Wednesday, November 01, 2017

'Better Watch Out' Is a Warped Spin on 'Home Alone'

Better Watch Out is a horror-comedy home invasion thriller film from Australia.  Set during the Christmas holidays, it is about a 12-year-old boy named Luke (Levi Miller), his bestfriend Garret (Ed Oxenbould), and his teenage babysitter Ashley (Olivia DeJonge) who found themselves besiege by mysterious intruders.

It’s probably impossible to emphatically describe what makes it special without spoiling anything.  I myself proceeded to watch this movie without having watched any trailers, and with just the vague idea from something I read that made me expect it was going to be a warped spin on the Christmas comedy film Home Alone.  And it turned out being accurately like that, really.  It even directly references that beloved classic a few times.
It has a fresh script that delivers a couple of witty dialogue and an immersive, surprising plot.  Meanwhile, the tone interestingly shifts back in forth between being disturbing and satirical, and it does so without making the narrative untidy.

As the movie starts, details are presented as if it’s being set up like a typical slasher story.  Then almost midway in the film, it drops a huge plot twist that totally changes the movie, making it more fascinating and unsettling, but also in a manner that will make sense to my “warped spin on Home Alone” description for it.
By its innovative concept alone, Better Watch Out is a must-watch.  It’s highly entertaining – especially to those who have adored Home Alone.

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