Home Alone 2: Lost in New York is the 1992 sequel to the 1990 film Home Alone, and the second film in the Home Alone series. Home Alone 2 was written and produced by John Hughes and directed by Chris Columbus. It stars Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, and Daniel Stern. Catherine O'Hara, John Heard, Devin Ratray, Kieran Culkin, Gerry Bamman, Tim Curry, Rob Schneider, Dana Ivey, and Brenda Fricker co-star. The film was rated PG for comic action and mild language
Eddie Bracken, Ally Sheedy, Bob Eubanks and Donald Trump make cameo appearances. The movie was filmed in Winnetka, Illinois, O'Hare Airport in Chicago, Miami and New York City (which was star Culkin's hometown at the time). Also, the film became the second most successful film of 1992, earning over $173 million in revenue in the United States and over $358 million worldwide.
Home Alone 3 followed in 1997, and Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House followed in 2002—both without Macaulay Culkin in the lead roles.
Plot
Macaulay Culkin stars as Kevin McCallister, who is once again separated from his family during one of their Christmas travels (following the first film). This time, the family is going to Miami, Florida for Christmas. Kevin makes it to O'Hare International Airport, but loses sight of his family while trying to get batteries for his Talkboy out of his father Peter's bag. Seeing a man that is wearing the same coat as his father, he follows him toward a flight to LaGuardia Airport in New York City and doesn't realize where he is until the plane lands. While in New York, he decides to make the most of, as he puts it, "the greatest accident of my life". Along the way Kevin meets several people, including a lady (played by Brenda Fricker) who enjoys caring for pigeons, but creeps Kevin out at first.
While Kevin did not make it to Miami, his luggage did. Peter pulls Kevin's bag off the carousel and passes it down the line to his cousin, Fuller, who realizes that Kevin did not embark on the flight to Miami. The bag is then passed back down the line to Kate McCallister, Kevin's mother, who doesn't immediately realize that Kevin isn't there but faints upon doing so. The Miami Airport security staff decides to call O'Hare in hopes that Kevin is still in the airport. After they find out he isn't, everyone starts to wonder where he could be. After being asked to see a recent photo of their son, Peter realizes that he doesn't have his wallet on him. Peter realizes that because his wallet was in his bag and Kevin took it as they were going into the airport, Kevin now has the wallet. Since Peter has credit cards in it, security informs him that Kevin can be tracked when and if he uses one of the cards.
Meanwhile, Harry and Marv (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern), the "Wet Bandits" from the first film, have broken out of prison in Chicago. They have made their way to New York and are trying to find a new target. Marv also comes up with a new nickname for the duo, the "Sticky Bandits," based on his new ability to steal things by covering one of his hands with double-sided masking tape (which he coined after managing to swipe 14 cents from a Santa Claus on the street).
In New York, Kevin decides he needs a place to stay. He decides to stay at the Plaza Hotel (after hearing about it on a TV game show the night before), placing Peter's credit card to check in. The concierge (played by Tim Curry), is suspicious of him the entire time he sees him there, going as far as sneaking into his room and prove Kevin a fraud. This attempt ends in failure as he is caught by Kevin using an inflatable clown to impersonate Frank McCallister singing in the shower (which Kevin had recorded earlier on his Talkboy). The next morning wants to apologize to Kevin's father for what he did the night before.
During one of his days at the Plaza, Kevin decides to hire a limousine to take him around town and makes a visit at Duncan's Toy Chest, a huge toy store in New York City's Time Square. Duncan is a benevolent philanthropist who tells Kevin about his intentions to donate his Christmas profits to the Children's Hospital.
Kevin's plan, however, begins to fall apart after he leaves. First, he runs into Harry and Marv on the street outside the store. Harry recognizes Kevin, and a chase subsequently follows, but Kevin thwarts them by making them slip on necklace beads. Kevin gets back to the Plaza Hotel to find Mr. Hector waiting for him and tries to get him to help with Harry and Marv, but finds even more trouble as his unauthorized use of Peter's credit card has caught up with him and he is forced to run away.
Kevin is able to escape by employing a trick he used in the first film, playing a gangster movie at full volume to trick the staff into believing that someone is being shot in the room (this time, Angels with Even Filthier Souls, a false sequel to Angels with Filthy Souls in the first movie). Kevin uses the service staircase to escape the hotel but runs right into Harry and Marv as he does. Marv begins telling Kevin that he and Harry are planning to rob Duncan's toy chest, unaware that Kevin is recording the conversation. He is able to escape into Central Park and gets free while riding in the back of a hansom cab.
