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Home Alone 4

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For the Malcolm in the Middle episode, see Home Alone 4 (Malcolm in the Middle).
Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House
Directed byRod Daniel
Written byJohn Hughes (characters)
Debra Frank (written by)
Steve L. Hayes (written by)
Produced byLisa Demberg
Music byTeddy Castellucci
Release dates
November 3, 2002
Running time
89 minutes
Country United States
LanguageEnglish

Home Alone 4: Taking Back the House is a TV movie that premiered on ABC in late 2002 and is the fourth film in the Home Alone Series. The film stars Mike Weinberg as Kevin McCallister, the protagonist of the first two films in the series. French Stewart plays Marv Merchants, who was one of the Wet/Sticky Bandits previously played by Daniel Stern in the first two films. The film was directed by Rod Daniel and released on October 20, 2003 on DVD as Home Alone: Taking Back the House. It was shot in Cape Town, South Africa

Plot

Christmas this year looks gloomy to Kevin McCallister (Mike Weinberg). His parents Peter (Jason Beghe) and Kate (Clare Carey) have been separated for the past 8 months, and with their divorce looming, things at home with Kate are difficult enough without the added friction and bullying dealt to Kevin by his older brother Buzz (Gideon Jacobs) and older sister Megan (Chelsea Russo).

Peter extends an invite to Kevin and his siblings on his Christmas Eve visit to stay with him and his rich new girlfriend Natalie (Joanna Going). Kate simply offers love and affection to the kids. The kids side with Kate, and all is well -- but the invitation dwells on Kevin’s mind. So on Christmas Eve, Kevin sneaks out unbeknownst to Kate, grabs a taxi, and arrives on Natalie’s doorstep to spend the holidays with Peter.

Natalie lives in an unusual mansion -- a "smart house" in which almost everything responds to remote commands: doors open and close at will, the chandelier rises and lowers, a swinging bookcase reveals a secret bar, etc. Even better, the frosty butler, Prescott (Erick Avari), and the kindly housekeeper Molly (Barbara Babcock), are at Kevin's beck and call.

But just as Kevin settles into his luxurious surroundings, Peter and Natalie leave to pick up some royal houseguests at the airport, including an 11-year-old crown prince.

Kevin is taken under the wing of Natalie’s housekeeper Molly when he is the sole witness to two criminals -- Marv Merchants (French Stewart) and his even more clumsy wife Vera (Missi Pyle) -- breaking in easily to case the mansion with the help of an inside man who gave Marv a remote to it. It is revealed that Marv is an old rival of Kevin's who tried to break in his home once before.

Chaos ensues as Kevin’s antics get him into trouble. Natalie and Peter don't believe Kevin, and Prescott even claims to have seen nothing, which makes Kevin suspicious that maybe Prescott is the inside man.

Peter decides they should all trim the Christmas tree, and they do. Kate comes over to bring Kevin some things and it's obvious that she and Peter still love one another deep down inside. Marv and Vera plan to kidnap the prince, and they decide to make their move on Christmas morning, so that night, Kevin rigs the house with booby traps.

As Christmas dawns, Kevin is left at the mansion while Natalie and Peter go out to pick up the royal guests that are staying with them over the holidays.

In their absence, Marv and Vera break in again, intending to kidnap the crown prince. But they didn't realize they'd be facing off with Kevin instead. Kevin lures Prescott to the basement and locks him in, then finds out that Prescott was not the inside person. Molly was. She locks Kevin in the basement as well. It turns out that Molly is Marv's mother.

Kevin escapes, courtesy of the dumbwaiter. While it may not be his house, he still has to protect it. With the help of the house's high-tech wizardry, Kevin repeatedly thwarts Marv, Vera, and Molly by turning the tables on them.

Marv, Vera, and Molly get quite a work out from Kevin's booby traps, and soon, the police arrive and take them to jail. Peter decides he'd rather be with Kate and the kids than Natalie. So it is a merry Christmas after all - but not for Molly, Marv & Vera.

Main Cast

Changes

Marv Merchants

Marv was also completely different from what he was in the first two movies. In this movie, he had married a younger woman named Vera, and he looked identical to Harry (who gained only brief mention). In the first two films, he is portrayed as a dimwitted, naive fool but in this one he is shown to be a criminal mastermind.

Series continuity

As the film does not advance Kevin's age, while depicting culture and technology from the late 1990s, there is no attempt to maintain continuity with the earlier films in the series.

Additionally, this film only shows Kevin having a brother and a sister [Buzz and Megan], whereas in the first two films Kevin had two brothers and two sisters. The brother and sister were also considerably younger than their original character's appearances in the first two films.

Loss of Harry

Marv's partner, Harry, did not appear in this movie, though he's mentioned several times. Marv looks identical to Harry in this film.

References

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