Never underestimate Kevin McCallister. Or to a lesser degree, Alex Pruitt. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the best, most memorable, and most brutal traps in the "Home Alone" franchise.
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00:00This is it, don't get scared now.
00:05Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the best, most memorable
00:09and most brutal traps in the Home Alone franchise.
00:12Warning, brick-sized spoilers will ensue.
00:16Hey guys, smile!
00:22Number 20, BB-Gun, Home Alone.
00:25Merry Christmas, little fella.
00:28We know that you're in there, and that you're all alone.
00:33Sometimes the simplest weapons make the best traps.
00:36In this comically intense moment, Kevin uses his brother's BB-Gun on the wet bandit, cocking
00:41the rifle like a soldier.
00:43When Harry and Marv knock on the front door, taunting him, Kevin uses the dog flap to send
00:48a quick message.
00:49Be a good little fella now and open the door.
00:53Ah!
00:54Shoot!
00:55What?
00:57It's such a simple trap, but watching Joe Pesci struggling not to curse while trying
01:03to explain the situation to a clueless Marv is definitely worth its weight in gold.
01:07And of course, Marv gets his own comeuppance when he sticks his head through the dog flap.
01:11Seriously, Marv, what did you think was gonna happen?
01:16Home Alone's penchant for slapstick comedy truly never gets old.
01:24The Trampoline Trap – Home Alone 3
01:35The third Home Alone movie may have its flaws, but one thing's for sure, it ups the stakes
01:40considerably in both its premise and its traps.
01:55This last trap is a particularly iconic one.
01:58In this scene, Alex places the trampoline over the pool and moves the actual pool cover
02:03further to the side.
02:05He then lures the criminals to come after him.
02:08However, when the two men jump onto the trampoline, they end up being plunged into the icy waters
02:13below.
02:14Yikes!
02:27This mix of painful hilarity and actual clever thinking definitely makes this trap one of
02:31the best in the series.
02:34The Flying Bricks – Home Alone 2 – Lost in New York
02:52In Home Alone's more expansive sequel, Kevin clearly uses the city's resources to his
02:57advantage.
02:58After the wet bandits try to trick him into throwing down his camera, Kevin instead launches
03:02several bricks at them.
03:04The first one hits Marv squarely on the forehead, and the second one also hits Marv squarely
03:09on the forehead.
03:15Harry goads Kevin into throwing another brick and he obliges, only for it to also hit Marv
03:20squarely on the forehead.
03:22At this point, Marv is barely conscious enough to warn Harry about a fourth brick aimed right
03:26at him, but it still hits Marv on the forehead.
03:32Kevin's supernatural throwing skills and Marv's unfortunate magnetism for bricks
03:41elevates a simple trap into comedy gold.
03:49Coat Hanger Zipline – Home Alone
03:54This franchise's love for whimsical yet clever traps shines through in Kevin's truly
03:59daring escape.
04:00After throwing the tarantula at Marv's face, Kevin uses a coat hanger to zipline through
04:04to the treehouse.
04:06Once there, he taunts the wet bandits, luring them to follow him before he calls the police.
04:11It's pretty obvious what he plans to do, yet Harry and Marv jump on the zipline anyway.
04:16As expected, Kevin waits until they are about halfway across before cutting the line with
04:20a pair of shears.
04:25This sends the bandits crashing into the brick wall of the house.
04:29Frankly, they should have seen this coming.
04:40The Cement Trap – Home Alone 2 – Lost in New York
04:45Poor Marv really gets the brunt of the damage from these traps, doesn't he?
04:49In this simple but effective setup, Marv tugs on a bit of rope dangling from several holes,
04:54thinking it is safely taut and secure enough to climb.
04:57Of course, the rope is actually tied to a bag of cement, which falls and hits him squarely
05:02in the face.
05:05Ouch!
05:08As always, Home Alone doesn't relent in its gags, inventing new traps for the same effect,
05:15and Marv's face is the ongoing casualty.
05:18It's no wonder he felt the urge to murder rising in him.
05:25Exploding Igloo – Home Alone 3 – Home Alone 3
05:33One highlight of the third Home Alone movie is the brilliant use of gadgets, particularly
05:38Alex's toy car equipped with a military chip and a surveillance camera.
05:42Using a remote control, Alex drives the car to the igloo where one of the criminals is
05:46hiding, with his brother's parrot mounted on top of it.
05:49After a hilarious exchange with the criminal and a failed bribery attempt, the parrot lights
05:53a match, igniting the fireworks inside the igloo and causing a powerful explosion.
