SNMR 2.16: "Home Alone"

Tonight's SNMR feature is "Home Alone" (1990, PG, 105 minutes) starring Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, Kathleen O'Hara, John Heard and John Candy. The film was directed by Chris Columbus.

This was not my first choice for a "Christmas" movie for tonight but sometimes plans change. Deal with it. The one thing I remember most about this film was that it was one of my younger sister's favorites when she was growing up. Before tonight, it had been about ten years since I had watched this film, which made the gags funny again. This is probably the best of Macaulay Culkin's movies (along with "The Good Son", which absolutely freaked me out) to date. He didn't handle child actor stardom too well.

From the DVD's dust case:

Eight year old Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) has become the man of the house, overnight! Accidentally left behind when his family rushes off on a Christmas vacation, Kevin gets busy decorating the house for the holidays. But he's not decking the halls with tinsel and holly. Two bumbling burglars are trying to break in and Kevin's rigging a bewildering battery of booby-traps to welcome them! The all-star supporting cast includes Catherine O'Hara ("Beetlejuice")and John Heard ("Big")as Kevin's parents. Joe Pesci ("Lethal Weapon 2") and Daniel Stern ("My Blue Heaven") as the burglars , and John Candy ("Uncle Buck") as the "Polka King of the Midwest". Written and produced by John Hughes, this madcap slapstick adventure is one of the top three box-office hits of all time.

From Martin & Porter's DVD & Video Guide 2007, p. 515:

A child's eye view of It's a Wonderful Life in which youngsters are reminded of the importance of family and real values. It all begins when 8 year old Kevin McAllister (Macaulay Culkin) wishes his family would just go away, and they, unbeknownst to him, accidentally go on vacation without him. From there on it's a roller-coaster ride of chuckles and chills.

This is an enjoyable film. The cast is decent and the script is good. The slapstick comedy is funny. While this film didn't win any Academy Awards (nominated twice for minor awards) it accomplished it's purpose - decent, mindless entertainment. My kids enjoyed this film for the first time tonight, which made watching it (for me) much more enjoyable. This film gets two and a half out of five stars.