Home Alone

This weekend my roommate left me to go judge a debate tournament, which means...I'm home alone. I've got the place to myself. Isn't it interesting that the use of the word "place" makes my living quarters seem more desirable than the 19' x 8' bedchamber that it is? Never the less, it's sometimes nice to have the shoebox to myself; I'm one of those people that cherish alone time. I think it's healthy to have some every now and then.
This morning as I was doing my laundry and a little cleaning I decided to pop a movie into my laptop to make the tedious chores seem a little more enjoyable. I thought it would be fitting to watch the classic film, appropriately titled for the situation: Home Alone. What can I say, it's one of my favorites. I spent a good five minutes analyzing different aspects of Home Alone 1 and Home Alone 2 trying to decide which one I liked better. Home Alone 1 is a classic, humorous, and you really can't go wrong with it. Home Alone 2 has almost the exact same plot line as the first, just a little more unrealistic, which if you're in the right mood, makes it that much more enjoyable. Plus, it has two of the best movie lines of all times: "I'm afraid you're mistaken" and "It's a lie!" Over Christmas break I think those two lines were quoted among my family a minimum of 17 times a day. It's not so much the text that make them funny, but more the context and accent that they are said in. So, if you ever run into my little brothers, ask them to say these lines for you and you're bound to wet your pants because of laughter. They've got it down to an art. Or even better, just watch it. I think it's towards the beginning of the movie. Well, unfortunately, my plan of watching one of these two brilliant movies fell through, due to the fact that they are sitting in a cupboard in Centerville. And we only own them on VHS, which means we're doomed if our 10-year old VCR breaks; I don't think they sell VCR's anymore, so to avoid a catastrophe, we should think about upgrading them to DVD, mom.
So, I had to go with another movie. I ended up choosing one that could also be categorized as a classic: Newsies. Also one of my favorites. It's interesting that even at such a young age Christian Bale was able make me swoon. All he needs to do is break out in dance in a deserted alleyway in New York City, start singing 'Santa Fe' and he's got me. It would only be years later when he was sweeping through Gotham City that my knees would truly weaken for him. However, as enticing as Jack Kelly is, he comes in a close second place. It's his partner in crime, Spot Conlon, that holds the key to my heart. The way he can aim a sling-shot is captivating. Plus, he has the two best lines in the movie: "No need to fear, Brooklyn is here" and "I think, that what you think, is what I think." I was curious to find out what happened to Spot in his later years, so I did a little research. If it interests you, read on. If not, well, you've made it this far, you may as well continue reading. Turns out Spot's real name is Gabriel Damon. Besides his role as Spot, he played the voice of Littlefoot in Land Before Time, so we know he was in at least 14 movies. Other than that, he hasn't been in anything too noteworthy. Too bad, because he was brilliant in Newsies. Is it weird that I'm blogging about my obsession with 16-year old actors in a movie that was produced 17 years ago? Perhaps. Just don't judge me for it.
Well, it was an outstanding Saturday morning and I highly recommend watching Newsies or either of the Home Alone's the next chance you get. They won't disappoint you.