. I fast forward through it every time.

You know what hurts the most is the... the lack of respect. You know? That's what hurts the most.

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[–] sapunjis 9 years ago

I love the scene as I do the whole movie and think the sad/wistful moment works well in contrast with the rest of the movie (many comedies do this), and as someone else pointed out it shows that he loves his family.

What does bug me about the scene is that when he falls through, the top bunk of the bunk bed he lands on is so obviously higher up than it should be (and indeed than it was earlier in the film with the dad sleeping in it) so that he would land on it quickly without dropping to his waist.

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[–] patrickbohn 9 years ago

You know what I always wondered about that scene? Why Clark was in his pajamas when the entire rest of the family is on the way out the door to go shopping and have lunch. I mean, you watch the scene start, and you think, "Okay, he's in his pajamas, he got up before everyone else and is hiding the gifts." But then suddenly everyone else is loaded up in the car.

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[–] corduroyg 9 years ago

You know what I always wondered about that scene? Why Clark was in his pajamas when the entire rest of the family is on the way out the door to go shopping and have lunch. I mean, you watch the scene start, and you think, "Okay, he's in his pajamas, he got up before everyone else and is hiding the gifts." But then suddenly everyone else is loaded up in the car.

Yea that bugs me too. There's no doubt they want you to think he got up real early before everyone else to go hide the gifts so nobody would see. The house is quiet, he's in his pajamas, etc. But then 5 minutes later everyone is dressed and leaving the house. Makes no sense.

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[–] nwar 9 years ago

Read the entire thread wondering when someone would bring this up along with the top bunk being so close to the ceiling mentioned above.

People will rightly bring up that this is a live action cartoon, but that is a good explanation for the sledding scene and other physical gags (like the bunk). It doesn't explain Clark still being in his pajamas while everyone else is showered, changed, and in coats ready to go to lunch.

Maybe it's multiple scripts being merged. Maybe the ladder was supposed to knock him unconscious for a while. It's just a poorly-constructed scene that I've obviously given way more thought than it deserves.

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[–] Sitcom_Sally 8 years ago

I think he was still in his pajamas to emphasize the point that he was on vacation from work and wanted to enjoy it fully.

"There is nothing in the dark that isn't there when the lights are on." - Rod Serling

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[–] TwoThousandOneMark 8 years ago

That's a visual gag... just as we'd never see a tractor trailer with room for a car beneath. Those seem like the only bridge between the truck & rear. I know they exist, but tell me the last time you saw a truck trailer you could drive under... you can't.

The silly thing about the attic is the window- that flimsy thing would destroy their heating bill. Slotted gaps, no insulation or coverage... might as well just live outdoors.

...top 50 http://www.imdb.com/list/ls056413299/

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[–] Miracle1985 7 years ago

Yup, the only thing that bothered me about that scene was when he falls through and the top of the bed is so close to the attic (and it was obviously lower when the grandpa was sleeping on it...)

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[–] hnt_dnl 9 years ago

I agree. Probably the weakest bit in the movie.

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[–] Qanqor 9 years ago

I'm surprised that nobody has pointed out the single stupidest part of the whole scene.

Those attic trapdoor-stair contraptions don't *work* like that. You can't get locked in the attic! There's no lock or latch or anything, the only thing holding the door closed is friction and springs. Which is why you can open the thing by just pulling a string. If your *arm* has the strength to pull the thing down from below, then your *leg* certainly has the strength to kick it down from above! It's utterly nonsensical that Clark couldn't open the trapdoor.

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[–] PhineasAppleby 8 years ago

It would have made more sense if Clark forgot he could kick open the attic door. It would be something Clark would do and it's funnier than actually being locked in an

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[–] adster81-1 8 years ago

The scene would never work if made today because of Mobile phones and social media

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[–] marckymarc71 7 years ago

What bugged me about the scene was that there was no insulation in the attic. Who builds a house without insulation?

"Who's running this airline?!"

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[–] RoadSideAssistance 7 years ago

Yah, my Dad and I ALWAYS remark about that.... that and the damage to the house. That entire Christmas Bonus (let's just assume even back then it'd be $10K which is GENEROUS), that's EASILY be consumed to fix a) the post, b) ceiling, c) burn damage, d) cat damage, e) dog damage, f) furniture, g) windows/drapes, etc.

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