TAGGED AS: Christmas, christmas movies, Comedy, movies
(Photo by © 20th Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved.)
You know the lines. (“Kevin!”) You know the scenes. (Bricks!). You know the characters. (Pigeon Lady!). But did you know Home Alone 2: Lost In New York, a modern-day Christmas favorite, is Rotten on the Tomatometer? Cue: Hands on face – mouth agape.
What did the critics object to, exactly? According to many reviews at the time, simply moving the action – and Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) and the Wet-now-Sticky Bandits – from the suburbs of Chicago to the streets of Manhattan wasn’t quite enough to justify this sequel’s existence. Almost scene-for-scene, from the family losing Kevin in the airport to Kevin meeting a scary stranger who is more than they appear, Home Alone 2 plays exactly like Home Alone, and for many that wasn’t enough. And then there was the violence: Critics slammed the movie for its brutality, which felt more Freddy Krueger than Road Runner the second time around – and to be fair, the grand finale, set in a Manhattan brownstone, featured enough bricks and paint cans and traps to kill Marv (Daniel Stern) and Harry (Joe Pesci) many times over.
Too much of the same thing or just enough of a good thing? Too violent or brilliantly brutal? Sickly saccharine or expert bringer of the Christmas feels? Joining hosts Jacqueline Coley and Mark Ellis this week to break down Home Alone 2 in our latest episode of Rotten Tomatoes Is Wrong is Rotten Tomatoes Editor-in-Chief Joel Meares, who is, let’s just say, a fan of this film – extreme violence, extreme repetition and all. Will he convince us that Lost In New York is more masterpiece than miss? Tune in to find out.
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Check in every Thursday for a new episode of Rotten Tomatoes Is Wrong (A Podcast From Rotten Tomatoes). Each week, hosts Jacqueline and Mark and guests go deep and settle the score on some of the most beloved – and despised – movies and TV shows ever made, directly taking on the statement we hear from so many fans: “Rotten Tomatoes is wrong.”
If you have a suggestion for a movie or show you think we should do an episode on, let us know in the comments, or email us at rtiswrong@rottentomatoes.com.
Meet the hosts
Jacqueline Coley is an editor at Rotten Tomatoes, with a focus on awards and indie coverage but with a passion for everything, from the MCU to musicals and period pieces. Coley is a regular moderator at conventions and other events, can be seen on Access Hollywood and other shows, and will not stand Constantine slander of any kind. Follow Jacqueline on Twitter: @THATjacqueline.
Mark Ellis is a comedian and contributing editor for Rotten Tomatoes. He currently hosts the Rotten Tomatoes series Versus, among others, and can be seen co-hosting the sports entertainment phenomenon Movie Trivia Schmoedown. His favorite Star Wars movie is Jedi (guess which one!), his favorite person is actually a dog (his beloved stepdaughter Mollie), and – thanks to this podcast – he’s about to watch Burlesque for the first time in his life. Follow Mark on Twitter: @markellislive.
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