Last Resort

All of the dialog was dubbed by Hartman and Markowitz in a marathon 24-hour looping session. Because of budgetary restrictions, they shot the entire film without sound and the two comics dubbed everything later. No, this is probably not in the stack of films Grodin plays in his DVD as he gets nostalgic.

While that trivia doesn't make the film a totally enjoyable experience, it's a better rental than "Riding the Bus with My Sister". Markowitz has some new films in production that look outstanding. He has directed his energies toward writing and producing, and is a brilliant force in the business.

Last Resort features a capable comic cast but it really makes the sesnses whirl at times. It starts off as a family comedy and then starts throwing in lots of sex-oriented humor along with some real lame jokes and offensive stereotypes. One gets the feeling they sort of made up the story as they went along. It does have some laughs and some surprises but don't expect any sort of coherent story line. Chances are the better known cast members aren't too proud of this one.

First and foremost most if not all the background actors were fairly fresh, Phil Hartman and Jon Lovitz hadn't been on SNL yet, Mario Van Peebles was still an extra. The real only headliner was Charles Grodin. This movie takes many viewings to properly get into the spirit of things. I've watched it several times usually followed up with Club Paradise and Club Dread.

I enjoy Charles Grodin doing his deadpan comedy bit, but instead here, he spends most of his time screaming at some person or thing that's making him mad. That get's old pretty quickly.

They should've given more time to the younger son in the family, most of his one-liners were hilarious. The older two kids, one of which is a young Megan Mullally, whom I barely recognized, added virtually nothing, and should have been cut in the writing process. Wait a minute, writing? I agree with a previous reviewer who said they probably were making this up as they went.

As a fan of Seinfeld, I enjoyed seeing a young Mr. Pitt, though he is barely in it. This was worth watching if you like bad comedies, or offbeat nonsensical farces, but if not, stay far, far away.

Aptly named waste of time & celluloid is 'National Lampoon's Vacation' minus the setups, punchlines, structure, & any likable characters. Flat, dumb, & cheaply-made, I weep for Ashton, Hartman, & Mullally, but especially Grodin.

#nitrosMovieChallenge.