The much-loved 1990 and 1992 Home Alone films stood the test of time and continue to be a Christmas movie tradition. Viewers came to anticipate the mischief, action, comedy, and heartwarming moments of the Christmas films as they watched a young Kevin McCallister outsmart Marv and Harry, two not-so-bright, albeit determined, burglars.
Marv and Harry bounced back injury after injury, making serious life-threatening slips, hits, and burns appear as though they were simply brief painful inconveniences as opposed to incapacitating or deadly injuries.
Updated on December 10th, 2022 by Melody MacReady:
Over thirty years later, both Home Alone and Home Alone 2 continue to make viewers laugh every holiday season. Both movies hit that right note of slapstick comedy that keeps the violence from seeming too brutal or too childish, making the final acts of both films so iconic as holiday movies but as movies in general.
However, that doesn’t stop adults from dissecting Harry and Marv’s injuries featured in both films. Many can agree that without the slapstick element, the Wet Bandits are actually going through horrific pain and injuries in order to catch Kevin McCallister.
Knocked-Out With A Shovel
Home Alone (1990)
By the end of the first Home Alone film, Marv and Harry’s minds and bodies have gone through a lot of trauma. They survived multiple falls, an iron to the face, a nail in the foot, a branding from a door handle, paint buckets to the face, a crowbar to the chest, stepping on sharp Christmas ornaments, and other humiliating injuries.
So, a shovel may not seem like much, but this is an old-school metal snow shovel meant to break the ice and deal with heavy snow. With enough force, Marv and Harry could easily have a concussion from Old Man Marley’s attack.
Stepping On A Nail
Home Alone (1990)
Many might see this as a basic (but hilarious) wound for Marv. He steps on a nail and then flops back into the basement and while a nail to the foot may not kill a person, it is still a nasty wound. Keep in mind that Marv is already barefoot with tar, snow, dirt, and pieces of ornament going to be sticking to them throughout the night.
A nail wound like Marv’s will be prone to infection if not properly cared for, especially with how deep it goes. Feet are already the hardest parts of the body to heal because of all the sweat and grime, but add in the many veins and tendons that can be punctured down there and the result is a painful step.
Air Gun To The Groin
Home Alone (1990)
This trap will make most people laugh while some are cringing at the pain similar to when James Bond was tortured in one of the franchise’s scariest scenes in Casino Royale. Everything in the nether regions of a male is not only vital to their system but also extremely sensitive.
Getting shot with a metal airsoft round may not be a bullet, but it is still potentially damaging. It can fracture one of Harry’s testicles and at that range, it could have punctured through the skin. There is a high chance that Harry is not going to be able to have kids after encountering Kevin.
Hit With A Staple Gun Three Times
Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992)
The staples seen in one of the funniest Home Alone 2 traps with the staple gun are quite large and staple guns like the one shown are powerful machines. It would essentially be no different from getting shot with two nails at once, and Marv gets stapled in three different spots: the face, the rear, and the groin.
All the factors of the air gun are also in effect with the staple gun but injuries to the face and the nose would cause even more damage. Marv would likely have trouble breathing, but thankfully, none of the staples seem to even cause a single drop of blood.
Burned Twice
Home Alone (1990)
Fire-based injuries becomes a common theme with Harry, starting with his attempt to simply touch a doorknob. It was red hot which results in a hissing burn that would realistically result in no more use of that hand until it was healed. Then Harry just has to try the back door.
He opened it only to trigger a blowtorch that burned his head to a crisp that is hilariously in the shape of a snowflake. The funniest part is that normal people scream when they get major burns, but Harry barely reacts after putting it out and just gets angrier.
An Iron To The Face
Home Alone (1990)
When it came to setting traps, Kevin McCallister sure did get creative. When Marv tried to pull the cable to turn on the light in the basement, he actually pulled the precariously positioned iron from its mantle at the top of the laundry chute.
It’s heavily downplayed for humor, but in the real world, an iron to the face would result in a fractured skull and shattered nose. There is even a high chance that the metallic pointed end could embed itself into Marv’s skull, but instead, he just gets a red mark across his face.
A Crowbar To The Chest
Home Alone (1990)
Marv got rid of the spider on his face, only for it to land on Harry which makes Marv hit his partner in an attempt to kill the spider. Although it was only one whack, it was a pretty hard blow to Harry’s insides, possibly resulting in internal bleeding and broken ribs.