Down in Miami, Kate takes a phone call from airport security that Kevin has been located in New York. They also learn what Kevin has done with Peter's credit card and that he is on the run from the police. The McCallisters decide to leave at that moment and head to New York as soon as possible.
Kevin, meanwhile, finds his Uncle Rob's penthouse, but it's being renovated. He then begins walking through Central Park at night, coming across several homeless people and prostitutes along the way. Scared out of his mind, he then confronts the pigeon lady again, but gets his foot stuck between two rocks when he tries to run away. After she frees him, he apologizes for running and the two go to Carnegie Hall to watch an orchestra play Christmas music from a loft. Kevin learns that the pigeon lady's life has fallen apart because of a lack of trust in people and a lack of friends, and promises to be her friend if she needs one. The pigeon lady, although flattered, tells Kevin not to make promises he can't keep.
While on his way he stops at the Children's Hospital and waves to a child watching him from the window. While there he remembers what Mr. Duncan told him earlier, then remembers that Marv had told him about robbing Duncan's toy chest earlier that day. Kevin says to himself, "You can mess with a lot of things, but you can't mess with kids on Christmas," then dashes to his uncle's house to begin what he calls "Operation Ho-Ho-Ho," which, while along the same lines as the plan from the first film, feature much more violent booby traps.
Once the McCallisters arrive in New York, Peter and Kate confront the staff at the Plaza for letting Kevin get away. The staff offers the McCallisters a complimentary suite as a token of their apology, and Peter decides to go down to the police station to see what they are doing to find Kevin. Kate, however, insists on roaming the streets herself to look for Kevin against the advice of both Peter and the staff; as she does so, the rest of the family and their luggage are taken up to the suite.
When Kevin is done booby-trapping the house, he walks over to the store with a wooden plank and a bucket just in time to see Harry and Marv start stealing cash from the store. He takes two pictures of Harry and Marv's crime and then throws a rock with a note he wrote to Mr. Duncan through the window, which triggers the alarm. Kevin uses the plank and bucket to make a makeshift seesaw in front of the store. Harry hits it first and realizes what is about to happen, but before he can warn Marv not to step on the other side Marv does exactly that and sends Harry flying through the air and crashing through the roof of a parked car.
The robbers then chase Kevin back to the penthouse where Harry tries to make a deal with Kevin to give him the camera. Kevin responds by throwing several bricks off the roof of the penthouse at Harry, but every brick he throws hits Marv instead. Eventually both of the Wet Bandits reaches Kevin in the house, but not before dealing with several of the booby traps along the way (which include another meeting between Harry and a blowtorch-which ends with him dipping his head into a toilet full of paint thinner- and Marv falling through a hole in the floor and being electrocuted with an arc welder). Once they team up to catch Kevin, they notice that Kevin has tied a string from the knob of a door downstairs to a tool chest upstairs. When Harry tries pulling the doorknob, he doesn't know that he pulled the string, and the tool chest makes its descent down the staircase, forcefully taking the door off its hinges and rolling the pair into the wall behind them. The final trap Kevin sets involves a kerosene soaked rope that he sets on fire as Harry and Marv climb down it, which forces them to let go of the rope and fall down sending a few dozen cans of varnish into the air as they land, which then comes down and submerges them.
Kevin escapes into the park and calls 9-1-1, but just as he is about to continue running he slips and falls on a patch of ice. Harry and Marv then take him to the park and confiscate his photos and tape, and Harry pulls out a pistol which he has trouble firing because it's covered in varnish. The pigeon lady returns to save Kevin, tossing her bucket of birdseed on Harry and Marv. The birdseed sticks to the thieves, turning them into bird feeders and causes dozens of pigeons to attack them.
Kevin then sets off some fireworks, which he bought earlier, to signal the police. They arrive, and as the thieves are arrested, the police come across Kevin's photos and tape, further incriminating the Sticky Bandits. Furthermore, the cash they stole is recovered and the employees of Duncan's Toy Chest are notified. Mr. Duncan then receives Kevin's note and is relieved that Kevin had done what he had to do.
Meanwhile, Kate is frantically searching New York City for Kevin. She stumbles across two police officers in Times Square, and while talking to them she mentions that Kevin deserves to be with his family around his Christmas Tree. Suddenly it dawns on her that Kevin must be at Rockefeller Center, and asks the policemen to take her there. Her intuition proves correct, as Kevin is standing there wishing that his mother would appear. The two embrace and apologize to each other, then head back to the hotel.
