Flashback Friday-Happy Holidays-Home Alone I & II

There is something about your favorite holiday movie. You’ve seen it an untold number of times over the years. You can easily quote the screenplay and you know the in jokes that only a super fan knows.

Twenty four years ago, a little holiday movie made it’s debut in movie theaters. It was the story of a young boy who is left home on Christmas and must protect his house from burglars. That movie is Home Alone.

Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) is the youngest child of loud and rowdy family. After getting into another fight with his older brother, Buzz (Devin Ratray) Kevin is sent to the attic to sleep. The next morning, Kevin wakes up to find the house empty. The electricity shorted the night before, causing the family to nearly miss their flight to Paris for vacation. In their rush to get to the airport, Kevin was forgotten about. The first few days of being alone is bliss, until Kevin must defend his house from Marv (Daniel Stern) and Harry (Joe Pesci) a couple of burglars who are looking to take advantage of the empty houses.

This movie is a classic. It is the story of brains over brawns, youth vs. adults. It also reflects the craziness that many of us go through during December and what is really important this time of year.

Two years later, the audience was back in Kevin’s life. In Home Alone 2 (1992), the McCallisters are again getting ready for Christmas vacation.  They prepare the night before, make sure they are packed and have the alarms set. And yet again, chaos ensues when the family nearly misses the flight. Kevin is with his family, but this time they get separated at the airport.  Kevin gets on a plane to New York City and his family goes elsewhere. Armed with his father’s credit card and plenty of cash, the city is his playground. That is until Harry and Marv show up and Kevin must again defend himself from the duo.

As sequels go, this movie is not that bad. Though anyone who knows New York City will tell you that the geography of Manhattan is not 100% accurate in this movie. But that’s ok.

I recommend both. Happy Holidays!

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