Home Alone (1990)

Home Alone is the first movie that I could quote in its entirety line for line and I was maybe 6 years old at the time.  I watched the movie for the first time on VHS when I was 5 years old.

The film is the first holiday tradition that I ever had.  Christmas just doesn’t seem like Christmas without watching Home Alone at some point.

It’s the movie that boosted Macauley Culkin to superstardom while simultaneously dooming his acting career.  Forever, he will always be known as Kevin McCallister, the little boy whose family forgot about him and left him home alone.  Thanks to Home Alone, Culkin is the most famous child actor ever.  However, Home Alone was the peak of his career and he was only 10 years old at the time.  He could never, and will never top that movie, no matter how hard he tries.

Home Alone was touted as the family comedy without the family and it was exactly that.  I don’t know if I have ever met anybody who has not seen the film.  That is how popular it is.  Everybody has seen it.

So, for all of the newborns out there who weren’t in their mother’s womb over Christmastime, the movie is about Kevin McCallister (Macauley Culkin), an 8-year-old boy who gets left at home when his big family goes on a trip to Paris for the holidays.  He is left to fend for himself and forced to defend his home against two stupid criminals.

The film was written by John Hughes and directed by Chris Columbus.  The rest of the noteworthy cast includes Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, Catherine O’Hara, John Heard, Roberts Blossom, John Candy, Devin Ratray, Larry Hankin, Gerry Bamman, and Keiran Culkin.

Home Alone has been one of my favorite movies ever since my childhood.  It’s festive, heartfelt and hysterical.  It’s everything that a family comedy should be.

Macauley Culkin did an excellent job for his age.  Pesci and Stern gave priceless performances as the knuckleheads who insist on trying to rob the McCallister’s residence, even after knowing a little kid is home.

It’s a John Hughes classic that never gets old, no matter how many times you watch it.  Trust me, I know.  I’ve seen this movie more times that I could ever count.

I rate this movie a 10 on a scale of 1-10.

Buy, rent, or run?  Buy.

If you enjoyed Home Alone than you will most likely enjoy:

Christmas Vacation (1989)