12 Reviews of Christmas - Home Alone 4 (2002)

          Hey guys, Chuck here. Well, it's not Christmas without Home Alone, but since we've already talked about the three actually decent Home Alone movies, we're pretty much down to the lesser Home Alone movies, starting with 2002's Home Alone 4, also known as Home Alone: Taking Back the House. 

         The movie attempts to reconnect to the original Home Alone movies by reintroducing the McAllisters: Kevin, Buzz, Megan, and their parents Peter and Kate. Now, for those Home Alone fans that are wondering about the other two McAllister kids, Jeff and Linnie, they apparently don't exist in this movie, and Kevin only has two older siblings in the forms of Buzz and Megan. Also, the McAllister house is much smaller than the one from the original Home Alone movies. And, Peter and Kate have split up, with Peter living in a much more luxurious house with his new girlfriend Natalie. 

         Tired of being picked on by Buzz repeatedly, Kevin decides to take up his father's offer to spend Christmas at Natalie's house, and he makes his way there. Unfortunately, Kevin ends up butting heads with the house's butler, Prescott, but seems to get along with the maid, Molly, as well as Natalie. Something really cool about the house is that it's completely voice activated, and speaking into a voice remote can open doors, among a number of other things. Something else noteworthy is that Natalie is hosting a royal family for the Christmas holiday. But, Kevin and Peter do get her into some of the more popular Christmas traditions, such as decorating the Christmas tree. 

        But, we also see that Kevin's old foe, Marv Merchants, is on the loose with a new partner: his wife Vera. And, Marv and Vera are making several plans to break into the house, and also kidnap the crown prince, who is among the royals Natalie will be hosting for Christmas. Kevin tries his best to warn both his dad and Natalie of the criminals, but they are unconvinced, taking the word of Prescott over Kevin's word. Unfortunately, while Peter and Natalie are at the airport, Marvel and Vera break in, and it's revealed that Molly is Marv's mother, and is the true mastermind behind the royal kidnapping plot. 

        While the two are locked up together, Prescott reveals the reason for his suspicious behavior throughout the movie. As it turns out, whenever he disappeared when Marv and Vera were attempting to break in, he was merely getting some much needed sleep, as his job looking over the house has him running ragged and is extremely exhausting for him. So, when he is able to rest, he takes that opportunity. Finally realizing he's not a bad guy, Kevin teams up with Prescott to stop Marv, Vera, and Molly from carrying out the royal kidnapping plot, while Kevin also calls Kate, who arrives with Buzz and Megan. 

          After the typical series of Home Alone traps and pranks, Marv, Vera, and Molly are arrested, Peter breaks up with Natalie and reconciles with Kate, Prescott quits his job, and the grateful royals decide to spend Christmas with the McAllister family instead of with Natalie. 

       I'm just gonna say it: Home Alone 4 sucks ass. This piss poor attempt to reintroduce fan-favorite characters with NONE of the original cast reprising their roles is just dumb as all hell. Now, that's not to say some performances were terrible, as the main kid Mike Weinberg is decent enough, but he's not Kevin McAllister. Macaulay Culkin is Kevin McAllister. And, the same goes for the other holdover characters. I'll be honest: I like French Stewart, but he made Marv too intelligent by comparison to the absolute dumbass he was as portrayed by Daniel Stern. And, while both Jason Beghe and Clare Carey were decent enough, they're no substitute for John Heard and Catherine O'Hara. The new characters like Erick Avari as Prescott and Joanna Going as Natalie were fine enough, but both actors have turned in far better performances in their careers. While movies like Home Alone 3 and Home Sweet Home Alone can stand alongside the original two Home Alone movies as decent entries in the franchise, I can't recommend this one. So, I'm giving Home Alone 4 a rating of 2/5. 

          Alright guys, this is Chuck signing off, and 12 Reviews of Christmas will continue tomorrow with Joyeux Noël.

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