Home Alone is nothing if not one of the most classic Christmas movies out there. With the movie celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, chances are that you’re going to take some time out of your Christmas celebrations to sit down and watch it with your family.
Whether this is a yearly tradition or you just want to see how the movie holds up, it’s a great choice. The booby traps are one of the most enduring elements of this movie; here are the five craziest booby traps scattered around the McCallister household.
5. Tarantula
This might not technically be a booby trap that Kevin sets up in advance, but it’s still something that he uses to thwart the so-called “wet bandits.” The tarantula is actually a pet that his brother has in the home. When Marv, one of the bandits, believes that he’s cornered Kevin and is getting ready to attack him, Kevin pulls out his secret weapon: this pet tarantula, which he drops onto Marv’s face. It gives him just enough of an advantage to get away from Marv, as Marv freaks out over the tarantula.
4. Icy Steps
Near the beginning of the burglars’ attempts to enter the home, Kevin takes advantage of the cold Chicago winters to help him try to keep the burglars out. He spreads water over the front steps and the basement steps of the home. Due to the cold temperatures outside, the concrete freezes over very quickly, causing the burglars to slip and fall as they attempt to get to the home.
3. Red-Hot Doorknob
Even with the generalised protection of the icy steps, the burglars still manage to make their way toward the home. Harry, one of the burglars, decides to make the bold choice of attempting to enter the home through the front door. However, Kevin knew that it was likely that Harry would be doing this. To try and remove his ability to enter through the front door, Kevin takes an electric barbecue lighter to the doorknob, causing it to glow red-hot. When Harry tries to open the door, it just burns his skin.
2. Paint Cans
As Marv and Harry try to go up the stairs to continue to pursue Kevin, he’s able to knock them back at least a little bit. He pushes paint cans off the top railing of the home, causing these cans to knock into the men’s faces. One of the reasons this is such a crazy booby trap is because in real life, it would probably be so dangerous that it would even have the possibility to kill the burglars. The weight of the cans combined with their significant pendulum movement means that the impact would be extremely significant and potentially even deadly.
1. Chicken Suit
At one point, Harry tries to enter the home through the back door rather than the front door. However, he runs into a Rube Goldberg-style trap that causes him to look like a giant chicken. He walks into plastic wrap that Kevin has covered in strong caulking glue, then triggers a fan to blow feathers all over him. This take on the classic tarred-and-feathered idea is something that isn’t as dangerous as the original, but still results in an equally ridiculous end vision.
As you can see, Home Alone has a variety of crazy booby traps that hold up even today. People love watching Home Alone every year, whether due to a longstanding tradition or just because it’s a fun movie to watch. Next time you and your family watch Home Alone, try to decide which of the booby traps is your favourite.