Watching Home Alone: Alone 

By Jada Ball

        The first movie I watched this holiday season was Home Alone. It was Mid-December, and, like Kevin, I was having a rough start to the most ‘wonderful’ time of the year. College applications, work, planning to travel abroad for the first time (ironically to Paris), and my hectic home life led me to savor the time I had to watch my favorite Christmas movie. It wasn’t the first time I had seen the movie by myself–but this time it was different. I couldn’t remember the last time I was able to relax in peace. With no one home, I was left to fall into the magic of John Williams’s opening score. By the end, I had a lot more to take from a movie that has spawned a cash cow franchise; four takeaways that will guide me through this hectic holiday season and year. 

1. Give Yourself Some Alone Time

        If you have no idea what Home Alone is or if it’s been a while: the Mcallisters leave their eight-year-old kid home alone after rushing to get to the airport on time. The night before, Kevin had wished his entire family would disappear after getting into an argument with his mom. Later, he has to defend his house from robbers and makes an unexpected ally, learning to be grateful to have his family around for the holidays. 

         As someone who hasn’t had time by herself in who knows how long, it was cathartic to see Kevin realize the implication of what this fulfilled wish meant–jumping on the master bed, eating so much junk food it would make any normal person barf, and watching a grisly movie he had no right to watch at age eight. 

A sixteen-hour work week, school, and college admissions leave me with almost no time to chill. Sometimes, we need to let ourselves go like Kevin–to a degree. 

2. Don’t Be Afraid To Ask For Help

         As the movie goes on, we see Kevin take his one-person family seriously: he does the laundry, goes grocery shopping, and keeps the Wet Bandits on their toes as he constantly finds clever ways to defend his house. Though he’s only eight, he’s learning to take care of himself as the adults in his life either don’t check in on him or are too far away to help him. 

         Now, I was never put into the situation Kevin was, but I have been doing all my college admissions by myself–as much as possible anyway. If my sister, English teacher, and librarian didn’t proofread my written answers, my application would resemble Kevin after his grand plan to capture the thieves: hanging from the closet as they threatened revenge for everything that had happened to them at the hands of this devious genius. In the end, Kevin needed someone who he thought was a murderer, Marley, to take down the robbers. Odds are you too will need a metaphorical guy with a shovel to help bash your problems away. 

3. Face Yourself And Your Fears

        The situation you are currently in relies on two factors: things you have no control over and mistakes you have made. Near the end of the movie, Kevin displays this line of thinking when he talks to Marley in the church. 

        Not only does he admit to being a ‘pain’ to his family, he gives Marley, and the audience, much needed advice face your fears with the tools you have at your disposal. In Kevin’s case, it is the light switch that makes him less afraid of the basement’s furnace. For Marley, it was the phone which he used to call his son. And, of course, For the Mcallistair’s house, it’s the dozens of booby traps and one handy guy with a snow shovel that take down the robbers. 

        I love the parallel drawn between Marley and Kevin in this movie. Both of them have messed up in their lives and have been vilified for it. Both are alone during Christmas. Both are bandit catchers- but I digress. 

        When Kevin is talking to Marley, he’s looking at himself in the mirror, a sad reflection of what can happen if he lets fear rule his life. If he hadn’t faced himself and admitted his mistakes, he wouldn’t be able to grow as a person and have the motive enough to defend his house from the Wet Bandits. 

I’ve feared the unknown this holiday season. Fear that I won’t be able to go to Paris somehow, fear of what I’ll do the two months before college starts, fear that I’ll never do something with my life–but then I look into the mirror. I see a 17-year-old kid that has all the tools she needs to take on her life. It’s still scary, but if you turn on the light, it isn’t too bad. 

4. Don’t Forget What Family Means

        The real heart of Marley and Kevin’s conversation was about not forgetting your family, regardless of what has been said to each other and how you feel about one another. Marley, in addition to having nasty rumors spread about him, hasn’t been able to see his granddaughter for years because of a fight he had with his son. Marley hasn’t called him because he’s afraid he will still feel the same way. Yet Kevin tells him to call his son anyway–a leap of faith leading Marley to see his family for the holidays. 

        After facing the Wet Bandits, Kevin falls asleep after preparing his home for his family’s return, even if he doesn’t know they're coming back in time for Christmas. Next year, my family will split up for many reasons. My sister and I are going to college, and next year we won’t be all under the same roof. Like Kevin with his mom, I’ve said some bad things about one of my family members, and while I didn’t entirely mean it, those feelings of frustration and anger are still there. Home Alone ends realistically–Buzz is enraged that Kevin trashed his room while taking his money. Just because everyone is together doesn’t mean everything will be perfect. But it will feel a lot worse if you're by yourself. 

Conclusion

        By the end of the movie, I was in tears. I had felt vindicated, sad, and elated after watching Kevin who at first longed to be alone, slowly wanted his family back and, at the end, did. He had grown up by the end of the movie, and I felt I had to too–at least enough to face this turbulent holiday season and next year–both alone and with help.