The next morning, Christmas Day, Mr. Duncan sends a whole truckload of presents to Kevin and his family at the Plaza Hotel as a reward for Kevin's role in the apprehension of Harry and Marv. His older brother Buzz suggests that had it not been for Kevin getting on the wrong plane, they would not be in the suite with the Christmas tree and gifts in the first place, and thinks it's only fair that Kevin get to open up the first present. While everyone is opening their presents, Kevin notices that his turtledoves are on the room's Christmas tree and decides to head across the street to the park. He finds the pigeon lady feeding her pigeons and gives her one of the turtledoves, which serves as an affirmation of his promise from earlier. The pigeon lady is grateful for the gift and shares a hug with Kevin.
While all of this is going on, Kevin's room service bill from his first stay at The Plaza, totaling $967.43, is delivered to the McCallisters' room. Buzz receives it and passes it along to Peter, who screams at Kevin from the hotel room regarding the charges. The film ends with Kevin running back to the hotel.
Cast
Soundtrack
Track listing
- "All Alone On Christmas" (4:14) (Darlene Love)
- "A Holly Jolly Christmas" (2:14) (Alan Jackson)
- "Somewhere In My Memory" (3:58) (Bette Midler, composed by John Williams, lyrics by Leslie Bricusse)
- "My Christmas Tree" (2:35) (Home Alone Children's Choir, composed by Alan Menken, lyrics by Jack Feldman)
- "Sleigh Ride" (3:44) (TLC)
- "Silver Bells" (4:15) (Atlantic Starr)
- "Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas" (2:40) (John Williams)
- "Jingle Bell Rock" (2:09) (Bobby Helms)
- "It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year" (2:33) (Andy Williams)
- "Cool Jerk (Christmas Mix)" (2:39) (The Capitols)
- "It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas" (2:14) (Johnny Mathis)
- "Christmas Star" (3:16) (John Williams)
- "O Come All Ye Faithful" (3:26) (Lisa Fischer)(Does not appear in the film)
Score album
In addition, a CD with excerpts from the score by John Williams was issued in 1992[1]. The track listing is as followed:
- Somewhere In My Memory 3:49
- Home Alone 2:01
- We Overslept Again 2:46
- Christmas Star 3:18
- Arrival In New York 1:41
- Plaza Hotel And Duncan's Toy Store 3:45
- Concierge And Race To The Room 2:04
- Star Of Bethlehem 3:28
- The Thieves Return 4:35
- Appearance Of Pigeon Lady 3:19
- Christmas At Carnegie Hall (O Come All Ye Faithful / O Little Town Of Bethlehem / Silent Night) (5:02)
- Into The Park (3:49)
- Haunted Brownstone (3:01)
- Christmas Star And Preparing The Trap (4:17)
- To The Plaza Presto (3:22)
- Reunion At Rockefeller Center (2:36)
- Kevin's Booby Traps (3:41)
- Finale (3:55)
- Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas (2:51)
Special Edition Album
However, due to technical complications, the sound quality of this CD recording was poor. On the film's tenth anniversary, Varese Sarabande released a two-disc special edition soundtrack, containing the previously noted cues along with additional compositions that were left out from the final film.[2]
The complete track listing is as follows:[2]
Disc One
- Home Alone (Main Title) (2:07)
- This Year’s Wish (1:47)
- We Overslept Again / Holiday Flight (3:19)
- Separate Vacations* (1:58)
- Arrival in New York** (2:59)
- The Thieves Return (3:28)
- Plaza Hotel (3:04)
- Concierge (1:31)
- Distant Goodnights (Christmas Star) (Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse) (2:05)
- A Day in the City (:59)
- Duncan’s Toy Store (2:41)
- Turtle Doves (1:29)
- To the Plaza, Presto (3:27)
- Race to the Room / Hot Pursuit (4:08)
- Haunted Brownstone (3:02)
- Appearance of the Pigeon Lady (3:21)
- Christmas at Carnegie Hall (5:15) O Come, All Ye Faithful / O Little Town of Bethlehem / Silent Night
Disc Two
- Christmas Star - Preparing the Trap (Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse) (4:22)
- Another Christmas in the Trenches (2:33)
- Running Through Town (1:16)
- Luring the Thieves* (4:02)
- Kevin’s Booby Traps (7:23)
- Down the Rope / Into the Park (5:06)
- Reunion at Rockefeller Center / It’s Christmas (5:21)
- Finale (2:00)
- We Wish You a Merry Christmas (Traditional) and Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas (Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse) (2:51)
- End Title (1:32)
- Holiday Flight (alternate) (2:32)
- Suite from “Angels with Filthy Souls II” (:56)
- Somewhere in My Memory (Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse) (3:57)
- Star of Bethlehem (Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse) (3:32)
- Christmas Star (Lyrics by Leslie Bricusse) (3:23)
- Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas (orchestra) (2:23)
Box office
The movie opened to $31.1 million from 2,222 theaters, averaging $14,008 per site.[3] While it started off better than the original, the final box office gross was much less.[4] $173,585,516 was taken in domestically and $185,406,165 overseas. The film leaves with a total of $358,991,681 worldwide.