There is even a chance of death when it comes to this trap since a blow that hard could rupture Harry’s heart. At least it resulted in some of the funniest quotes from Harry and Marv across both movies.
Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992)
Kevin is a master of using tools as a weapon. He even hits Harry and Marv multiple times with tools throughout Home Alone 2, but this tactic reaches its ultimate form on the top floor. Harry and Marv are victims of a shockingly balanced tool chest that crushes them against a wall.
The two of them were miraculously okay except for some temporarily-wonky noses. To add to the tool-related injuries, Marv and Harry were also whacked by a swinging iron bar, which then proceeded to fall down the stairs and land on their fallen bodies.
The Iconic Paint Cans
Home Alone (1990)
The paint can trap is not only one of the best traps of the first Home Alone, but it is a deadly one. Imagine a heavy object made of metal hitting someone at a full pendulum swing, the result is concussions, broken jaws, broken nose, and even death depending on where the paint can hit.
Harry does suffer some permanent damage from this trap, losing his precious golden tooth as a result. However, this trap would become so iconic that it made a return in Home Alone 2, but with a welcome twist.
Landing On A Car From A Height
Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992)
After stopping Harry and Marv from robbing Duncan’s Toy Chest, Kevin lures them out onto a makeshift seesaw. Even though Marv was definitely not heavy enough to send Harry flying into the air, it’s still fun slapstick that results in Harry landing on a car and collapsing the roof.
In real life, if Harry managed to generate that much power into his fall, Harry would be immediately hospitalized or even dead. Cars are not fragile, so it makes his wheeze of pain even funnier since he just lies there, likely in shock from the event.
Falling From A Burning Rope
Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992)
As Marv and Harry are climbing down, Kevin lights the rope as they are coming down, and the two fall down through some wooden planks and land on concrete then are covered in varnish.
This is another trap that is immensely played down because otherwise, this would have been a bloodbath of a trap.
The fall alone would have killed the iconic criminal duo, but the varnish is the icing on the cake. Yet somehow, they still manage to get up and chase Kevin through the streets of New York City.
Return Of The Blowtorch
Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992)
In Home Alone 2: Lost In New York, Harry once again finds himself the victim of a blowtorch, but this time, he does an impressive handstand maneuver and places his head in the toilet bowl. Instead of water, there’s kerosene, and an explosion occurs that somehow doesn’t kill Harry, but instead burns him thus removing all of his head hair.
This has become known as one of Kevin’s deadliest traps in the Home Alone franchise. In actuality, Harry would never survive the explosion let alone only come out with some burns. Of course, it is a slapstick comedy for the family, so realism wouldn’t exactly work either.
Increasing Electrocution
Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992)
Oh, Marv, Home Alone 2: Lost In New York managed to provide even more trauma and injury than the first film. After sliding into shelves stocked with filled paint cans, Marv tries to clean himself up by going to the sink.
Unfortunately for him, Kevin, the quasi-horror movie villain is there to provide the next level of defense. He turns on the arc welder rigged to the taps and increases the voltage as Marv is being electrocuted. If it weren’t for the silly skeleton making it into slapstick, this would be considered one of the most gruesome traps Kevin has devised.
Bricks To The Face
Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992)
Home Alone 2 starts its gauntlet of traps with a very memorable one as Marv is hit, not once, not twice, but four times with bricks. It’d be one thing if Kevin simply used it like a blunt instrument, but instead, he throws them down from a nearly forty-foot-high roof.
Many fans of this series still consider this trap iconic for multiple reasons. Daniel Stern reacts to them in hilarious ways, especially when he’s scared of the final one, but the biggest reason is that Marv would have dropped dead from the first brick alone, but he gets hit with four and comes out of the situation slightly dizzy.
Hit Twice With An Iron Pipe
Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992)
Harry and Marv should not be alive after this trap; no ands, ifs, or buts about it. Iron pipes are heavy-duty pieces of construction, and first off, there’s no way Kevin could lift one of them. Still, if Harry and Marv were really hit with an iron pipe, the first hit alone would have killed them.
Yet somehow they not only survive, but they also fall a good fifteen feet into the basement, then get hit again with the same pipe that falls onto them. Kevin is undeniably twisted in his methods but Harry and Marv surviving this trap is another level of hilarious and ridiculous.
