Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House (2002, TV movie) - Popular franchise turns to okay TV movie

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New Kevin McCallister Mike Weinberg strikes the iconic Macauley Culkin Home Alone pose on this snow-filled poster for Rod Daniel's Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House

9 year-old Kevin's father and mother are separated, and Kevin decides to spend Christmas with his father and his new, rich stepmother Natalie. - But a pair of criminals are looking to grab a piece of her wealth, - and no one believes Kevin!

 

Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House is written by Debra Frank (Cagney & Lacey (1985, TV-series)) and Steve L. Hayes (Hey Arnold! (1998, TV-series)), with young Kevin star Mike Weinberg (Oh Baby (1999, TV-series)) making contributions, and directed by Rod Daniel (Teen Wolf (1985)).

It is the surprisingly good first TV movie iteration of the Home Alone franchise begun with Home Alone (1990).

Weinberg is in his own way a sweet (new) Kevin, although he seems a couple of years too old or perhaps just very aware that he is playing cute, which is a shame. The grownup crooks bumble around as usual here, - and French Stewart (Strike One (2014)) and Missi Pyle (Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)) are pretty funny in the parts. Also commendable is that the stunts don't take over the story. Clare Carey (Unrequited (2010)) is also good as Kevin's mother. Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House isn't bad at all.

 

Related posts:

 

Home Alone franchise: Home Alone 3 (1997) or, Home Defense: The New Kid

Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) - The coolest kid in the world incites kiddie bellylaughs once again 

Home Alone (1990) - Columbus, Hughes, Culkin and co. take Christmas and home defense to the next level

 

Watch a short trailer for the film here

 

Cost: Unknown

Box office: None (TV movie)

= Uncertain

[Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House premiered 3 November (ABC, USA) and runs 89 minutes. Shooting took place in Cape Town, South Africa. Details concerning its ratings are not easily found. Daniel retired to fight Parkinson's disease after the release of the film. Stewart returned in The Nick at Nite Holiday Special (2003, TV movie); Pyle in Exposed (2003); and Weinberg in Touch 'Em All McCall (2003, TV movie). 36k+ IMDb users have given Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House a 2.5/10 average rating.]

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