Home Alone Review

        It’s finally December, all this month you guys will get a double dose of holiday movies that I will review. To kick things off will be my take on Home Alone. Directed by Chris Columbus it had become the highest grossing comedy movie for a generation. As well as establish Macauley Culkin’s acting career. The idea that this film is beloved and be 30 years old is a testament of just how much a great film it is. SPOILERS will appear in the review. 

1. Kevin 

        To begin with, the main star is Macauley Culkin. He plays young boy Kevin having been accidentally left by his family in their house. Kevin doesn’t start to be the honest innocent some think of now, he begins by being a little shit. He complains that his family doesn’t listen to him. It escalates when he tackles his older brother Buzz played by Devin Ratray, for eating his specialty pizzas. 

        He is inevitably sent to sleep up stairs by his Mom. Both really argue about Kevin wanting no one in the house. I feel that his Mom got too ignorant or just dumb to add fuel for the boy’s relative spiting. In terms of portraying the character, Culkin did a good job. He adds a three dimensional performance in a way where he isn’t a total pain. There are moments where he gets excited and does stuff he’s not supposed to do. 

        When the film continues, he slowly comes to grips that he misses his parents and wants to undo his “wish”. There’s a specific scene of him that I will discuss. Lastly, I think it’s the first time where the kid breaks the fourth wall. Meaning, he talks directly to the camera at us. By and large, it’s a kids film and the various angles of Kevin looking up at the weird neighbor and when he’s anywhere emphasize just how the film has a child-like feel to it. 

2. Traps

        The second half is when the film gets good. We’re introduced to the Wet Bandits, the duo house robbers played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern. Joe Pesci plays a cop who visits Kevin’s house, looking around and giving the Mom and Dad a literal false sense of security. I like the buildup when the duo meet Kevin in various places, all having the house be the final showdown. 

        In that confrontation is the traps. The whole approach feels like a Tom and Jerry cartoon by having the traps be elaborate. We do see how Kevin lays it out like him dousing the stairs with a slippery substance. It would be hard to believe to have no shots of the kid laying the traps and having the robbers go through the pain and have our suspension of disbelief be thrown out. For one thing, I’m glad we do get shots. The idea of having the traps be unrealistically and too detailed would’ve ruined it. Just like what happened in the sequels. 

3. What Makes it Good

        With each entry, I’m going to talk about how each movie is beloved in terms of the holidays. With Home Alone, it’s Kevin coming to grips of him missing his family. The Mom also racing back to the United States to make sure his son is safe. The emphasis is on the former since the whole holiday is predicated on seeing family we normally wouldn’t see in a daily basis. 

        I feel that it’s a classic since it’s an underdog story of Kevin attempting to survive house robbers and seeking to find redemption or forgiveness of what he got himself in. I feel that each film has to deal with the family angle or with anything that isn’t explicitly tied with Christmas but something that is very human. A notion would be in a cliché holiday film would be too stupid or materialistic. No lesson learned and just not being a feel good story. 

4. My favorite scene

        So here’s my favorite scene in the film. When Kevin meets a fake Santa who blows him off about having a wish be undone, he visits a nearby church. He sits in the pews and spots his weird neighbor. Before that happens, Kevin, his brother and I think cousin, hear a story from the older brother about the neighbor. With Buzz saying that the neighbor was a killer. The neighbor named Marley sits with Kevin and they talk. 

        Kevin asks why he is there, and Marley says that his granddaughter is singing in the choir. He says that he never has a chance to see her since he doesn’t speak to his son. Kevin responds by saying to try to reconcile but Marley is hesitant. Other than having the scene where the boy and the neighbor get to know each other, it’s a heartwarming scene since it shows what Kevin could become.

        He ultimately learns his lesson and it could be a way for him to ask for forgiveness for what he asked before. It’s not shown in any holiday film and it feels like a fresh air for anyone who watches the films back to back. The whole scene in general is good with the choir singing and the shots of Kevin looking up at the church in his point of view. 

 

5. Overall 

        This is without a doubt, one of the 90s best holiday films in that decade. It’s an absolute must watch for anyone who wants to get a Christmas fix or have a good romp of comedy. I know that it eventually spawned sequels which are inferior especially parts 3 through 5, those didn’t even have Culkin. Why would they since he would’ve been too old. It’s a perfect example of striking when the iron is hot or milking it to the last. Bottom line, it’s a beloved classic and one of John Hughes best films, even though he didn’t direct it. 

        Home Alone gets a four out of five.