If any film needed a sequel, it wasHome Alone.
I dont mean needed in the sense that it was culturally necessary, but financially?
Youd have to be an idiot not to have rushed it into production.
Made for $18 million, the firstHome Alonemade almost half a billion dollars.
Even a fraction of that success would mean a fresh yacht for everyone involved.
In the second of our series of retrospectives, we ask: was that excitement justified?
Lets back up a little.
But lets be fair: this is not a great movie.
And its not just the same structure, its many of the same jokes as well.
Did you like any joke from the first movie?
Well good news, because theyre all here again!
Almost entirely un-revised and often without requisite context!
Kevin orders an entire cheese pizza!
He scares someone off using the audio from a movie!
The only thing they do more of and they do alotmore of them are Kevins one-liners.
And if hes not doing them, Marv and Harry are.
Its like a script full of placeholders for better dialogue that accidentally got filmed, edited and released.
In the first film he was largely dealing with disinterested small-town shopkeepers and service professionals.
Credibility has never been the franchises primary concern, but this movie stretches it much further than the first.
Too far, really.
If nothing else, it meets the level of quality that youd expect from its cast and creative team.
It just doesnt go any further than that.
Im not surprised about 95% of participants threw in the towel after this one.
I only wish Id had the same opportunity.
Maybe hed survive after one.
Schmaltz level:Moderate to high.
He shares his dove charms with a weird pigeon lady.
Tree decoration scene:One the one hand, they dont have one.
So I think it gets a pass.
The only place hes properly alone is his Uncles renovated house, butUncles House Alonesounds like a different movie.
Genital injury motif:Marv gets staple-gunned in the testicles.
Its hard to tell exactly because hes wearing a thick coat.
But he certainly reacts like I would if Id been staple-gunned in the testicles.
Well not exactly because he doesnt go to hospital, but thats US healthcare for you.
