The movie isn’t horrible but it isn’t great
either. It clearly follows the same format as the first, almost note
for note. Though everything is one upped from the first movie, including
those traps which get kind of nuts. Bricks to the head, floor boards
being removed, these guys are covered in paint, electrocuted, set on
fire, and fall three floors into a basement! How many times would Harry
and Marv died in this movie if it had been real life? Also in the first
movie it was Kevin’s house, how exactly does Kevin know how the one in
this movie is set up? Or heck even manage to get around the city so
well? Other things just don’t work. The mother has a lot less urgency to
find Kevin until she gets to the city, and how did they get a flight to
New York with no trouble like that? The reason the family over sleeps
makes even less sense and that closing gag with the father yelling about
the room service bill is painfully forced.
And yes…..
Donald Trump has a cameo, who would have guessed that I would hate that scene twenty-five years later?
Anyway, there are things to like in this movie and here are five of them. And maybe this time Cinema Sins wont release a video a week later basically saying the same things I’ll comment on here. Don’t you hate it when that happens? 🙂
Buzz’s redemption
Last time I talked about what a jerk Uncle Frank was. Well he is still is here. But I also noted that Buzz gets a redemption in that movie. In this movie he does also. Even though what he does to Kevin in the beginning is worst, publicly embarrassing him the way he does is unacceptable. So much so even the movie makes him apologize to his family right after. But I gotta be fair and the way Buzz is at the end when he suggests Kevin open the first gift is a nice moment for an obnoxious character.
The Finest Idiots in New York
Yeah I know this almost a cliche, who didn’t love Tim Curry in this movie? He is just having so much fun in the film and steals every scene he’s in. I’m not sure but this may have been the first time I really liked Curry, although I am not sure if I saw this before Clue. And yes the scene where the Grinch’s grin turns into Curry’s is simply priceless. And to be fair the other characters at the Plaza are decent, even Rob Schneider isn’t that obnoxious here. Maybe this feels fresh because it’s literally the only fresh characters we get (I’ll get to the pigeon lady). The scenes at the Plaza still manage to get a laugh out of me.
Aware that it’s a sequel
I kind of like this though I could see how some wouldn’t. Since this is basically a cookie cutter sequel, though apparently Chris Columbus worked very hard on it, it would be easy for the characters to not realize that fact and just repeat events. But, they do realize it. When Kevin is sent to is room his mother points out the trouble they had the last year started out similar to this. The parents scream they “did it again” after oversleeping (which is stupid in more ways than I can count). The mother worried Kevin is missing in the van, when he pops up. When Kevin arrives in New York he says “yikes, did it again”. Harry and Marv learned from the paint can trick–only to be smashed with an iron beam instead. And before the crazy traps Kevin announces that it’s “another Christmas in the trenches”. I guess if you’re going to have the character basically repeat events at least make them aware of it. This shows respect to the audience, and hopefully it wont feel like they are just watching the first movie all over again. And yes I know the mother’s name is Kate!
New York City
Say what you want about this movie, New York City looks fantastic!
Course it’s fantastic there at Christmas. Not that I’ve been there, but
I’ve heard things. First of all the change of venue helps make the movie
feel different. One of the few things that feels different about this
movie. Then we get some great scenes at classic tourist spots like
Central Park, The Plaza, Radio City Music Hall, Carnegie Hall, Statue of
Liberty, Chinatown, Times Square, and The World..Trade…Center. Ugh…yeah
it’s a sad fact that one of the best scenes in the movie was of Kevin
seeing these beautiful buildings and the view from the top. But the best
scene of all is the final one, at Rockefeller Center. Where else would
you got to see a Christmas tree in New York City? Yeah you can see it
coming a mile away…but it’s still nice! The only thing that bugs me is,
why was FAO Schwartz swapped out with the fictional Duncan’s Toy Chest? I
suppose it serves the plot better but since it’s one of the only fake
thins in the movie the fact it’s fake sticks out like a sore thumb. And
I’ve been to FAO Schwartz (before it closed last year) by the way, it
was amazing!
The Pigeon Lady
I wasn’t really a fan of the old guy in the first movie. Yeah sure the
rumor about him probably wasn’t his fault but he doesn’t help his cause
glaring at Kevin the way he does a few times. And while I love the
conversation the he and Kevin have in the church, let’s be honest that
final scene where he is reuniting with his family is hard to buy. His
son forgave him just like that? I actually like the bird lady in this
movie more. I just think it’s a more believable character. A lost soul
who’s afraid of being hurt works better than the an old guy who never
talks to his neighbors. The family stuff with the old guy feels tacked
on, with the lady it’s the sole reason she’s homeless in New York
feeding pigeons. The conversation she has with Kevin is sweet, and the
way they meet is believable. She helps him when he gets stuck in a tree
and he realizes she isn’t so bad. Unlike the first movie where the guy
has to tell him he’s not that bad. Also the way she helps in the end is
much more satisfying than the way the old guy helped Kevin in the first
movie. The pigeon thing still makes me laugh. But the thing I really
like is there is no “magic redemption” for this character. In the end
she is still basically living in the park, feeding her pigeons. Kevin
appears and gives her a turtle dove which proves they will be friends
and wont forget her. She smiles and hugs him. It’s clear that she is
learning to accept friends in her life and maybe will start trusting
again…..and that’s all we need. I know people love that ending in the
first movie with the old guy and his family, this one works better for
me. Until they botch it with that horrible last joke but I already went
over that.
This movie is far from perfect, and the first is ten times better, but it’s still worth a watch every holiday season. Got one more article coming before we wrap up the year, and man what a year it has been!
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