The Home Alone series is timeless, quite classic. It seems like everyone has watched Home Alone and most have seen Home Alone 2. Fewer have seen Home Alone 3, but I have thought since viewing it years ago that it is the best of the three. Here is why I think the third one is the best.
First of all, Home Alone 3 has a completely different cast and movie plot. No Macaulay Culkin to play Kevin McAllister, no Wet Bandits, no McAllister family. While this is what turns off a lot of people from Home Alone 3, I argue that this is what makes it better. Kevin is actually an unlikeable character throughout most of the 1st and 2nd movies. He's a bratty, annoying little kid who quarrels with his irresponsible and mean family members. The vibes you get in most of the first two films do not symbolize what Christmas is all about.
With a different set of characters in Home Alone 3, there is obviously a different plot line. The little hero, Alex Pruitt, is a vigilante of sorts while he is home alone, trying to take down international terrorists seeking a missile chip to dominate the Eastern/Western world. Alex is more so misunderstood and not bratty like Kevin. Alex is quite smart in his efforts to stealthily take down the burglars. Not only is the protagonist more sophisticated, the antagonists are much more sophisticated as well compared to Marv and Harry of the previous two movies. They aren't the bumbling idiots that Kevin tortured over and over again; they evade Alex's efforts to arrest them twice and have a complex plan to complete their objectives, as does Alex. Home Alone 3 is quite calculated in its plot.
There are fewer subplots in Home Alone 3 than in the previous films, which helps to make the movie easier to watch. Distractions from the main plot are quite annoying for most, and the only subplot of the film, Mrs. Hess, ties in directly with the rest of the plot, since the antagonists and her accidentally take each other's bags in the opening scene in the airport. With Home Alone and Home Alone 2, Old Man Marley and the Bird Lady are put in there quite randomly to fill time and only play a small role in Kevin's victories.
Home Alone 3 is just a breath of fresh air. Using the same cast for a mirror film of sorts in the third installment would most likely produce a poor result, as the audience would become tired of another repeat. Adding a new cast, separate plot line, but similar style and concept gives one the opportunity to enjoy something new. Yes, Home Alone is a Christmas/Holiday classic, as nothing is the same as the first, but Home Alone 3 does a lot to fix my qualms with the first two movies. While most of you will still disagree with me, I think Home Alone 3 is the best of the series and I hope you give it another chance or go watch it if you haven not already.
