The Great Outdoors

The Great Outdoors (1988)

This is no holiday… this is war!

Release:1988
Runtime:1h 31m
Country:United States
Director:Howard Deutch
Language:English

Keywords

Attachment To NatureHolidayRoommatesWisconsinGrizzly BearCabinBest FriendFamily Holiday

The Great Outdoors rating: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic

IMDb6.6/10· 55K votes
Rotten Tomatoes43%
Metacritic24%
TMDb6.467/10· 601 votes

With 43% on Rotten Tomatoes, backed by 6.6/10 on IMDb and 24/100 on Metacritic, critical reception of this film has been modest.

About The Great Outdoors

It's vacation time for outdoorsy Chicago man Chet Ripley, along with his wife, Connie, and their two kids, Buck and Ben. But a serene weekend of fishing at a Wisconsin lakeside cabin gets crashed by Connie's obnoxious brother-in-law, Roman Craig, his wife, Kate, and the couple's two daughters. As the excursion wears on, the Ripleys find themselves at odds with the stuffy Craig family.

Cast of The Great Outdoors

  • Dan Aykroyd

    Dan Aykroyd

    as Roman Craig

  • John Candy

    John Candy

    as Chet Ripley

  • Stephanie Faracy

    Stephanie Faracy

    as Connie Ripley

  • Annette Bening

    Annette Bening

    as Kate Craig

  • Chris Young

    Chris Young

    as Buck Ripley

  • Lucy Deakins

    Lucy Deakins

    as Cammie

  • Robert Prosky

    Robert Prosky

    as Wally

  • Ian Giatti

    Ian Giatti

    as Ben Ripley

  • Hilary Gordon

    Hilary Gordon

    as Cara Craig

  • Rebecca Gordon

    Rebecca Gordon

    as Mara Craig

  • Zoaunne LeRoy

    Zoaunne LeRoy

    as Juanita

  • Nancy Lenehan

    Nancy Lenehan

    as Waitress

The Great Outdoors facts

Budget
$24M
Box office
$43.5M

Ranked by the iRankMovies editorial teamUpdated August 2026MethodologyData sources

Audience opinions

What the audience liked

  • Family holiday comedy delivers lighthearted charm with ensemble chemistry
  • Grizzly bear encounter provides genuine comedic peril and adventure tension
  • Cabin setting creates intimate backdrop for relationship-focused humor

What the audience disliked

  • Plot feels lightweight lacking substantial conflict or narrative stakes
  • Comedy timing occasionally feels dated despite strong comedic fundamentals

Trailer

Where to watch The Great Outdoors(US)

View on JustWatch

Subscription

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Rent / Buy

Amazon VideoApple TV StoreGoogle Play MoviesYouTubeFandango At Home

Availability may change. Data by JustWatch.

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