06:00We have ignition!
06:05The effective use of toys and vehicles to set off this elaborate trap deserves kudos
06:10and showcases Alex as a canny successor to Kevin's wiles.
06:21Number 14 – The Tar and Nail Steps – Home Alone
06:25Some traps are truly painful, and of course, Marv is at the receiving end of most, if not
06:32all of them.
06:33One of the sharpest and most dangerous traps Kevin has ever laid has to be the tar and
06:37nail trap.
06:38First, Kevin coats the basement steps with tar, making Marv lose his shoes and socks
06:43to the sticky paste.
06:44Now barefoot, Marv gets carried away and steps on a nail, causing him to fall back in intense
06:50agony.
06:56The foresight Kevin had to have to conceive of this trap is testimony to his great imagination
07:04– and perhaps a hint of latent sociopathy.
07:07Hey, the internet said so, not us!
07:17Number 13 – The Rope Iron Trap – Home Alone
07:21Speaking of creative ingenuity, Kevin's next trap is similar to the cement bag in
07:25the sequel, and just as direct.
07:28When Marv yanks on a light switch, it comes off and releases a hot iron that falls and
07:32lands, of course, right on his face.
07:43A simple enough trap, but what makes it so memorable is Marv's hilarious reaction afterwards
07:47and the red imprint the iron leaves on his face.
07:50The fact that the iron falls through a laundry chute makes the joke land.
07:54Hard.
07:55It is cartoon comic logic executed perfectly in live action.
08:04Number 12 – Slippery Floor and Paint Can Shelves – Home Alone 2 – Lost in New York
08:09Kevin's traps, it turns out, are a lot slicker than Marv realizes.
08:14In this one, Marv isn't careful and falls onto the slippery basement floor.
08:18But that's not all.
08:20Kevin's fall makes him hit the paint can shelves, which tumble down on him.
08:23Whether Kevin intended for the shelves to fall or not, it's still a marvelously slippery
08:28consequence of the trap.
08:39As we've already seen, this isn't Marv's first time falling victim to Kevin's slippery
08:43tricks, either due to tar or toy cars on the floor.
08:47Either way, the little boy's tendency for tripping up criminals is tactical hilarity.
08:52Number 11 – Feathers – Home Alone This is among the foulest and most elaborate
09:04of Kevin's traps.
09:05After goading him into a room, Harry walks face-first into a sheet of cellophane when
09:09he opens the door.
09:11Then, he trips over a rope, activating a fan which blows feathers into his face, making
09:16him resemble a chicken.
09:22It's only a minor setback, but this trap is notable since it is one of the few that
09:26inflicts no true harm on either of the Wet Bandits.
09:30It also displays more of Kevin's ingenuity at setting up and setting off traps.
09:34No matter how much the Wet Bandits think they've got the upper hand, Kevin is always one step
09:40ahead of them.
09:44Number 10 – Rope Burn – Home Alone 2 – Lost in New York
09:54Sometimes the most obvious pain is the best option.
09:57After finally getting to the top of the house, Harry and Marv find out Kevin is already on
10:01the ground and chase him down a rope.
10:04What they don't know is the rope is soaked in kerosene, which Kevin is quick to light
10:08when the pair are halfway down.
10:15What makes this trap great is the length the Bandits go to avoid the fire, letting go and
10:20falling several stories in the process.
10:33The final punishment comes when a barrage of paint cans follow them down, dousing them
10:38in cold water.
10:42Number 9 – Ornamental – Home Alone What do Marv and John McClane have in common?
10:48A real need for shoes.
10:55After Kevin's tar trap forces Marv to lose his footwear, the Bandit decides to sneak
11:00in through the window.
11:01Unfortunately, he forgets to look before he leaps and plunges his feet down on some easily
11:06shattered Christmas ornaments.
11:14The trap works as a double whammy when Marv's initial reaction from the pain forces him
11:18to step on more ornaments just to keep moving.
11:20A testament to Kevin's style, the ornament trap manages to harm the wet Bandits while
11:25tying into the spirit of Christmas.
11:31Number 8 – Too Hot to Handle – Home Alone Just like in marketing, when it comes to setting
11:36traps, it's all about branding.
11:38When Harry finally forces his way up the McAllister's front steps, he's all too smug to notice
11:43the tiny details right under his nose.
11:46As he goes to open the door, he misses the doorknob's orange glow and grabs it for
11:50the shock, or in this case, the burn of his life.
11:58He quickly crawls back down the steps and throws his hand in snow to cool it down.
