National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Looks great! Little full, lotta sap.

Although Warner Bros. typically holds off for five and ten-year anniversary increments, this year they're unleashing a quartet of their biggest holiday hits including National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, a perennial favorite around these (and most other) parts. Its last home video release was a 25th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray (reviewed in its Steelbook variant by Michael Reuben) which greatly improved on the image quality of the first Blu-ray. This new 4K combo pack features a 2160p, HDR10-enhanced 4K disc along with that 25th Anniversary Blu-ray as a pack-in bonus.

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Since its source material was not specified on Warner Bros.' recent press release, it's certainly possible that this 4K disc's 2160p, HDR10-enhanced transfer uses the exact same master as the then-new one created for Warner Bros.' 25th Anniversary Blu-ray. (That's not necessarily a complaint, mind you.) Whatever the case may be, thiw source material provides a solid foundation for this 2160p, HDR-enhanced transfer as it noticeably offers better fine detail, texture, contrast levels, density, and shadow detail than that 2015 release. That earlier transfer's occasional noise and stray compression artifacts have been replaced with a smooth but visible layer of film grain, while depth is likewise increased alongside base color saturation (more on that later). I was generally pleased with how that 25th Anniversary Blu-ray looked -- especially after years of watching the notably inferior earlier release, not to mention DVDs and TV broadcasts -- and consider this to be, in almost all respects, a fundamentally solid step forward.

Where the new 4K presentation takes one step sideways, however, is in certain aspects of its HDR10 enhancement. While there's no blanket revisionism going on -- it hasn't been tealed to death, in other words -- there are times when skin tones appear overly orange/brown and don't look as accurate as they should. (The early scene where daughter Audrey suffers from frostbite, exaggerated as it's supposed to be, offers an early warning sign.) Other areas don't suffer the same skin tone fate, but those captured at night or in extremely low light look especially boosted against dark backgrounds, almost bordering on "Ted Turner airbrush" for the absolute worst offenders. Of course this only affects a fraction of Christmas Vacation, and other much more intermittent areas of its HDR10 enhancement reveal pleasing improvements: holiday lights, the green neon of their neighbors' living room, presents, candlelight, and more. All things considered it's a workable trade-off -- especially what you factor in fine detail and textural improvements across the board -- but I feel a more steady hand on the controls would have yielded better results.

As mentioned earlier, the included Blu-ray (which is the source of this review's screenshots) is identical to Warner Bros.' superior 25th Anniversary Edition and thankfully not the earlier disc. Although a freshly-encoded 1080p transfer might have yielded slightly better results, it's an overall solid disc that still gets the job done.

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Surprisingly enough, the 4K disc includes a brand-new DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix (listed as "Remastered") as the default, but has also retained the original DTS-HD 2.0 mix (listed as "Original Theatrical") from the previous Blu-ray; it's just another reminder that Warner Bros. is finally on their A-game for audio in recent years.

While the original stereo mix sounds perfectly fine here and will be enough for purists, the new 5.1 remix predictably offers a bit more weight in the front channels as well as sporadic surround activity during key moments: the opening car chase, sledding at top speed, tree-burning chaos, dinner conversation, outdoor ambiance, and of course the original score and soundtrack. It's a natural extension of an already-good late-1980s stereo mix... and if for whatever reason you don't need or have the extra channels, just stick with the original. Aren't different options nice?

Unsurprisingly, the recycled Blu-ray only includes the 2.0 mix, but both also offer optional dubs and subtitles.

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This two-disc release ships in a dual-hubbed keepcase with Christmas card-themed art that I actually don't hate; a matching slipcover and Digital Copy redemption code are also tucked inside. The bonus features are identical to earlier releases; they're disappointingly slim and easily the worst part of this disc. A retrospective would've been nice, and several deleted scenes are known to exist but, for whatever reason, have never surfaced on home video.

4K DISC

• Audio Commentary - A perpetually recycled track featuring actors Randy Quaid, Beverly D'Angelo, Johnny Galecki, and Miriam Flynn; director Jeremiah Chechik; and producer Matty Simmons.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Audio Commentary - Featuring actors Randy Quaid, Beverly D'Angelo, Johnny Galecki, and Miriam Flynn; director Jeremiah Chechik; and producer Matty Simmons. See what I did there?

• Theatrical Trailer (2:24) - This vintage promotional piece can also be seen here.

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is, like the other three Warner Bros. 4K holiday re-releases this month, a certified Christmas classic and one that most fans know by heart. This new 4K presentation offers a few notable improvements over even the 25th Anniversary Blu-ray, including a mostly improved 2160p transfer and a new 5.1 option added to the original theatrical 2.0 mix. The total lack of new bonus features is where the release inarguably falls short, but it's still a decent package that's worth putting under the tree. Recommended.