The Post-"Home Alone" Nineties of John Hughes (and, What Can Be Learned From the Original Classic)

Home Alone was a surprise sleeper hit at the box-office when it was first released in November of 1990. Its success not only led to becoming the biggest comedy of all-time then (along with writer-producer John Hughes being named Producer of the Year by the National Association of Theater Owners in 1991), but also, not surprisingly, guaranteed a sequel. And a sequel is what audiences and critics got in 1992's Home Alone 2: Lost In New York. This film celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. And while it does have its moments as well as most of the same cast and crew, the film is an unnecessary follow-up in so many ways.

In fact, the only reason Home Alone 2 exists (as is the case with so many sequels) is to play off the success of the original movie, and to obviously built on the growing success and star-power of then-child actor Macaulay Culkin. Film critic Leonard Maltin summarizes it best as "essentially a reworking of its smash-hit predecessor, but it manages to be even more violent." It was also the first of many copycat films that occupied "family entertainment" throughout the 1990s, some of which were penned and produced by Hughes as well. These films included Dennis the Menace (1993), Baby's Day Out (1994), the second sequel Home Alone 3 (1997), and even the remakes of Disney classics 101 Dalmatians (1996) and Flubber (1997).

The same formula is still intact: the McCallister clan accidentally leave behind the black sheep of the family, Kevin, said child fends off two burglars, and the rest is history. Only here, he makes it to the airport with them but gets on the wrong plane after a mix-up. This lands him in New York, to the Plaza Hotel, and encounters with a snooty concierge and bellman (Tim Curry and Rob Schneider, respectfully, are scene stealers), a mysterious bird lady a la Old Man Marley (Oscar-winner Brenda Fricker), and a kind-hearted toy store owner (Eddie Bracken a.k.a. Roy Walley). Many could argue that the film's title is misleading, as Kevin is not really "home alone"--he's alone, for sure, but elsewhere.

The film does have its moments, what with Culkin, his signature wardrobe and demeanor, and his trusty Talkboy recorder (a must-have among 90s kids around many Christmas's or birthdays). He even peaks through a mail slot at one point, recalling his famous interrogation of a potential babysitter in Uncle Buck. There's also some clever meta humor referencing events from the first movie, such as rushing to the airport, ordering cheese pizza, and burglars slightly stepping aside from light switches in case something falls down after turning them on. And Kevin's montage through New York for the first time, atop the Twin Towers, is a winner.

However, the sentimentality and dilemmas here feel forced and unconvincing--they're more like cartoon scenarios and not real concerns, from Christmas trees to family conflicts to kind-hearted strangers and Kevin discussing the meaning of life. The late Roger Ebert wrote in his review, "If he [Kevin] believes half of what he says [in these latter moments], he'd give the crooks a break."

Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern

That being said, it shouldn't be surprising that Kevin does indeed encounter and battle the same crooks, the Wet Bandits (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern), as before. (After all, what would Home Alone be without them?) And they're both, this time, a strange combination of dim-witted, dopey, cartoony, and vengeful, as they plan a huge holiday heist at a popular toy store. Kevin's response? "You can mess with a lot of things, but you can't mess with kids on Christmas." Furthermore, instead of defending his home with the ever-popular booby traps, Kevin uses another place (his uncle's in the Big Apple) to lure the burglars in as an excuse to set the traps off on them. (Likewise, it wouldn't be Home Alone without the traps.) The same goes for the silly and cartoony motif of adults constantly getting outsmarted by plucky kids--and badly mauled in the process ("Don't you know and kid always wins against two idiots").

One of the biggest criticisms the original film received was its level of violence, which Maltin described as "a bit extreme." Lost in New York takes those "extremes" to a whole new level, becoming more sadistic, dark, dangerous, and even weird in the process. Instead of just paint cans and toy cars, there are kerosene explosions, staple guns, electrocuted sinks, metal pipes and bricks to the face, two-story falls, and so on. So much so, that it gets to the point of feeling abusive and menacing, including a gun being pulled out on a child in an act of vengeance. Interestingly, YouTube channel "Screen Junkies" consulted a real-life medical doctor to describe the effects of violence that would maim or kill Pesci and Stern's characters in real life from both films.