12:03When he pulls it out, he discovers the family's M branded right into his hand.
12:08The mark even follows him to the sequel, making it the only trap to permanently damage him.
12:22Number 7 – Tool Time – Home Alone 2 – Lost in New York
12:33When the Bandits go up against gravity, gravity always wins.
12:38After a very brief respite, Harry and Marv hear a thumping noise from behind a door.
12:43Wondering what's causing the sound, the two press their ears up to the door as it
12:46cuts to a tool cabinet tumbling towards them.
12:52The fear in their faces before the door bursts open is the cherry on top, before the chest
12:57pushes them across the floor.
13:05Their noses may be broken, but at least Marv correctly identifies what the sound is.
13:15Number 6 – On Ice – Home Alone
13:17Well, that's one way to give someone the slip.
13:23For his first trick, Kevin hoses his staircases, turning them into a traction nightmare.
13:29When Marv heads for the basement door, the slippery steps practically usher him down,
13:34although not in the gentlest way.
13:42Cleverly using his crowbar to prop himself up, he almost gets inside before slipping
13:46again and having it hit him on the head.
13:53Harry has it even worse, taking two spills on the front steps, even landing in a backwards
13:58roll that would make a gymnast jealous.
14:06Number 5 – What a Hole – Home Alone 2 – Lost in New York
14:20Once again, Marv's lack of situational awareness leads to his downfall.
14:25As he triumphantly enters Kevin's New York hideout, he utters some famous last words
14:30and celebrates his hard work.
14:32Accidentally taking his first step in the house, Marv somehow misses the giant pit right
14:36in front of him and falls face-first to the basement floor below.
14:46After bone cracks that sound more like a cement mixer than a human skeleton, Marv finally
14:50gets a look at how he ended up downstairs.
14:53Even he has to give Kevin credit for this one.
14:58Number 4 – Dumb as a Doorknob – Home Alone 2 – Lost in New York
15:02The front door is never a safe way into Kevin McAllister's house, but some people never
15:07learn.
15:15Waking up from his brick-induced coma, Marv stumbles up the stairs to make his way in.
15:19To his confusion, the doorknob pulls out with yards of string attached, which Marv proceeds
15:25to unravel.
15:26Turning around to give the string a hearty yank, Marv is shot in the butt by a jury-rigged
15:30staple gun.
15:38Thanks to Kevin's brilliant engineering, the gun shoots him the more he squirms in
15:43pain, and each staple is more painful than the last.
15:52Number 3 – Paint It Black – Home Alone 2 – Lost in New York
16:01While some people learn from their mistakes, sometimes it's still not enough.
16:06When climbing the staircase in Kevin's fortified New York house, the bandits suddenly remember
16:10their unfortunate paint can attack from the last Christmas raid and adapt accordingly.
16:19As Kevin proceeds to aimlessly throw the cans at them, the pair can barely keep it
16:23together, believing they've actually outsmarted him.
16:27But then Kevin reveals his true trap – a giant metal column that swings down, knocking
16:32them all the way to the basement.
16:38Kevin's sadistic nature takes it one step further, as he cuts the column loose to let
16:45it hit the bandits one last time.
16:51Number 2 – That Sinking Feeling – Home Alone 2 – Lost in New York
16:55Even by Home Alone standards, this trap is pretty electrifying.
17:04When Marv tries to wash off the paint from Kevin's previous trap, his choice of sink
17:08could not have been worse.
17:10As he grabs the faucets, Kevin activates an arc welder connected to the sink.
17:23Marv's screams get wilder and wilder as Kevin cranks up the juice, puffing out Marv's
17:28hair and even turning him into a cartoonish skeleton.
17:31As dark as the trap is, it's hard not to laugh as Marv keeps shaking, even after he
17:36lets go of the faucets.
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18:02Number 1 – Baptism by Fire – Home Alone
18:09Deciding to avoid continued burns from the heated front door, Harry goes around back
18:14to enter through the kitchen, going out of the frying pan and into the fire.
18:18Literally.
18:19Harry's burst through the door activates a blowtorch that sets his head on fire and
18:23gives us this timeless reaction.
18:36While he manages to put it out with snow the first time, his attempt to extinguish it with
18:40toilet bowl water in New York ends with explosive results thanks to some kerosene.
19:01And yet through it all, the famously foul-mouthed Joe Pesci manages to keep himself from cursing.
19:07Now that's acting!
19:12Which Home Alone trap had your face burdened with schadenfreude?
19:15Or by a hot iron?
19:17Let us know in the comments down below.