Reaction
The movie was generally poorly received by critics. Roger Ebert of The Chicago Sun-Times commented that the film's gags were overly cartoonish and too sadistic. He also stated that "Cartoon violence only works well in cartoons, which makes it funny only in cartoons. Most of the live-action attempts to duplicate animation have failed, because when flesh-and-blood figures hit the pavement, we can almost hear the bones crunch, and it isn't funny." Another critic called the film "Money grubbing sequilitis at its most pathetic." One critic went so far as to say that Kevin was the true villain of the film, and that Harry and Marv were the victims. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an 17% "Rotten" rating with Critics, and a 62% rating with Users.
Tie-ins
As with the first Home Alone movie, video games based on the sequel were released by THQ for such systems as the Sega Genesis, the Nintendo Entertainment System, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy and personal computers, mostly in late 1992. A separate hand-held game was released by Tiger Electronics.
The Talkboy handheld tape recorder that Kevin used in the film was actually a non-working prop. A huge letter-writing campaign by young fans of the film led Tiger Electronics to produce a fully functional retail version of the recorder in 1993, when the film was first released on home video.
As they had in the first film, American Airlines also had very prominent product-placement in Home Alone 2, with Kevin and his family completing their respective plane trips on AA flights.
Angels with Even Filthier Souls
Angels with Even Filthier Souls is a sort of "sequel" to the clip used in the first film, Angels with Filthy Souls, and both pay homage to the 1938 film Angels with Dirty Faces.
Plot
Johnny's girlfriend, Susie, enters his room. He tells her he knows it was her because he can smell her getting off the elevator. She said it's his favorite perfume, Gardenias. He asked her if she was in his room the previous night. She told him she was singing at the Blue Monkey. He accuses her of cheating on him with several people, including his brother, which she denies, claiming she loves him.
Johnny, claiming he believes her, tells Susie to get out before he counts to three, but he shoots and kills her on two. The clip ends with him saying, "Three! Merry Christmas, you filthy animal!" and "And a Happy New Year!" over the sound of several gunshots.
Use in pranking the staff of the Plaza Hotel
Kevin uses the clip to trick the Plaza Hotel staff when they attempt to confront him about his stolen credit card, fooling the staff into thinking there's a real adult in the room. When Johnny starts accusing his girlfriend of cheating on him, the hotel staff think that he is accusing Mr. Hector (Tim Curry); Cliff the security guard is taken aback at having his name mentioned and says that it is a lie. Mr. Hector informs him that he's apparently mistaken, and that they are looking for a young man. He believes him but then takes out his Tommy gun. Eventually the entire staff gets down on their knees to tell "him" that they "love him." When Johnny starts shooting at Susie, the staff believes they are real bullets and evacuate the hotel room. Other guests hear the "gunfire" as well and peek out of their rooms with cautious curiosity.
When Johnny finishes shooting, Kevin lip syncs his lines: "Merry Christmas, you filthy animal!" and, "And a Happy New Year!" as he heads down the staircase. The hotel staff then crawl their way to the elevators, while Mr. Hector informs the guests to stay in their rooms, claiming "This is an emergency! There's an insane guest with a gun."
Characters
- Johnny- (Ralph Foody) mobster boss who accused his girlfriend of cheating on him.
- Susie- (Clare Hoak) Johnny's girlfriend, who's also a Blue Monkey singer, turned to ragbeat from the wrath of his Tommy Gun.
- Snuffy, Al, Leo, Little Moe with the gimpy leg, Cheeks, Boney Bob, Cliff. - Johnny's brothers and associates whom he thinks Susie is smooching with.
- Lindy - Referring to Charles Lindbergh. Susie told Johnny that Lindy had to take two airplanes to get across her love if it would be an ocean.
References
External links