Perhaps the biggest disadvantage that the first Home Alone had (at least on the box-office and on Hollywood) was the belief that a "family comedy" needed to have Three Stooges-style slapstick in order to be a hit--which would explain the aforementioned films Hughes gave us in the decade, Here are three other reasons why these other post-Home Alone comedies don't work.

1. Along with the aforementioned levels of violence (which got darker and more sadist), the expectations towards and timing of these gags got more and more so, enabling audiences to predict what would conventionally happen. With each subsequent film, the results proved to be ill-timed, overwhelming and tiring.

2. Also with each subsequent film, the protagonists seemed to age down, while adults (like Mr. Wilson, Switchblade Sam, and Jasper & Horace) would continue to be the butt of the joke. Ironic, considering Hughes had been known for portraying teenagers as real people. From pre-teenagers (Curly Sue, Dennis the Menace) to babies (Baby's Day Out), Hughes even converted to characters like animals (101 Dalmatians) and bouncing green goo (Flubber). This may have had an influence on other films in the decade like the 1997 feature Mousehunt.

3. Because of this trend, Hughes would appeal to the lowest common denominator of entertainment. A writer for Watchmojo.com stated, "Critics, in turn, felt [Hughes] had traded his sharp writing and dialogue [from his teen movies of the 80s] for crude, broad-based humor."

Macaulay Culkin

There's a moment in Home Alone 2 where Kevin says, "I don't ever want to take a vacation like this again." In retrospect, many viewers probably wouldn't want to either, as, again, the same slapstick formula came to no real effective extent. Culkin, the following year, would star in the dark thriller The Good Son, followed by the live-action/animated fantasy The Pagemaster in 1994. He briefly retired from acting after that year, and never returned to the Home Alone universe since (save for an episode of the web series "DRYVRS" two years ago).

Hughes, meanwhile, never directed again after 1991's Curly Sue. He reportedly turned his back on Hollywood and, by the latter part of the decade, gave up making movies. He still wrote several scripts, including the widely-unseen Reach the Rock (1998), during the last decade of his life before his unexpected passing in 2009. His final film credit (as a story-writer) was the 2008 Judd Apatow-produced Drillbit Taylor starring Owen Wilson. Nevertheless, Hughes has had an indelible influence on several filmmakers and actors with his now-iconic films from the 80s, including Sixteen Candles (1984), The Breakfast Club (1985), Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986), Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987) and Uncle Buck (1989).

To conclude this post on a nostalgic note, here are a few reasons the original Home Alone still holds up from all the rest.

1. Its script is actually well-written and structured. Its premise is simple, yet there's a timeless quality that permeates the cinematography (courtesy Julio Macat) and season. Much of the dialogue is also very Hughes-ian and witty, even though we know it's silly.

2. Its casting remains ideal. Along with a breakout Culkin and bandits Pesci and Stern, there's Catherine O'Hera and the late John Heard as Kevin's parents, late veteran character actor Roberts Blossom as the forbidding neighbor (his scene in the church is a standout moment), and the late John Candy in a cameo as a polka musician. Home Alone was also a turning point in director Chris Columbus's career, and he went on to direct other hits as Mrs. Doubtfire (1993) and the first two Harry Potters (2001-02), as well as produce the Oscar-winning The Help (2011).

Director Chris Columbus and Macaulay Culkin on the set of Home Alone (1990)

3. The gags and humor are clever and unexpected, despite being "a bit extreme" (Leonard Maltin) and in an occasionally scary atmosphere. Even though we know much of this stuff wouldn't happen in real life, we believe Culkin's confident and committed performance through it all.

4. Its sentimentality is, to a degree, believable and even tear-jerking, thanks in part to John Williams' unforgettable score (displaying the same effect his music had on Jaws).

In retrospect, the original Home Alone was Hughes' last true hit, and its appeal as an iconic film beyond box-office numbers continues to this day, for better or worse.