Macaulay Culkin, Brenda Song, Kieran Culkin, Catherine O’Hara
The McCallisters are going international, but trouble has a curious way of checking into the same hotel. Home Alone 4: The Alpine Protocol reinvents the classic franchise, taking the chaos to dizzying new heights. Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) is all grown up and working as a high-end security consultant, but the trauma of his childhood has left him a hilariously paranoid father who sees potential death traps in every corner. Determined to have a safe, controlled holiday, Kevin treats his wife (Brenda Song), their twin children, and the extended clan—including his eccentric mother Kate (Catherine O’Hara) and cynical brother Fuller (Kieran Culkin)—to a getaway at “The Summit,” an ultra-exclusive, fortress-like ski resort in the Swiss Alps.
Kevin is convinced that in this high-tech haven of snow, nothing can go wrong. He is wrong.
As a historic blizzard buries the mountain, cutting off power and isolating the resort from the outside world, a sophisticated European heist crew known as “The Black Diamond” initiates a silent takeover. Led by a suave, Hans Gruber-esque villain, they aim to breach the resort’s subterranean vault. During the initial blackout, Kevin is separated from the family while obsessively checking the perimeter fence, leaving him stranded out in the storm.
Inside the luxury family chalet, the twins realize they are the only line of defense. Fortunately, they have inherited their father’s engineering genius. Using the resort’s lavish amenities and Kevin’s digitized “Book of Traps,” the kids turn the chalet into a house of horrors. The thieves face a gauntlet of boiling fondue cannons, electrified ski lifts, slippery frozen spa floors, and high-velocity Toblerone projectiles.
Meanwhile, the film shifts into a comedic survival thriller for Kevin. Channeling a family-friendly version of Die Hard, Kevin must battle the elements and henchmen on the mountainside to get back to his kids. Kieran Culkin steals scenes as Uncle Fuller, who sleeps through the entire invasion after too much glühwein. The climax features a heartwarming and destructive reunion where three generations of McCallisters band together, proving that while security systems fail, the McCallister survival instinct is bulletproof.