Many people talk about the first Home Alone movies but barely anyone gives any of the sequels a chance. I wanted to give them a fair shot and finally see what each one had to offer to the franchise. Overall I saw these for the first time and I can say none of them are great but they’re decent enough that you can watch through them. What’s most interesting is all the sequels are in continuity with the original two Macaulay Culkin films.
Home Alone 3 1997
Even back when it released as a kid I thought it was a direct to video, but it did release in theaters, even if it feels like a much more modern movie compared to 2 it’s only 5 years since the last. With a new cast a a new idea that’s very different. It begins like a typical 90s movie trying to be serious but it’s for kids. It’s still silly fun so it’s not all bad.. It feels less of a period piece like the other movies but it still kinda does. In a way it’s a far more realistic story if that makes sense. There’s a lot of characters here and not exactly set in chirstmas but it’s set in the wintertime so vibes are similar. The story is intersting enough being a cute little kids movie fromt he 90s. I think the expectations of being a home alone sequel hurt it since a lot of thought went into it. It’s just as brutal as the original in ways, it’s a modernized version and shows how much the 90s changed. It’s a period piece a look nostalgic back in time. The kid tries to save a spy chip through a mishap and the bad guys want it so the FBI is involved he gets the chip, He’s only only home alone during parts of the day. Decent sequel.
Home Alone 4 2002
5 years after the last one we get another numbered sequel. Last one didn’t really change the continuity it’s a different sotry but here we have Kevin McCallister again but he’s younger and now the mom is divorced. A christmas has passed and they reference the original movies, but there are some retcons and continuity errors.. but it’s not a reboot like some synopsis lead you to believe. It directly acknowledges the second movie. Kevin is still a young kid so it’s as if time hasn’t passed and it’s clearly set in the early 2000s, ten years from when we last saw the characters. But if we ignore some of those details, like no mention of some of kevin’s siblings (which can be explained). You can tell there’s some influences from the third movie which is nice actually. apparently this tv movie was also meant to spin-off to a tv sereis which luckily didn’t happen.
Natalie the step mother, Marv has a girlfriend. Aat the very least this movie feels different. It doesn’t feel anything like the same characters they’re all recast and played different. They only have their names but at least the movie is not retreading ground too much ground. The story is his parents divorce he escapes to go with his dad they don’t beleive him, not really home alone. Weird kidnapping plot of the family with marv. It doesn’t have much charm like 3 and its only positive is it’s an original take.
Home Alone Holiday Heist 2012
This time it took 10 years to get a sequel. There are vague reference to the wet bandits. I have to give it to them it has an original story that makes sense as to why the kids would stay home alone especially in modern times (well compared to the 90s that is). I gotta give them credit, they think of neat ways to make the it work, it modernizes the concept, you can tell the budget is lower, but the writing is not all bad inspite of this. The dialogue and charisma might not be all there, unlike the original movies however. I like that it plays homages but doesn’t necessarily just copy it outright. I like the online loser Simon gamer who helps out. It’s good that it’s short. The traps are not as interesting. The story is they want a painting from the basement where the kid lives. Reuses the plot of 3 where they go for somethign else.
Home Sweet Home Alone 2021
Almost another decade before this movie comes out. A reference to the original movies since Buzz comes back as a police officer and there’s a reference to Kevin, these are actually done well enough which the previous movies didn’t. In a way this movie gets a lot of hate but it’s one of the best sequels, it actually gives a new twist, here the story is told for the most part from the perspective of the robbers and you sympathize for them since they aren’t bad. The kid is not as big of a jerk since he didn’t really know what was going on and was confused. The shenangians don’t make too much sense but whatever. It gets some points deducted for just reusing the plot of Home Alone 2 instead of coming up with something new.
The official MiscRave ranking Home Alone 3 > Home Alone 6 > Home Alone 5 > Home Alone 4
It’s intresting how most of the home alones don’t deal with a kid well being home alone…at least not entirely, more like paraents leaving only for a short time, that’s most of the sequels. The traps range from bad, to cool to repeats, and besides a couple of exceptions that are more creative than anything in the original two movies, most of them are not that creative. I have to admit all the sequels are kinda meshing together and it’s hard to remember which one is which. Most sequels are just about trying to get back something that has nothing to do with the boy. none are horrrible, needless? sure, awful? nah, a kid would’ve enjoyed them. They’re all short movies that are easy to watch and none feel like must watch classics like the first and even second. I think a bigger budget could’ve helped.