Plot
In the first Home Alone, the McCallister's are heading to Paris, France to spend their Christmastime. After a fight with his older brother Buzz, Kevin retreats to the third floor where he wishes his family would just disappear. During their sleepy time a power outage resets the clocks and the whole house oversleeps. In the interim of getting the entire family into the vans they forget Kevin upstairs and don't realize they have left him behind until they're in the air. When Kevin wakes up and realizes that his family is gone he believes that his wish has come true. He starts to fend for himself as his family frantically tries to get home, but to no avail. Kevin has to deal with his scary recluse neighbor and a pair of burglars known as the Wet Bandits. He tries to trick them into thinking that his family is home but eventually they realize that he is there by himself. In the meantime his mother has gotten a flight back to the states but still can't get one into Chicago where Kevin is. She meets up with a polka band who graciously offers to drive her back to her son. Kevin decides to go to church to hear the choir perform and meets up with his neighbor only to realize that he's actually a really sweet man. He's had a falling out with his son and doesn't get to see his granddaughter as much as he would like so he came to the church to hear her sing in the choir. Kevin suggests that he make amends, it is the holidays, after all. When Kevin arrives home he realizes that the burglars have picked that night to rob his house. He sets a series of booby traps to try and get rid of the guys and they fall for every one. He finally calls the police and tries to run but the bandits get him. It is then that his neighbor intervenes and the two robbers are arrested. The next morning, Christmas, Kevin realizes that his family is still gone and he wishes for them back. At just that moment his mother arrives back home, and the rest of the family soon follow. Kevin notices his neighbor reuniting with his son as well so everyone gets to be back with their families for Christmas.
Now in Home Alone 2: Lost In New York the family is planning to take a vacation in Miami. You would think they would learn the first time and just stay home but alas. The alarm gets unplugged and everyone oversleeps again but makes it to the airport on time, including Kevin. Kevin needs some batteries for his talk boy so he asks his dad for his backpack. He then loses his dad running through the airport but finds him at the boarding gate. Too bad it's not his dad and he boards a plane headed for New York, not Miami. The family realizes Kevin is missing when they hit baggage claim. Kevin arrives in New York complete with his dads credit cards so he decides to book himself a hotel room to try and figure out what to do. He takes in some sights and in Central Park he sees a scary bag lady covered in pigeons. Little does he know that the formerly wet, now sticky bandits have broken out of prison and escaped to New York as well. Since Kevin has a lot of cash from his dads backpack he takes a limo tour of the city and ends up at a toy store. He meets the owner there who tells him how all of the sales from Christmas go to a children's hospital. He gives Kevin a gift of two turtle doves and says he needs to share them with a special friend. Kevin runs into the bandits and they find out where he has been staying. Because his parents have reported the credit cards as stolen the hotel confronts Kevin. He tries to run but is apprehended by the bandits, but soon escapes after they reveal they're planning to rob the toy store. Kevin's family travels to New York after the tip that is where the cards were used. Kevin is confronted by the pigeon lady and hears of her lonely life, he vows to be her friend. Kevin has an uncle that lives in New York so he finds his townhouse. He rigs it with traps and then seeks out the bandits at the toy store. He throws a brick through the window and leads the bandits back to the townhouse where he unleashes the traps on them. The pair corner Kevin and trap him, then take him to the park where they plan to kill him. Pigeon lady is there and her pigeons create a diversion so that Kevin can escape and set off the fireworks he had to notify the police, and they're arrested once again. The toy store owner finds the brick with a note attached from Kevin that lets him in on what has happened. His mother seeks out her son and remembers how much he loves Christmas trees, remembering how he complained about Miami's lack of them. She finds him at Rockafeller Center where they are reunited. The toy store sends a bunch of gifts for the family and they all make peace. Kevin returns to the park to give the pigeon lady his other turtle dove.
Characters
Chicago Kevin McCallister and New York Kevin McCallister - the lost boy. Now Kevin is obviously the same person in both movies, but he does evolve a bit so that counts right? Overall I tend to root for New York Kevin. It's one thing to set up that entire entrapment in your own, familiar home but when you can pull that off in an unfamiliar city, that's pretty impressive.
Old Man Marley and Pigeon Lady - the scary one turned friend. It's nice that despite all of the stress Kevin has to deal with over the holidays Kevin can make a friend in an unsuspecting person. I think befriending your neighbor that you've been terrified of for years is a little more impressive than the Pigeon lady you just met so I'm going to have to go with Old Man Marley on this one.
Breakdown
The night before - Both are complete clusters, but I find the family a bit more degrading in the original movie. I understand that Kevin is a little annoying kid but they're just downright mean to him sometimes, and not just his cousins and siblings, but adults, too.
The realization - Aren't both pretty much the same? I will give it to original Home Alone simply for the fact that they were airborne when they made the discovery that Kevin was missing and had to wait the entire rest of the flight before they were able to do anything about it.
The booby traps - Tie. They were almost all the same! Nothing wrong with that, I was still impressed either way.
The reconciliation - I liked when his mother realized where he would be just by knowing her son. Its one thing to know he's at home and worry, but having him lost in a big city, especially New York? Being able to know where he is based on all of that is really sweet and tender.
There you have it. Most often sequel's lose out to the original but even with that being said I will admit I do find the sequel a bit more entertaining overall. So sue me.
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