Review of Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) by Matthew D — 28 Dec 2018

Home Alone all over again!

Home Alone 2 (1992) is just a rehash of the first movie, but this time it's in New York. Chris Columbus does nothing new as director, relying on his old tricks from Home Alone that worked the first time. John Hughes even gets more schmaltzy with his script. The overly sentimental tone alongside the equally ridiculous premise make for an oddly dull movie.

The charm of Home Alone 2 is the time period of early 90's culture mixed with Macaulay Culkin's adorable performance. He really was a great little actor. Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, and Tim Curry give very likable villainous performances. Their roles keep the pace moving and the laughs coming.

Unfortunately, John Williams scored is mostly rehashed for the sequel with the same beats and sounds. It's all as repetitive as the story. The homeless pigeon lady and the rich toy shop owner are such odd characters for a children's movie. They feel like Hughes is trying to relate the movie for adults too much.

There's also an awkward and lame cameo with Donald Trump at the Plaza Hotel for no reason at all. At least, the lovely Ally Sheedy gets a cameo in the airport that is very cute. It's nice to see Hughes kept his connections up with his previous stars.

Lastly, Catherine O'Hara is very funny, however over the top as Kevin's mother Kate. She is always fun to watch, but her character feels even dumber the second time around. Do not get me started on the father Peter McCallister's actor John Heard doing nothing at all.

Overall, Home Alone 2 is basically a cash grab on the success of Home Alone, but without the originality or charms of the first film. It's still a funny watch, but it really starts to drag by the end and feels quite contrived in its heavy handed themes.