Johnson Family Vacation

Play trailer

Johnson Family Vacation

PG-13

Released Mar 31, 2004

1h 37m

Comedy

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

6%

Tomatometer

88 Reviews

44%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

Separated from his beautiful wife (Vanessa L. Williams), Nate Johnson (Cedric the Entertainer) wants to make amends with her and spend time with his kids, finding the perfect chance for bonding in a cross-country trip to a family reunion. Convincing them all to join in on the journey, Nate takes the Johnson clan on a trek from California to Missouri, but they encounter various strange situations and eccentrics along the way, including a quirky hitchhiker (Shannon Elizabeth).

Watch on Fandango at Home

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

The poorly crafted Johnson Family Vacation squanders its talented cast in a bland family road comedy that draws unfavorable comparisons to Chevy Chase's Vacation movies.

Read Critics Reviews

J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

This is a real mess, with out-of-focus shots and continuity lapses that suggest a production in chaos.

Mar 6, 2007

Full Review

David Germain

Associated Press

Packing all the tired trappings of the raunchy road-trip genre, this loutish comedy plays out as a loosely threaded collection of shrill jokes and cliched sight gags.

Mar 6, 2007

Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek

Salon.com

The direction on Johnson Family Vacation is numbingly slack; the synapses between the scenes don't spark effortlessly, as they should, and the whole enterprise feels dragged-down and belabored.

Apr 17, 2004

Full Review

Beth Pratt

Common Sense Media

This charmless movie not for children.

Rated: 2/5

Jan 1, 2011

Full Review

Cole Smithey

ColeSmithey.com

Mechanical performances by Vanessa Williams and Bow Wow, as Nate's musically inclined son, impair Cedric's earnest comedic efforts in this spasmodic comedy.

Rated: C

May 4, 2009

Full Review

Mark Halverson

Sacramento News & Review

Several laugh-out-loud moments are scattered throughout this otherwise dumb-and-gets-even-dumber African-American road trip.

Rated: 2/5

Aug 7, 2008

Full Review

Read all reviews

Rosana B

Comédia definitivamente não são o meu forte, entretanto, esse road movie me encantou, filmes em família com crianças fofinhas e adolescentes rebeldes me encantam, o roteiro é bobo, exagerado e clichê, algumas cenas causam vergonha alheia, forçadinho e bobinho, amoooo, nada original, mas uma releitura de fatos corriqueiros e já explorados, mas ainda, sim, nos diverte e nos entretém, encantando com a simpatia dos personagens… Divertido, engraçado, bobinho e exagerado…

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/04/25

Full Review

Anna A

Great Movie! All star cast is amazing.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/17/24

Full Review

Ash P

For this being close to 20 years old in the next half a year and it was free on YouTube and yeah... it was bad. But the humor was fun to laugh at that I remember seeing this when I was in middle school. Bad acting, bad story and even a forced morale as the movie goes but still, the humor carried the movie until the end. Not a terrible movie since there were worse family flicks out there with little to less humor. To be fair, this feels more like a stand-up comedy from Cedric the Entertainer as I enjoy his humor. Hell, today years old that I learned that Steve Harvey was in this movie which was actually hilarious. The things you learn in your early thirties. But I digress. 4/10.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

11/26/23

Full Review

Kazall R

Despite it's lame jokes, Johnson Family Vacation is a fun movie with a decent story and great cast of talent.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

11/22/23

Full Review

Gortee U

Meh movie, the least chaotic version of the car trip

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

08/08/23

Full Review

ashley h

Johnson Family Vacation is an okay film. It is about a family who travels cross-country to go a family reunion. Cedric the Entertainer and Vanessa Williams give decent performances. The script is a little slow in places. Christopher Erskin did an alright job directing this movie. I liked this motion picture because of the humor.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Christopher Erskin

Director

Cedric the Entertainer

Nate Johnson

Vanessa Williams

Dorothy Johnson

Solange Knowles

Nikki Johnson

Shad "Bow Wow" Moss

D.J. Johnson

Gabby Soleil

Destiny Johnson

William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream

66%

60%

William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream

Watchlist

Man of the House

9%

46%

Man of the House

Watchlist

Barbershop 2: Back in Business

69%

48%

Barbershop 2: Back in Business

Watchlist

The Cookout

5%

37%

The Cookout

Watchlist

Rumor Has It ...

21%

41%

Rumor Has It ...

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

View more photos

Synopsis

Separated from his beautiful wife (Vanessa L. Williams), Nate Johnson (Cedric the Entertainer) wants to make amends with her and spend time with his kids, finding the perfect chance for bonding in a cross-country trip to a family reunion. Convincing them all to join in on the journey, Nate takes the Johnson clan on a trek from California to Missouri, but they encounter various strange situations and eccentrics along the way, including a quirky hitchhiker (Shannon Elizabeth).

Director: Christopher Erskin
Producer: Cedric the Entertainer, Paul Hall, Wendy Park, Eric Rhone, Andrew Sugerman
Screenwriter: Earl Richey Jones, Todd R. Jones
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Production Co: Fox Searchlight, A Bird and a Bear Entertainment, Magic Hallway Pictures
Rating: PG-13 (Crude Humor|Brief Drug Material|Some Sexual References)
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 31, 2004, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $31.2M
Runtime: 1h 37m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

Most Popular at Home Now