Review: 'Home Sweet Home Alone' is a hopelessly misguided remake of the Christmas classic
It’s a bold move, I suppose, to remake a beloved Christmas comedy and invert the roles — where the pre-teen hero is now the loathsome villain, and the scummy bad guys are now sympathetic characters. Doomed, but bold, as “Home Sweet Home Alone” demonstrates with every terrible step.
We will leave unresolved the discussion about whether the 1990 comedy “Home Alone” is a good movie or merely a much-loved one. At least in the original, one could forgive young Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) for being a little needy and attention-starved as his chaotic family was preparing for a Christmastime trip to Paris — because it was clear he was being bullied by his older brother Buzz (Devin Ratray). (In a failed attempt at social commentary, the new movie reveals that Buzz, the only character from the original to appear here, grew up to become a cop.)
In this movie, 10-year-old Max Mercer has no such excuse. Played by Archie Yates, the hapless young sidekick in “Jojo Rabbit,” Max is an obnoxious brat, constantly making life hard for his mom, Carol (Aisling Bea), as the family prepares to leave suburban Chicago during the holidays.
And the Mercers, living in their McMansion and with the means to fly to Tokyo, have it easy compared to another family, the McKenzies. Pam McKenzie (Ellie Kemper) is a teacher, husband Jeff (Rob Delaney) is a recently unemployed tech dude, and they’re desperately trying to hide from their children (Katie Beth Hall and Max Ivutin) that they’re selling their house.
The McKenzies — while entertaining Jeff’s rich and jerky brother Hunter (Timothy Simons) and Hunter’s high-maintenance wife, Mei (Ally Maki) — then learn that a porcelain doll Jeff inherited from his mom could be worth $200,000, seemingly an answer to the family’s money problems. When the doll goes missing, the McKenzies suspect that bratty little Max stole it when he and Carol checked out their open house.
Thus sets up the premise, in which the McKenzies try to break into the house, only to find Max — left behind by his family — has set up booby traps aplenty. Cue the cartoonish mayhem.
A whole lot of people can share the blame for this trainwreck. Let’s start with the screenwriters, “Saturday Night Live” cast member Mikey Day and “SNL” writer Streeter Seidell, whose only contributions to John Hughes’ original are some elbow-in-the-ribs jokes about remaking old movies and a toothless finale that waves away the preceding destruction of the Mercer front hallway. Equally culpable is director Dan Mazer (“Dirty Grandpa”), who tries for the Roadrunner-vs.-Coyote spirit that the original’s Chris Columbus brought out, but doesn’t have the slightest idea how to execute the gags.
Kemper and Delaney, two usually reliable comic talents, are left with nothing to do but make faces as they succumb to the many pratfalls. Meanwhile, several talented comic performers, including Kenan Thompson, Chris Parnell and Andrew Daly, are given nothing funny to do.
Worst of all, Mazer never allows young Yates to display any of the self-deprecating charm that made his debut in “Jojo Rabbit” so memorable. This kid would have been better off if he had been left home alone.
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‘Home Sweet Home Alone’
★
Available for streaming starting Friday, November 12, on Disney+. Rated PG for slapstick violence, rude material and some language. Running time: 93 minutes.