Vacaciones en familia

Recently estranged parents Cedric the Entertainer and Vanessa L. Williams come back together to go to Cedric's family reunion. Along for the ride are their three kids (super-cool Lil' Bow Wow, super-hot Solange Knowles and super-cute Gabby Soleil) and a wide variety of mishaps and misadventures as they hit the road together in a new SUV that Cedric has borrowed from a dealership. Naturally their trip from Los Angeles to Missouri will have hilarious consequences along the way. Cedric has ulterior motives to win a "Family of the Year" prize at the reunion, getting it away from older brother Steve Harvey (in a well-timed role). He also has to contend with his mother (Aloma Wright) when he reaches his destination, but first he and his family must over-come ultra-sexy hitchhiker Shannon Elizabeth (who happens to be a black magic priestess) and even an unseen 18-wheeler driver who continues to push Cedric's buttons. "Johnson Family Vacation" is basically an African American version of the "National Lampoon's Vacation" series. Cedric and Williams have the same comedic timing and relationship that Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo shared during their long run. The kids though here are quite better than any throughout the aforementioned series. But the similarities between this movie and those from the previous series are amazing as we have an erotic stranger, a rented vehicle, a road trip, a family get-together and even a take on a Wayne Newton song. In many ways "Johnson Family Vacation" is old hat, but I still liked the film because Cedric is just such a hilarious screen presence. The others all feed off his intensity and Williams is the ultimate "straight lady" in the mix as she just seems out of place with her great looks and outstanding manners (this is a compliment to her by the way). Eventually the movie loses its way as the trip nears a close, but "Johnson Family Vacation" is still a very funny experience at the movies. Does that make it a good production? Certainly not, but it is still a legitimate rest from reality. 2.5 out of 5 stars.

I had printed out the earlier review, as I found it was going to be one of the in-flight movies due to be shown on a flight from Cleveland to London last week, so was forewarned that it was not one of the best films ever made. However, I had not realized that it was going to prove to be undoubtedly the most awful film I have ever seen. A truly stomach churning experience; everyone seemed to over act outrageously and all spoke at full volume the whole time. I even tried it with other language sound tracks on the aircraft sound system but nothing could improve it. I believe it was supposed to be a comedy but how anyone could find anything remotely amusing in this sorry farrago, beats me. Definitely NOT recommended!

Spend a couple of hours with the Griswold, oops, I mean Johnson family as they take to the road for their family reunion.

Cedric the Entertainer supplies the laughs, all seven of them. A sexy female traveler inciting marital tension, being given the wrong car at the dealership, unkempt rural relatives, we've seen it all before.

But what might be the funniest thing of all about this predictable remake of National Lampoon's Vacation is that (Lil') Bow Wow has a higher billing than Vanessa Williams.

But the fact remains that if you are looking for about 90 minutes of profanity free family entertainment which, by the way, is becoming harder and harder to find these days, then maybe The Johnson Family Vacation is just what the doctor ordered.

The Johnson Family Vacation is a mega hit. It is so refreshing that the BLACK Family is portrayed in a civilized manner. There are plenty of laughs throughout the movie without the use of profanity. I equate the movie to the Cosby Family, things happen and they get through it without lowering the image of the Black Family. What family doesn't have some dysfunctional events happen? Yes, that is what I am saying; we all can recount incidents in our family that can be related to the Johnson's. We have some big name stars in this film and we owe it to them, because they represent us, to fully support this movie. Please take your family and friends to see this movie this weekend. Let send them a message that we will stick together (Solidarity) in support of the work of our Brothers and Sisters.

SOLIDARITY NOW . SOLIDARITY FROM NOW ON!

When I first heard about this movie I thought 'Great, this sounds good. Its gonna be a gigantic teen hit'. Boy was I wrong. This movie is literally trash. It hardly has a plot, the jokes are all old, and everything is stereotypical. The kind of family you find on sitcoms. A stressed dad that tried to keep everything in order but fails miserably, a 5-year-old girl who is a huge fan of Chuck.E.Cheese and wax crayons, a teenage rebel who refuses to wear anything that covers her thighs and stomach at the same time, a hip-hop-worshipping teenage son with a weird way of handling his dad and a mom that allows the father to take care of everything and watches her children disrespect their dad and just smiles. Its basically a family trip where they go to see their relatives, and they go there in a flash expensive car and fall from one problem to another. They do the whole fall-from-one-problem-to-another so many times that you actually get tired and uncomfortable towards the end. This movie is boring, and you've seen or heard every single joke here before. Don't even wait for the DVD. This movie is a disgrace to the film industry. And that is all I have to say.