Have you seen "Home Alone" where a little boy named Kevin McCallister (Macauly Culkin) is forgotten by his family as they rush to catch a plane for their Christmas vacation in Paris? Once the kid wakes up and finds himself abandoned at home, the rest of the movie is then the kid taking care of himself and protecting his house from thieves while his mother, who has no way to contact him because the phones are out, tries to get home to him? Seen it?

Well, this is the same basic movie. The only thing that has changed is the geography. The McCallisters are going on Christmas vacation again. This time, however, they're off to Florida instead of to France. Once again it is the whole clan going - parents, siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles. As they hurry to get on the plane (instead of to the plane), the nice lady at American Airlines assures the McCallisters that she will make sure everyone gets on the right plane (just as last time the parents relied on the older kids to make sure that everyone was with them). Being the concientious parents that they are, the McCallisters let themselves be boarded ahead of their brood and without checking to make sure everyone is there. As you might expect, one of the kids doesn't make it onto the right plane. Surprise! Kevin McCallister is boarded on a plane to New York instead. Somehow, no one notices he isn't on their plane and he doesn't seem to notice that despite the fact that his family is about a dozen strong, there is no one on the plane who he recognizes.

Getting off in New York, he doesn't hang out at the airport trying to get back to his family. He doesn't talk to anyone at security about what has happened. No. Kevin is resourceful. He leaves the airport and ends up in Manhattan. Once there, he is befriended by a bag lady/bird lady in Central Park (Brenda Fricker.) Being in Manhattan, there are the other mandatory Christmas shots, too. Of course, we get to see the Plaza Hotel (where the McCallisters who obviously have more money than brains eventually end up.) Then there are scenes at Rockefeller Center with the Christmas tree and the ice rink.

Of course, it wouldn't be a "Home Alone" movie if the bad guys weren't there. Harry (Joe Pesci) and Marv (Daniel Stern) have escaped from prison and are up to their old tricks. Now, however, they're in New York. When they see Kevin McCallister, they try to get their vengeance. Once more, Kevin must thwart their dastardly deeds. The result is a lot of cartoon style sadism being enacted on real human beings. It was painful to watch in the first Home Alone. Well, in this sequel the director has sought to out-do himself. There are more stunts and more painful looking stunts than before. Everything that was in the first movie is here, but now there is more of it - more shots to the groin, more things dropped on the bad guys, more burns, and more and bigger falls.

Of course, there is lots of supposed humor as Kevin's mother tries to find him Ha!Ha! Mother is in a panic because she can't find her child. Of course, there is no questioning whether the McCallisters should be arrested for neglect. This isn't the first time they've lost their youngest child. Of course, we know Kevin isn't in any real danger. We can watch his mother's panic with pleasure....NOT!

It isn't really giving away any big surprises to say that in the end everyone ends up having Christmas together at the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan. No Florida palm trees, but a proper white Christmas in the city.

There is no sex in this movie and the language is acceptablee for family fare. If the violence is your idea of fun and acceptable, then the kids seem to enjoy this. This is another case where the kids seem to enjoy the movie, but if you're over 10 you might do better to find an intelligent movie with a plausible plot. Also, you might want to consider that this is a sequel. Sequels are rarely the equals of the original movies. The first movie, frankly, wasn't all that hot. This one in downright cold.

Recommended:
No

Viewing Format: VHS
Video Occasion: None of the Above
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children up Ages 8