Home Alone 2: A Memorable '90s Sequel

When I think of the glorious 90s, the first young actor who comes to mind is Macaulay Culkin. It’s undeniable that those were his best years. When I think about it, the first movie that comes to mind and that I enjoy watching over and over again is “My Little Angel 2”. Please forgive me, but in my opinion, this sequel is far superior to the first movie. Of course, the second one movie wouldn’t have existed without the concept of the original, but the sequel is much more entertaining and even a bit sentimental at times. It’s never boring at all, with just the right balance of everything. Undoubtedly, the funniest scenes take place inside the hotel.

When I saw it as a girl, I always envied Kevin’s luck in a healthy way. I wanted to experience all those things that seemed so amazing to a child. Of course, I wasn’t blind to the dangers that surrounded them. But who wouldn’t want to get away from the family’s rules and challenges for a little while, just to have some fun with their childlike innocence? Staying in that hotel was like being in a paradise full of fun. Looking back, I think this experience served as a reminder to appreciate everything we had at home, something we didn’t value back then. You can have all the luxuries you want outside of home and away from your family, but money can never buy happiness, as it’s fleeting and meaningless. The best thing is to share whatever we have with those we love. I think that’s the main message of the movie. It’s fine to have fun, but you’ll always need love.Love and someone who loves you or waits for you when things don’t go well. We’ll always want to return to the arms of our mother or father, or that person who loves us unconditionally, for who we are, not for what we possess or achieve.

So, I can say that my “inner child” understood the message. She enjoyed watching it all, and wanted to experience, out of sheer whimsy, all the luxuries that money could buy. But after playing in that imaginary world where everything seemed possible, she just wanted to sit back down at the table with her family, just like Kevin in his mother’s arms.

The settings themselves were very reminiscent of the 90s: the clothing, the ways people communicated and behaved. There wasn’t the immediacy that comes with the virtual world. Thankfully, we didn’t need that, or also addicted to it. Everything was experienced in person, face-to-face with others. If something didn’t happen as expected, that was okay, that’s also part of life. We acted differently back then, and felt differently too. Now, it seems like we’re all robots, constantly staring at screens or waiting for something to happen (it’s ironic that I’m writing this while sitting behind a screen) If we don’t see what we expect, if we don’t get what we want, we feel empty or disappointed. It’s as though we forget that the real world is right out there, waiting for us to discover it and live as we used to in those wonderful years.Thanks to these movies, we can remember what life was like back then. Hopefully, we’ll stop merely looking back at the past and, just like in the 90s, begin to live life with intensity and courage. After all, what’s the point of being alive otherwise?