12 Reviews of Christmas - Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)

           Hey guys, Chuck here, and this particular review has been a long time coming. I've put it off for a while due in part to a particular individual who had a cameo appearance in the movie. However, now that heads have cooled, and time has passed, I think it's time to finally review Home Alone 2: Lost in New York for 12 Reviews of Christmas. 

          Released in 1992, this sequel to the original Home Alone saw the return of Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister, along with Catherine O'Hara and John Heard as his parents, Devin Ratray as Buzz, and Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern as Harry and Marv aka the Wet Bandits. Newcomers include the likes of Tim Curry, Rob Schneider, Dana Ivey, and Brenda Fricker. 

       The movie starts off with the McCallister family gathered for another family Christmas trip, this time to Miami, Florida. This particular evening, Kevin, Buzz, and other McCallister kids are a part of a big holiday recital, and Buzz uses a pair of imitation candles to humiliate Kevin with an immature prank. When Kevin shoves him in retaliation, it causes a major spill with everyone else in the recital getting knocked over, and even the pianist getting knocked out by a Christmas tree cut out. At home, Buzz makes an apology, but it turns out to just be a means to kiss up to Peter and Kate. Kevin, however, isn't buying it, and refuses to apologize, which lands him to having to sleep in the attic. 

        The next morning, everyone oversleeps, making them have to rush to get ready and out of the house to the airport. Luckily, they didn't forget Kevin this time, and everyone makes it to the airport. Unfortunately, Kevin ends up falling behind and lands on the wrong plane. As while his family, including Kate, Peter, Buzz, Megan, Jeff, Linney, Uncle Frank, Aunt Leslie, and all of Kevin's cousins, are in Miami, Kevin himself ends up in New York. Whoops. So, Kevin looks around New York City, checking out all of the tourist spots, and eventually making his way to the Plaza Hotel, where the hotel's owner points him towards the lobby. Now, at the time, the Plaza Hotel was owned by Donald Trump, and his cameo is strictly for that reason and that reason alone. I don't have an opinion about him in recent years, especially with his tenure as President of the United States, as it has no reflection of his brief cameo in this movie. Anyway, Kevin uses his Electronic TalkBoy toy to pose as his father making a reservation for the hotel, and checks in using his father's credit card. 

      Back in Florida, Peter and Kate speak with the local police, who call Chicago to see if they can locate Kevin, to no avail. Ultimately, they are able to notify the credit card company to locate Peter's credit card if Kevin should use it. The McCallisters head to the motel they're staying at, and patiently wait to hear some news about Kevin. Back in New York, Kevin continues to enjoy his stay at the Plaza Hotel, and eventually is taken via limo to a toy store called Duncan's Toy Chest, the owner of whom plans to donate all money made in the store that day, which is Christmas Eve, to a local children's hospital. Kevin adds to the funds with a direct donation, and Mr. Duncan gives him a tree ornament of two turtle doves as a thank you for his kind gesture. 

        Unfortunately, Marv and Harry, the Wet Bandits, escaped from prison and are going on the loose in New York. Their plan is to knock over Duncan's Toy Chest for the cash that will still be in the store over the Christmas holiday. Kevin runs afoul of them, and gets away from them. Unfortunately, the concierge of the Plaza Hotel checked the credit card Kevin used, and it was identified as stolen. Kevin runs back to the room, and manages to shake off the concierge and other staff members using a VHS tape of the movie "Angels with Even Filthier Souls," and escapes into an alley... right into the arms of Harry and Marv, who relay their plan to knock over Duncan's Toy Chest. Kevin gets away from them and escapes into Central Park. 

         Back in Florida, the McCallisters get a call from the police, who inform them that Kevin is in New York, used the credit card to check into the Plaza Hotel, and ran away when they attempted to confront him. So, the McCallisters pack up and catch the next flight out to New York. Upon arrival, they get a complimentary suite at the Plaza, and Kate decides to head into the city to find Kevin. 

        Kevin, meanwhile, befriends an old woman in Central Park who tends to the local pigeons, and after getting to know a little bit about each other in the storage space above Carnegie Hall, she reveals that good deeds on Christmas Eve will undo any bad deeds he's done throughout the year. So, upon looking around, he knows what to do: stop Marv and Harry from stealing the charity money meant for the children's hospital. Using the under-renovation house of his aunt and uncle, Kevin lays out a set of booby traps, and heads to Duncan's to stop Marv and Harry. 

         On the stroke of midnight, Harry and Marv start taking the money, Kevin gets a Polaroid pic of them in the act, and shatters a window to set of an alarm. Harry and Marv chase Kevin to the house, where they go after him. A series of escapades through various booby traps and what not, and the two take a pretty serious beating. However, on the way into Central Park (after already calling the police) Kevin slips on some ice and is caught by Harry and Marv, who attempt to kill him. They are stopped by the pigeon lady, who throws bird seed all over them. Kevin sets off some Roman candles to attract the police, who arrest Harry and Marv. 

         Kate, meanwhile, speaks to two other officers about trying to find Kevin, and after mentioning something about a Christmas tree, she realizes where he is and requests a ride to Rockefeller Center, home of one of the biggest Christmas trees in the world. Kevin and Kate are reunited, and the two apologize to each other, and head back to the Plaza. Mr. Duncan, having read Kevin's letter about breaking the window to stop Harry and Marv, further rewards Kevin with a truckload of free presents for him and his family. Buzz, noting that Kevin's good up led to the family being in their massive hotel room with all the free presents, Kevin should be the one to open the first present. The two brothers wish each other a Merry Christmas, and the McCallisters start digging into the presents. Looking at the turtle doves on the tree, Kevin heads to Central Park to give one of the doves to the Pigeon Lady, and the two wish each other a Merry Christmas. One of the hotel staff, Cedric, gives Buzz the McCallisters' room service bill, which after Peter learns of it, he shouts out: "KEVIN!!! YOU SPENT $967 ON ROOM SERVICE?!?!?!?!?!" Kevin runs off, ending the movie. 

        Home Alone 2 is an example of a sequel playing things too safe. Sure, the location is different, the reason for Kevin being alone is different, but the results are the same. It still results in a houseful of booby traps and the bad guys going to back to prison. 

         That being said, I did enjoy the performances quite a bit. Macaulay Culkin was still excellent as Kevin, with John Heard and Catherine O'Hara both standing out as Kate and Peter. Devin Ratray has show growth between movies as Buzz, becoming more sophisticated in terms of being the older brother that bullies and picks on his younger sibling. Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern are hilarious as Harry and Marv once again, and their banter is simply priceless. New performers like Brenda Fricker and Tim Curry are pretty memorable, and even Rob Schneider gets the occasional chuckle.

        Overall, director Chris Columbus made a really good follow up to Home Alone with this movie. Now, is it better than the original? No. But, it is still one I'll watch every holiday season. I'm giving Home Alone 2: Lost in New York a rating of 4.05/5. Anyway, this is Chuck signing off, and I'll be back tomorrow with my review of Pentatonix: Around the World for the Holidays as we continue 12 Reviews of Christmas.